Overview

The following excerpt from Adapting to Climate Change: An Introduction for Canadian Municipalities, provides a brief overview of what climate change means for communities in Canada:

“The Earth’s climate is changing. Some of this change is due to natural variations that have been taking place for millions of years, but increasingly, human activities that release heat-trapping gases into the atmosphere are warming the planet by contributing to the ‘greenhouse effect’…Gradual shifts in average conditions (temperature, precipitation and sea level) will be accompanied by changes in climate variability and the frequency of extreme weather and climate events. The impacts of changing climate are already evident in every region of the country…Anticipated impacts across Canada include increased frequency and severity of extreme weather events (e.g., heat waves, floods, coastal storm surges and droughts), more smog episodes and disease outbreaks, thawing of permafrost, loss of northern sea ice, and rising sea levels.”

– Richardson, G.R.A. (2010). Adapting to Climate Change: An Introduction for Canadian Municipalities. Ottawa, ON: Natural Resources Canada. p.2-3

This section of the ReTooling for Climate Change website points you to resources that offer an introduction to climate change, adaptation, mitigation and climate change impacts. These resources and tools will help you learn more about climate change and climate change impacts generally, or find information specific to your interest.

For a general introduction to concepts and definitions relating to climate change and adaptation, visit the Pacific Climate Impacts Consortium website.