Climate Change

Climate change is often described at the largest challenge facing humanity in the 2st century. While the contribution of developing countries to cumulative emissions of greenhouse gas is small compared to developed countries, growing attention is needed for these countries. Not only could emissions from these countries in future decades determine the effectiveness of climate mitigation goals, but developing countries are the most vulnerable to the effect of climate change. For example, according to the Intergovernmental Panel for Climate Change, Africa is expected to be severely affected by changes in precipitation patterns, water availability, agricultural yields, and populations’ vulnerabilities to infectious diseases. KCRC affiliates are pursuing research to evaluate the continued impacts of African development on the changing climate; identify climate mitigation strategies in the context of developing countries in Africa; and assess climate adaptation strategies African countries could pursue to mitigate the climate-induced risks that now seem inevitable.