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WWF Climate Change
Campaign
Director Adam Markham
c/o World Wildlife Fund-US
1250 Twenty-fourth St., NW
Washington, DC 20037
Tel: (202) 861-8388
Fax: (202) 331-2391
E-mail: climate@wwf.org
Visit our website at :

http://www.panda.org

A D A P T I N G  T O  C H A N G E

T he signs, as illustrated in the WWF/CRU report, are clear. Increasing levels of greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere will have a wide range of impacts on southern Africa. Most of the countries affected can ill afford to cope, and climate change is sure to exacerbate already existing social and environmental problems.

Since African nations can do little on their own to reduce the overall build-up of green-house gases in the atmosphere, they must call upon industrialized nations to commit to an accelerated emission reduction program (at least 20% cuts in CO2 by the year 2005). In the meantime, however, southern Africa can begin preparing for change. Key issues for southern Africa will include preparing for changes in disease distribution, water resource distribution and rangeland management. For centuries, rural communi ties have learned to survive drought and harsh weather in Africa, but many of the water and soil management techniques, resistant crop varieties and food production methods are known only locally, or to certain ethnic groups. These tried and true adaptive strategies need to be extended out of their areas of origin to achieve wider application. A second major possibility is the development of game-ranching or other wildlife uses, such as tourism as an alternative to cattle-raising in some areas. Many wildl ife species survive drought better than cattle, and are less destructive to the environment. Finally, there is an urgent need to research new crops and crop varieties.

There is no doubt that Africa is, and will continue to be, affected by climate change. Only concerted efforts on the part of all nations can slow down global warming, but the southern African nations can significantly reduce their vulnerability by plannin g for change.


Southern Africa

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