IPCC Fourth Assessment Report: Climate Change 2007
Climate Change 2007: Working Group II: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability

C. Cross-chapter case studies

Early in the writing of the Working Group II contribution to the Fourth Assessment, there emerged themes of environmental importance and widespread interest which are dealt with from different perspectives by several chapters. These themes have been gathered together into ‘cross-chapter case studies’, which appear in their entirety at the end of the volume and are included in the CD-ROM which accompanies this volume. A ‘roadmap’ in Table I.3 shows where the cross-chapter case study material appears in the individual chapters.

The four cross-chapter case studies are:

1. The impact of the European 2003 heatwave

2. Impacts of climate change on coral reefs

3. Megadeltas: their vulnerabilities to climate change

4. Indigenous knowledge for adaptation to climate change

Table I.3. Cross-chapter Case Studies: location in text.

The impact of the European 2003 heatwave 
Topic: Chapter: Location in chapter: 
Scene-setting and overview     
The European heatwave of 2003 Chapter 12 12.6.1 
Impacts on sectors     
Ecological impacts of the European heatwave 2003 Chapter 4 Box 4.1 
European heatwave impact on the agricultural sector Chapter 5 Box 5.1 
Industry, settlement and society: impacts of the 2003 heatwave in Europe Chapter 7 Box 7.1 
The European heatwave 2003: health impacts and adaptation Chapter 8 Box 8.1 
     
Impacts of climate change on coral reefs 
Present-day changes in coral reefs     
Observed changes in coral reefs Chapter 1 Section 1.3.4.1 
Environmental thresholds and observed coral bleaching Chapter 6 Box 6.1 
Future impacts on coral reefs     
Are coral reefs endangered by climate change? Chapter 4 Box 4.4 
Impacts on coral reefs Chapter 6 Section 6.4.1.5 
Climate change and the Great Barrier Reef Chapter 11 Box 11.3 
Impact of coral mortality on reef fisheries Chapter 5 Box 5.4 
Multiple stresses on coral reefs     
Non-climate-change threats to coral reefs of small islands Chapter 16 Box 16.2 
     
Megadeltas: their vulnerabilities to climate change 
Introduction     
Deltas and megadeltas: hotspots for vulnerability Chapter 6 Box 6.3 
Megadeltas in Asia     
Megadeltas in Asia Chapter 10 Section 10.6.1, Table 10.10 
Climate change and the fisheries of the lower Mekong – an example of multiple stresses on a megadelta fisheries system due to human activity Chapter 5 Box 5.3 
Megadeltas in the Arctic     
Arctic megadeltas Chapter 15 Section 15.6.2 
Case study of Hurricane Katrina     
Hurricane Katrina and coastal ecosystem services in the Mississippi delta Chapter 6 Box 6.4 
Vulnerabilities to extreme weather events in megadeltas in a context of multiple stresses: the case of Hurricane Katrina Chapter 7 Box 7.4 
     
Indigenous knowledge for adaptation to climate change 
Overview     
Role of local and indigenous knowledge in adaptation and sustainability research  Chapter 20 Box 20.1 
Case studies     
Adaptation capacity of the South American highlands´ pre-Colombian communities Chapter 13 Box 13.2 
African indigenous knowledge systems Chapter 9 Section 9.6.2 
Traditional knowledge for adaptation among Arctic peoples Chapter 15 Section 15.6.1 
Adaptation to health impacts of climate change among indigenous populations Chapter 8 Box 8.6