RECOMMENDED PUBLICATION

Climate Change and Society

12 November 2022

Geographic area:

Europe

Topic:

~~Climate change represents the greatest challenge of the 21st Century and will affect human societies in multiple ways.~~

Our knowledge about the nature and physics of climate change, its causes and its consequences, is far greater than our understanding of the societal changes it poses. Climate change is a social production, a complex process of societal transformations, which we all need to understand to better cope with the challenge it presents.

Climatic conditions play a significant role in people’s lives and can interfere with lives in multiple ways. The causes are known, and they put human action at the centre of the debate. The consequences of climate change on ways of life are complex, diversified, inevitable, and will likely become worse over time. The nations that contributed most to the problem are often those that least suffer the consequences while those who contributed the least are often the most affected, vulnerable and unprepared.

Written by:

PHOENIX

The Rise of Citizens Voices for a Greener Europe

Source:

Alves, F., Schmidt, L., eds. (2022). Climate Change and Society. Lausanne: Frontiers Media SA

Click here to read the e-book

In addition to the expected impacts in the most diverse economic and environmental sectors, human health has emerged as an important area associated with climate change.

Although not frequently mentioned or targeted as a key political concern, it is expected that the impact of climate change on human health will be severe, both in the distribution and incidence of diseases. Moreover, climate change will have extensive implications to human well-being, which will reflect on social structures and ways of life.

The aim of this ebook was to highlight and share knowledge on the social, economic, political and cultural implications of climate change, as well as reflect upon the required transformations in policy, governance and social-cultural strategies to mitigation, adaptation and prevention.

To understand the multiple dimensions of climate change and their interdependencies, we need to bring together various sciences, knowledges and powers. Social sciences and sociology play a central role in analysing the effects of human activities on natural systems. Social sciences can scrutinise those phenomena and relations that, within human societies, produce social structures that ultimately have negative impacts on the environment.