Climate change responses in a context of uncertainty

Climate change presents several challenges to planning and implementation of policies and programmes. There are significant uncertainties regarding future climate change. Precipitation projections from climate models do not converge well for many parts of the world. There may be sudden tipping points with implications for both long-term infrastructure decisions and large investments and shorter-term interventions. Climate change in the future may undermine current decisions; people and businesses may invest in livelihoods and enterprises that will need to alter. Current decisions may need to be adjusted to account for a range of future possibilities. Adaptation decisions will need to be taken pre-emptively to avoid large costs, losses and damage.