Ross Westoby

Griffith University

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Karen E. McNamara

University of Queensland

Rachel Clissold

University of Queensland

Alvin Chandra

Environmental Earth Sciences

Saleemul Huq

International Centre for Climate Change and Development

Tahlia Clarke

University of Queensland

A. Mirza

International Centre for Climate Change and Development

Christopher Y. Bartlett

Vanuatu Cultural Centre

Eugene Joseph

Micronesia Conservation Trust

Bernadette P. Resurrección

Queen's University

Roselyn Kumar

University of the Sunshine Coast

Cooperative Institutions

University of Queensland

International Centre for Climate Change and Development

Independent University

University of the South Pacific

University of the Sunshine Coast

Environmental Earth Sciences

Vanuatu Cultural Centre

University of Prince Edward Island

Bridge University

University of Melbourne

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Barriers to adaptation: Insights from Laamu Atoll, Maldives

Asia Pacific Viewpoint (2020)

Rachel Clissold Karen E. McNamara Ross Westoby

Although adaptation to climate change is becoming increasingly recognised as an unavoidable priority, barriers are consistently encountered and reported. Identifying, analysing and overcoming these barriers is essential for ensuring that, as climate change worsens, adaptation capacities are not exceeded. Despite current studies providing a useful structuring heuristic to guide inquiry, there is a significant gap related to explanations around barrier occurrence and how to overcome them. In response, this article, based on semi‐structured stakeholder interviews, aims to provide preliminary insights into the type of barriers that exist in Laamu Atoll, the Maldives and explore any interdependencies between them. This study found that a range of resource barriers (i.e. funding, physical and human resources in outer islands and data on vulnerable groups) and social barriers (i.e. political/institutional and organisational constraints and inefficiencies, marginalisation and power differences as well as cognitive elements) were hampering adaptation. In exploring the interdependencies that exist between these barriers, the nature of their occurrence, persistence and entry points for resolution were also identified.

Structuring

Atoll

10.1111/apv.12258

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Citations (9)

Ways of healing in the Anthropocene

Climate and Development (2021)

Ross Westoby Karen E. McNamara Rachel Clissold

Grief and mourning are part of the human journey. But what happens when sadness occurs because of changes happening around us: losses to animals and plant species, changing weather patterns and loss of place and identity. How do we, in a time of significant planetary change, begin to acknowledge, process and act when faced with growing distress, anger, anxiety and despair? This paper explores ways of healing in the Anthropocene, a new geological era in which human activities have destabilized life on Earth. We draw upon insights from various fields and perspectives including disaster studies, peace studies and First Peoples. These insights reveal how healing can come about through: slow healing, agency, connections (local to global), place and nature, cultural practices, sociality, voice and narrativity, mnemonics and cultural memory, holism and interconnectivity, deep listening, sharing and storytelling, as well as inter- and intra-generational justice. We must shift away from therapeutic and individualistic approaches towards healing that is social, collective and focused on holistic wellbeing and interconnectivity with the Earth system. These powerful insights can help us process grief and restore harmony in the connection of all things, so that we can gradually, collectively and holistically find hope in the Anthropocene.

Anthropocene

Temporalities

10.1080/17565529.2021.1881425

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Citations (12)

Turning to Nature to Process the Emotional Toll of Nature’s Destruction

Sustainability (2022)

Ross Westoby Rachel Clissold Karen E. McNamara

As challenges emerge in the context of the Anthropocene, one often overlooked area is the emotional toll that the Earth’s destabilisation has on the human psyche. Deeper investigation into perceived “negative” emotions of the Anthropocene requires closer attention if those in highly industrialised societies, as the major contributors to the climate crisis, are to avoid collective denial and move towards transformative change. This paper aims to provide insights into these “negative” emotions that are emerging in Australia in response to changes to the biosphere and the destruction of nature, including sadness, grief, anger, frustration, and anxiety. As a way of processing these “negative” emotions, the authors find that connecting with, and being in, nature is critical. Such connection allows people to cope, renew, and heal. In this way, nature is both the trigger for, and answer to, our ecological grief, anger, and anxiety, and, as such, is at the epicentre of human emotions in the context of the Anthropocene.

Anthropocene

Sadness

10.3390/su14137948

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Citations (7)

Alternative Entry Points for Adaptation: Examples from Vanuatu

Weather Climate and Society (2020)

Ross Westoby Rachel Clissold Karen E. McNamara

Abstract As climate change accelerates, effective adaptation is an urgent and unavoidable priority. Bottom-up approaches such as community-based adaptation have been portrayed as the panacea. Recent studies are, however, highlighting the ongoing and inherent issues with normative “community” conceptualizations that assume a geographically bound, temporally fixed, and harmonious unit. Despite documentation on the negative impact these problematic assumptions can have on adaptation outcomes, adaptation at the community scale remains the preferred option for project delivery in highly exposed places such as the Pacific Islands region. More creative entry points that are less charged with problematic assumptions are needed at the local scale. This paper draws from three examples in Vanuatu to offer compelling alternative entry points for adaptation: 1) a rural technical college embedded within an Anglican mission village, 2) a whole-of-island approach, and 3) the “collective of vendors” at marketplaces. We offer hope by identifying ways to expand on and complement existing, restricted notions of community and, through this, to improve adaptation outcomes.

10.1175/wcas-d-20-0064.1

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Climate-Induced Non-Economic Loss and Damage: Understanding Policy Responses, Challenges, and Future Directions in Pacific Small Island Developing States

Climate (2023)

Alvin Chandra Karen E. McNamara Rachel Clissold Tammy Tabe Ross Westoby

Despite mitigation and adaptation efforts, the residual risks of climate change will continue to impact the most vulnerable communities globally. Highly exposed regions, such as the Pacific Islands, will continue to experience profound negative loss and damage as a result of climate change, which will challenge current ways of life. Knowledge on the extent to which regional and national climate change polices can identify and respond to non-economic loss and damage (NELD) is limited. From the perspectives of stakeholders in the Pacific Islands region, this research aims to gain insights into how regional and national policies are responding to NELD, as the well as the barriers, shortcomings, and requirements for future responses. Utilising a mixed qualitative–quantitative approach, this research explores the perspectives of expert informants, including those from the government, donors and development partners, civil society, intergovernmental organisations, and other relevant bodies, such as universities. The key findings of this study indicate that current policy responses include a regional policy that integrates disaster and climate change losses, national efforts to preserve traditional and local knowledge, national adaptation and resilience planning, community-based projects, and relocation and resettlement. Additionally, NELD is a relatively new concept for policymakers, practitioners, and researchers, and it is difficult to conceptualise the diversity of issues related to NELD in the region. Owing to this poor understanding, a key gap relates to the dominance of the economic lens when characterising climate-induced impacts in the region. As such, there is a limited holistic consideration of climate change impacts, and thus a limited appreciation of the interrelated factors of NELD within policy responses that then cascade towards communities. Finally, the paper outlines key policy insights as follows: policies on integration, adaptation, resilience planning, relocation and resettlement have advanced; the economic lens dominates when characterising climate-induced impacts on the region; there is a limited appreciation of the interrelated factors of NELD; and there exists a need to account for residual and intangible losses to land, culture, traditional knowledge, biodiversity, ecosystem services, and human agency. The insights gained from this research can provide a practical basis for guiding local to regional action and help support and design comprehensive risk management solutions in order to address NELD associated with climate change.

Relocation

National Policy

10.3390/cli11030074

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Local knowledge and climate change adaptation on Erub Island, Torres Strait

Local Environment (2011)

Karen E. McNamara Ross Westoby

Local knowledge is a valuable asset in observing and managing environmental change, and importantly, is an unheralded source of adaptive capacity. Torres Strait Islanders are no exception, having used such knowledge to adapt to biophysical changes in their environment for centuries. This article explores the ways in which Islanders have coped in the past with environmental changes to plan for their future. This article focuses on Erub Island in the eastern group of islands in the Torres Strait and charts the adaptation actions or activities employed by respected locals (Elders and Aunties). Drawing on their local knowledge, these actions or activities have included the building of rock walls and wind breaks, using native species to re-vegetate sand cays and the coastal foreshore, applying self-sufficient practices such as fish traps and gardening, reading and respecting country, and transferring this knowledge to the younger generation. In this way, it is the Islanders themselves who detail, based on their local knowledge, what is most appropriate for their community.

Traditional Knowledge

Adaptive capacity

10.1080/13549839.2011.615304

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Citations (73)

Fear, grief, hope and action

Nature Climate Change (2019)

Ross Westoby Karen E. McNamara

Affect

Collective Action

Coral bleaching

10.1038/s41558-019-0511-z

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Citations (32)

Emotions of the Anthropocene across Oceania

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (2022)

Rachel Clissold Karen E. McNamara Ross Westoby

As human activities have destabilised life on Earth, a new geological era is upon us. While there is a myriad of challenges that have emerged because of such human-driven planetary changes, one area of investigation that requires ongoing scholarly attention and scientific debate is the emotions of the Anthropocene. The emotional, mental, and psychological burdens induced by rapid and unprecedented change must be understood to better reflect the experiences of people around the globe and to initiate conversations about how emotions may be used for transformative change and effective politics. This paper aims to provide insights into the types of emotions that are emerging in Oceania as the Anthropocene unfolds. To do this, we draw on several data sets: questionnaire results with visitors of Mt Barney Lodge in the World Heritage Gondwana area in Queensland, Australia; another questionnaire with Pacific Island “experts” engaged in climate change, development, and disaster risk management work; interviews with locals living in the Cook Islands; and various spoken, written, and visual art from the Pacific. Bringing these data sets together allows us to explore a diversity of experiences, perspectives, and emotional responses to the Anthropocene from participants across Oceania. We found that acute and slow-onset weather events, experiences of direct loss and change, a perceived lack of agency or control over futures, and a sense of injustice triggered emotions including fear, stress, anxiety, exhaustion, sadness, grief, anger, frustration, helplessness, worry, but also empowerment. These results are critical for the first step of acknowledging and naming the emotions that are emerging in Oceania, such that they can then be worked through, and may be used for transformative change, effective politics, and agency over futures.

Anthropocene

Sadness

Transformative Learning

10.3390/ijerph19116757

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Citations (22)

Identification of limits and barriers to climate change adaptation: case study of two islands in Torres Strait, Australia

Geographical Research (2017)

Karen E. McNamara Ross Westoby S Smithers

Abstract Communities living on remote islands are often viewed as among the most exposed and vulnerable to climate change impacts. This study uses the Sustainable Livelihoods Framework to investigate how indigenous communities living on two physically different islands in Torres Strait, Australia, experience what they consider to be the impacts of climate change in relation to their daily lives. During this process, a series of natural, physical, and socio‐cultural limits and barriers to climate change adaptation were identified on Boigu, a low‐lying mud island inundated by the sea during high tides and storm surges. As a volcanic island, Erub's elevation is higher but significant community infrastructure, housing, and cultural sites are located on the low coastal fringe. No immediate limits to climate change adaptation were identified on Erub, but physical and socio‐cultural barriers were revealed. Limits to climate change adaptation occur when adaptation actions fail to protect the things valued by those affected, or few adaptation options are available. Barriers to climate change adaptation may be overcome if recognised and addressed but can become entrenched limits if they are ignored. Within the participating communities, such limits and barriers included (a) restricted adaptation options due to limited access to particular livelihood assets; (b) difficulty engaging with government processes to secure external support; and (c) people's place‐based values, which evoke a reluctance to relocate or retreat.

10.1111/1745-5871.12242

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Citations (30)

Using a human rights lens to understand and address loss and damage

Nature Climate Change (2023)

Karen E. McNamara Rachel Clissold Ross Westoby Stephanie Stephens George Koran

Dignity

Safeguarding

Loss and damage

Framing (construction)

10.1038/s41558-023-01831-0

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Citations (6)