WP 2

This WP will develop a range of indicators of climate change impacts across the sectors of water, agriculture and biodiversity that will be used to inform engagements with various actors to co-develop appropriate adaptation actions.

Objectives

The analysis of climate change induced tipping points in the southern African region towards the provision of climate services such as informing adaptation actions and policy require a reliable scientific base quantifying climate change impacts across various sectors. This WP will develop such a base, in the form of a range of indicators of climate change impacts across the sectors of water, agriculture and biodiversity that will be used to inform engagements with various actors to co-develop appropriate adaptation actions. These measures will range from indices of meteorological and hydrological drought, to simulations of soil moisture, indices of heat-stress in cattle, simulations of crop yield and estimates of soil degradation. Where possible actors will be engaged to include their experiences of using such indicators, which have been most useful and which not, and then how can these be improved? The indicators will thus be based on the comprehensive set of projections of future climate change described in WP1, and will be also worked into engagements with users up front in efforts to co-design useful outputs and then options for effective actions for dissemination will be work-shopped and co-produced further through WP3. It is expected that these products will find wide application across the southern African region in terms of climate change impacts – far beyond the reach of this project. However, the indicators are also of critical importance for the assessment of regional tipping points as per WP4 of the project.