Climate Change Impacts, Mitigation and Adaptation: Science for Generating Policy Options in Rajasthan, India

Abstract

"This report reviews the published research on climate change impacts, mitigation and adaptation with specific focus on Rajasthan, India. The science-based insights shall remain crucial to generate and implement policy options to address the challenges of climate change. The report provides process guidance for designing adaptive policy and actions. It is argued that giving clear priority to those developmental activities in Rajasthan that meet a combined set of seven climate-proofing criteria, which can be verified through measurable indicators for ecological, economic and social sustainability shall be essential (i) Reduction and/or sequestration of greenhouse gases, (ii) biodiversity conservation and ecosystem functioning, (iii) enhancing the yield of livelihoods goods and services to local people, (iv) reduction in poverty and vulnerability, and improving the resilience and adaptive capacity, (v) local empowerment and capacity development, (vi) synergy with objectives of international instrument and conventions, and (vii) coherence with local strategies for sustainable development. Filtering from these standards, we found that several activities being carried out under Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MNREGA) address both poverty and climate change. The land-based activities being done under MNREGA enhance resilience and reduce vulnerability, and thus contribute both to climate change adaptation and mitigation. The report also provides abstracts of the research articles and publications that policymakers can use to design evidence-based policy responses in various domains of governance. We also provide a selection of examples on using science to generate policy responses for Rajasthan. These examples are drawn from diverse domains such as water, energy, dryland and desert, protected areas, and urban systems. This selection of examples, hopefully, shall facilitate policymakers and practitioners working in diverse governance domains to use the literature included in this document for designing appropriate policy options for climate change mitigation and adaptation in Rajasthan."