Human Systems Adaptation to Climate Change: The Soft-Approach

This chapter deals with the theoretical issues raised by studies on climate change. It reviews the key concepts in climate change science, focusing on the definitions of human systems, vulnerability, exposure, sensitivity, as well as those of fragility, adaptive capacity and resilience. The differences between risk, effect and impact are also clarified. The Chapter addresses the distinction between mitigation and adaptation, the potential synergies and trade-offs between the two options and the urgency of prioritizing adaptation actions in the short and medium term, due to the long load time for the effect mitigation actions. Finally, it addresses the inherent uncertainty, complexity and distorted perceptions associated with climate impacts, which have been identified as the main barriers to the effective design and implementation of adaptation measures. The adoption of the soft approach to adaptation is suggested as a possible response to overcome these barriers.