Vulnerability locked in. On the need to engage the outside of the adaptation box

IF 8.6 1区 环境科学与生态学 Q1 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
Julia Teebken
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Abstract

“Vulnerable populations” are experiencing a (re)emphasis in climate change adaptation research and practice even though the concept has long been contested. Adaptation planning is increasingly expected to restore past inequalities and address systemic injustices. Yet, we know little about the role local environmental agencies, bureaucrats, and policy practitioners (can) play in addressing “vulnerable populations”. Drawing from qualitative empirical research in Atlanta, Georgia, the United States, and Jinhua, Zhejiang in China, the local problem recognition about “vulnerable populations” and adaptation decision-making was examined. The findings reveal severe limitations in the way “vulnerable populations” are approached, with certain groups being politically contested and being considered difficult to be prioritized. In both cases, accidental forms of adaptation stand out, which mainly focus on blue-green infrastructure interventions and neighborhood revitalization programs, some of which recreated “vulnerable populations”. The findings hint to vulnerability being more deeply rooted in external conditions to the individual, which requires different policy interventions. The article presents a novel understanding by conceptualizing “vulnerable populations” as an instance of vulnerable political institutions. There’s a need to explore the nature of our political systems, how much inequality we allow and which redistribution mechanisms the state has for addressing interdependent dimensions of inequality. To make “vulnerable populations” finally a front and center concern begs us to radically engage the outside of the conventional adaptation box. Inequality studies offers synergies with adaptation justice discourses and different policy instruments that address the root causes of vulnerability.

被锁定的脆弱性。有必要让适应箱外部参与进来
尽管 "弱势人群 "这一概念长期以来一直受到争议,但在气候变化适应研究和实践中却得到了(重新)重视。人们越来越期待适应规划能够恢复过去的不平等,解决系统性的不公正问题。然而,我们对地方环境机构、官僚和政策执行者在解决 "弱势人群 "问题方面所扮演的角色知之甚少。通过对美国佐治亚州亚特兰大市和中国浙江金华市的定性实证研究,我们考察了当地对 "弱势人群 "和适应决策问题的认识。研究结果表明,处理 "弱势群体 "问题的方式存在严重局限性,某些群体在政治上存在争议,并被认为难以被优先考虑。在这两种情况下,偶然的适应形式都很突出,主要集中在蓝绿基础设施干预和邻里振兴计划上,其中一些计划重新创造了 "弱势群体"。研究结果表明,脆弱性更深层地植根于个人的外部条件,需要不同的政策干预。文章通过将 "弱势人群 "概念化为弱势政治体制的实例,提出了一种新的理解。我们需要探索政治制度的本质,我们允许多少不平等,以及国家有哪些再分配机制来解决相互依存的不平等问题。让 "弱势人群 "最终成为我们关注的焦点,要求我们从根本上跳出传统的适应框框。不平等问题研究可与适应正义论述和不同的政策工具产生协同作用,从根本上解决脆弱性问题。
本文章由计算机程序翻译,如有差异,请以英文原文为准。
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来源期刊
Global Environmental Change
Global Environmental Change 环境科学-环境科学
CiteScore
18.20
自引率
2.20%
发文量
146
审稿时长
12 months
期刊介绍: Global Environmental Change is a prestigious international journal that publishes articles of high quality, both theoretically and empirically rigorous. The journal aims to contribute to the understanding of global environmental change from the perspectives of human and policy dimensions. Specifically, it considers global environmental change as the result of processes occurring at the local level, but with wide-ranging impacts on various spatial, temporal, and socio-political scales. In terms of content, the journal seeks articles with a strong social science component. This includes research that examines the societal drivers and consequences of environmental change, as well as social and policy processes that aim to address these challenges. While the journal covers a broad range of topics, including biodiversity and ecosystem services, climate, coasts, food systems, land use and land cover, oceans, urban areas, and water resources, it also welcomes contributions that investigate the drivers, consequences, and management of other areas affected by environmental change. Overall, Global Environmental Change encourages research that deepens our understanding of the complex interactions between human activities and the environment, with the goal of informing policy and decision-making.
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