Manishka De Mel: Helping people and ecosystems adapt to climate change
Manishka De Mel (left) is a senior staff member at the Center for Climate System Research at the Columbia Climate Institute. She recently co-edited the book Our Warming Planet: Climate Change Impacts and Adaptation with climatologist Cynthia Rosenzweig (right).
Growing up in Sri Lanka, Manishka Demel — a senior staff member at the Center for Climate Systems Research at the Columbia Climate Institute — is troubled by a range of environmental issues around her, such as pollution from vehicle emissions, waste management issues and deforestation. After high school, she was motivated to study environmental science.
At the time, Sri Lanka did not have any undergraduate programs in this field. So she moved to the UK to study Environmental Management at Imperial College London. Shortly after graduating in 2004, she studied for an MA in Biodiversity Conservation at Oxford University. Armed with the knowledge needed to find solutions to environmental problems in developing countries, she returned to Sri Lanka in 2006 to work in two organizations focused on air pollution, deforestation, environmental justice and climate change.
Working on the ground with her team members and witnessing how Sri Lanka is working to build coastal resilience in the wake of a devastating disaster 2004 Indian Ocean TsunamiDemel realized that climate change would also have devastating effects on the island’s coastal areas.
“Climate change wasn’t a hot topic back in the early 2000s. We only gave a few lectures on climate in my undergraduate and master’s degree programs. It wasn’t even a module or course,” she said. “I wanted to learn more about climate science and that’s where I decided to join Columbia University Master’s Program in Climate and Society. “
After graduating, De Mel found a job at the Center for Climate System Research (CCSR) in late 2013. She now leads a range of conservation and development projects from the Caribbean coast to the snow-capped Himalayas.
Building climate resilience in coastal areas
At CCSR, De Mel gathers information to assess how climate change will affect ecosystems and communities in Asia and Latin America. This information then enables governments and other stakeholders to build resilience to climate change and extreme weather events.
In a 2021 study published in the journal Weather, Climate and Society, De Mel and colleagues found that stakeholders associated with conservation projects in tropical and subtropical countries do not have access to appropriate climate risk information. Local stakeholders also have little or no resources to integrate this information into the decision-making process. These barriers make it difficult for vulnerable communities to plan ahead and adapt to climate change.
“We have been working to provide local policymakers with expertise on rising temperatures, extreme heat, rainfall patterns, sea level rise and ocean heat. We then guide them on how to effectively use this information in the future to reduce local climate risks, ‘ said Demel.
The research team walked along the coast of Mexico.Photo: WWF
One such project where De Mel and her colleagues have helped to incorporate climate risk information into planning is in the Mesoamerican Coral Reef region of the Caribbean Sea. It is the second longest barrier reef system on Earth. The entire region is home to more than 60 species of coral and more than 500 species of fish, Marine biodiversity and tourism hotspots. The reef stretches over 600 miles and borders the four countries of Mexico, Belize, Guatemala and Honduras.
Coral reef systems under threat climate change impact like coral bleaching, extreme weather and rising sea levels. DeMeer explained that the damage caused by unsustainable development projects and pollution also wreaks havoc on marine ecosystems and fisheries.
Mangroves can withstand the effects of climate change while delivering other benefits to communities and ecosystems. Photo: Manishka De Mel
she works with Cynthia Rosenzweig, senior research scientists at CCSR and researchers at NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies, working together to identify ways to protect the fragile Caribbean ecosystem. The pair worked with the World Wildlife Fund and governments in four countries to provide climate risk information to guide local stakeholders on what adaptation measures can help protect local communities.
Using climate risk information, along with other relevant information, local stakeholders decided to conduct pilot adaptation projects in each of the four countries in the Mesoamerican Coral Reef Region. In 2020, Belize incorporates climate change analysis into its comprehensive coastal marine plan recover the coastal dunes and mangroves of the Yucatan Peninsula and use this information to help set new emissions reduction targets under the Paris Agreement.
as lead author UNEP 2020 Adaptation Gap ReportHoney Observed Only a fraction of climate funding goes to nature-based climate solutions, such as restoring coastal wetlands and coral reefs. These solutions are often low-cost and offer other benefits to local people and ecosystems.
Despite the growing emphasis on nature-based solutions, Demel warns that the effectiveness of adaptation projects will be minimized if steps are not taken to reduce carbon emissions. For example, mangrove saplings and coral farms can be severely damaged during storms, hurricanes or flooding events. Hurricanes Irma and Maria in 2017 75 coral farms demolished in Puerto Rico.
“We’re now looking at how extreme events can affect nature-based solutions in the field when implemented,” Demel said.
As she wraps up her project in the Caribbean, she also examines how climate change is altering local ecosystems in disparate landscapes.
Honduras stakeholders discuss the team’s climate findings at a workshop. Photo: Manishka De Mel
Assessing climate risk in Asian alpine snow leopard habitat
In the high Himalayan regions, the endangered snow leopard and its prey bear the brunt of rising annual temperatures, rapid melting of glaciers and erratic precipitation patterns. In 2015, DeMeer partnered with WWF to help narrow down the factors of climate change that could have a severe impact on the habitat of alpine snow leopards in Asia. The project covers eastern Nepal, Sikkim (a state in the Indian Himalayas), Bhutan and Tajikistan.
The researchers found, “While direct changes in climate, such as rising temperatures, are unlikely to cause harm to the snow leopard itself, the effects of climate change on habitat and prey populations are likely to present a number of challenges for the species,” Demel said. Say. “As mountains continue to warm, they may become more suitable for agriculture and livestock, leading to greater overlap between human use and snow leopard habitat, leading to increased wildlife conflict. Identifying and planning for these evolving challenges, while Minimizing poaching, human-wildlife conflict and habitat loss will give snow leopards the best chance of survival.”
To date, Demel continues to study the mountains. In a recent study by the Wildlife Conservation Society, she and colleagues developed climate projections in Afghanistan’s Panj-Amu River Basin.
The team found that the number of extreme heat days in the western and central basins could increase by mid-century. The frequency of rare drought events – which historically averaged once every 10 years – could increase by two to three times over much of the watershed. If emissions remain high, permafrost in some regions could disappear locally by the end of the century, retreating to mountaintops, potentially threatening ecosystems and infrastructure.
The researchers also analyzed the Wakhan Corridor in eastern Afghanistan—a rugged mountainous region made up of semi-desert alpine and tundra regions. Even a small increase in heavy precipitation events could greatly increase the risk of mudslides, erosion, flash floods and landslides, the researchers warned.
Despite these grim climate projections for some of the world’s most vulnerable regions, DeMeer’s work highlights the importance of recognizing the damaging pressures these place on societies and natural ecosystems in order to prepare for them in advance. good plan.
After working in other Asian countries such as Myanmar and UzbekistanDe Mel is eager to continue engaging with, working alongside and learning from local communities and organizations in developing countries.
She recently co-edited a book titledOur Warming Planet: Climate Change Impacts and Adaptation,” 38 climate experts contributed. The book’s 25 chapters provide educational resources for students, teachers, and professionals.
The book continues a theme that runs through much of Demel’s work: getting climate change information into the hands of those who need it most.
