cCASHh - Climate Change and Adaptation Strategies for Human Health in Europe | Umweltbundesamt

The basis of the project are the emission scenarios and climate projections of the 3rd Assessment Report of the IPCC in 2001.

The exposure of the population to weather and climate conditions is particularly pronounced in the following four cases:

1. Long-term changes in mean temperature and other climate averages, which need to be seen over a period of decades or longer,
2. Inter-annual climatic variability,
3. Short-term variability, to which monthly, weekly, or daily meteorological changes belong,
4. Individual extreme events, such as temperature or precipitation extremes with resulting flood events.

Assessment of the future, climate-related vulnerability of natural and socio-economic systems. At the European level, it is recognised that it is necessary to reduce vulnerability and increase resilience. The assessment of the vulnerability of human health with regard to the climate change is a key aspect. Assessment of the adaptive capacity of the population and the possibilities of increasing it. To this end, the existing policies are analysed and the barriers to implementing them.

The project will particularly identify legal, political and institutional measures that are needed for maintaining and improving the health status of the population and serve the purpose of adapting to future climate change impacts.Such adaptation measures are needed on an individual and private level as much as on a national and international level. The following aspects are considered:

1. Presentation of the conceptual framework for adaptation to climate change in public health

2. Identification of vulnerable areas and population groups on the basis of empirical adaptation studies and case studies;

3. Consolidation of the principles and conditions for adaptation with integrated assessment models