Preface
p. 9-10
Texte intégral
A Maasai cattle farmer in Tanzania.
1It is fundamental to understand the climate system and on-going and coming changes—whatever their form—to make it possible to gauge the scale of the issues and to conceive the appropriate responses to be made in the various fields. This is the approach used in this important contribution by IRD and its partners in the South.
2The tropics have been chosen as the field of investigation of this book, making it stand out by its relevance and originality. It is precisely the zone for which there is a cruel lack of information needed for gaining comprehension. The quantity of work and observations is indeed fairly limited there, as are the resources used. With the rigour and caution that are features of any scientific approach, this clear, simple and instructive publication makes it possible to understand the entire specific complexity of the climate changes in this part of the world. It also gives a glimpse of their many consequences. Such comprehension is essential for drawing up the policies and action programmes that should be implemented. The book also indicates the grey areas in which knowledge is limited, fragmentary or such as to prevent the drawing of conclusions or the taking of action.
3In this remarkable work resulting from vast, fruitful cooperation and an interdisciplinary approach, the means to be developed, priority lines of work and the methodological approaches to be favoured to find appropriate, expected responses for the tropics are identified. If it is wished to keep the increase in world temperature by mid-century at less than +2°C in comparison with the pre-industrial period, this knowledge is essential for formulating and implementing appropriate climate policies. The conclusions of the last IPCC report state this clearly.
4This book is an important contribution for decision makers, especially at the 21st Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. The conference should lead to important decisions. It will certainly be a historic turning point in negotiations on climate and on combating climate change. In the past two years, all countries—without distinction—have undertaken to describe as a prerequisite the efforts that they are planning to make in a communication entitled ‘Intended Nationally Determined Contributions’. As they are voluntary, the contributions are guided by national priorities. They reflect the capacity of each country to take action and cover in many respects the Sustainable Development Goals adopted in New York last September. Their relevance falls within the framework of increasingly precise knowledge of the reality and scale of climatic malfunctions, their human causes and their consequences.
5The work is without a doubt a major contribution to the improvement of knowledge.
Auteur
Vice Chairman of the IPCC
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