Dessai
Biographic Data
| ID | 1616401 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Dessai |
| FAMILY NAME | Dessai |
| SIGNATURE | DESSAI |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of Leeds |
| ORCID | 0000-0002-7879-9364 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 37 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 236 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 37 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2001 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2024 |
| H-INDEX | 9 |
Varieties of approaches to constructing physical climate storylines: A review
The physical climate storyline (PCS) approach is increasingly recognized by the physical climate research community as a tool to produce and communicate decision‐relevant climate risk information. While PCS is generally understood as a single concept, different varieties of the approach are applied according to the aims and purposes of the PCS and the scientists that build them. To unpack this diversity of detail, this article gives an overview o…
The role of repowering India’s ageing wind farms in achieving net-zero ambitions
India’s ambitious net-zero climate goals include plans for a four-fold increase in current levels of wind energy generation by 2030. Many existing wind farms in India occupy sites with the best wind resources nationally but use older, smaller turbines that achieve lower capacity factors compared to modern turbine designs. A strategy of replacing existing wind turbines with state-of-the-art models (termed repowering) could boost capacity factors a…
What Adaptation Stories are UK Newspapers Telling? A Narrative Analysis
Media coverage of climate change impacts and adaptation will likely influence how citizens think society can and should adapt. Here, we undertook the first analysis of UK newspaper adaptation coverage. We identified five prominent adaptation narratives: (1) the government should build more flood defences, (2) home owners should buy flood insurance, (3) individuals should become more informed, (4) the farming industry should innovate, (5) and the …
Customising global climate science for national adaptation: A case study of climate projections in UNFCCC’s National Communications
Countries differ markedly in their production of climate science. While richer nations are often home to a variety of climate models, data infrastructures and climate experts, poorer sovereigns often lack these attributes. However, less is known about countries' capacity to use global climate science and customise it into products informing national adaptation. We use a unique global dataset, the UNFCCC National Communications, to perform a globa…
Storylines: An alternative approach to representing uncertainty in physical aspects of climate change
As climate change research becomes increasingly applied, the need for actionable information is growing rapidly. A key aspect of this requirement is the representation of uncertainties. The conventional approach to representing uncertainty in physical aspects of climate change is probabilistic, based on ensembles of climate model simulations. In the face of deep uncertainties, the known limitations of this approach are becoming increasingly appar…
Examining the Goals of the Regional Climate Outlook Forums: What Role for User Engagement
Over the last 20 years, Regional Climate Outlook Forums (RCOFs) have brought together scientific experts and stakeholders to produce regional-scale climate information products for society. This article examines the goals and practices of RCOFs, with a focus on user engagement, in order to draw out practical lessons for future implementation of RCOFs. Analysis of literature and documents (n = 72), interviews with key informants (n = 25), and part…
Surveying Climate Services: What Can We Learn from a Bird’s-Eye View
Billed as the creation and provision of timely, tailored information for decision-making at all levels of society, climate services have garnered a great deal of attention in recent years. Despite this growing attention, strategies to design, diagnose, and evaluate climate services remain relatively ad hoc—and while a general sense of what constitutes “good practice” in climate service provision is developing in some areas, and with respect to ce…
Building narratives to characterise uncertainty in regional climate change through expert elicitation
Knowledge about regional and local climate change can inform climate risk assessments and adaptation decisions. However, estimates of future precipitation change at the regional and local level are deeply uncertain for many parts of the world. A novel methodology was developed that uses climate processes and expert elicitation to build narratives of future regional precipitation change. The narratives qualitatively describe physically plausible e…
Assessing the value of seasonal climate forecasts for decision‐making
Seasonal climate forecasts (SCF) can support decision‐making and thus help society cope with and prepare for climate variability and change. The demand for understanding the value and benefits of using SCF in decision‐making processes can be associated with different logics. Two of these would be the need to justify public and private investment in the provision of SCF and demonstrating the gains and benefits of using SCF in specific decision‐mak…
Mini-me: Why do climate scientists’ misunderstand users and their needs
Increasingly climate scientists and the users of climate information are being asked to deliberately co-produce knowledge to improve decision-making about adaptation to climate change. To do this, scientists not only need to be committed and willing to interact with users but also have the capacity to listen, understand, and respond to their needs. Yet little is known about how climate scientists perceive users and respond to their needs when del…
Public priorities and expectations of climate change impacts in the United Kingdom
Irrespective of the success of climate mitigation efforts, societies worldwide face the challenge of adapting to a changing climate. In this paper, we examine UK residents’ expectations of future threats and opportunities associated with climate change impacts, along with willingness to prioritise different climate change impacts for investment. Using a national survey (n = 2007), we report on three main findings. First, UK residents tend to expe…
“Proximising” climate change reconsidered: A construal level theory perspective
Psychological responses to the proximity of climate change
Heat protection behaviour in the UK: Results of an online survey after the 2013 heatwave
Our study has found a high level of awareness of the actions to take during heatwaves in the UK, and has identified important demographic indicators of sections of the UK population that might benefit from additional or more targeted information. The health agencies should attempt to provide better information about heatwaves to those vulnerable (elderly, those at risk living in London, low income earners) or identify any barriers that might be p…
The right stuff? informing adaptation to climate change in British Local Government
Local government has a crucial role to play in climate change adaptation, both delivering adaptation strategies devised from above and coordinating bottom-up action. This paper draws on a unique longitudinal dataset to measure progress in adaptation by local authorities in Britain, comparing results from a national-scale survey and follow-up interviews conducted in 2003 with a second wave of research completed a decade later. Whereas a decade ago…
Heat protection behaviors and positive affect about heat during the 2013 heat wave in the United Kingdom
Heat waves pose serious health risks, and are expected to become more frequent, longer lasting, and more intense in the future under a changing climate. Yet, people in the UK seem to feel positive when thinking about hot weather. According to research on the affect heuristic, any positive or negative emotions evoked by potentially risky experiences may be used as cues to inform concerns about risk protection. If so, then their positive feelings t…
Climate Change Beliefs and Perceptions of Weather‐Related Changes in the United Kingdom
Public perception research in different countries has suggested that real and perceived periods of high temperature strengthen people's climate change beliefs. Such findings raise questions about the climate change beliefs of people in regions with moderate climates. Relatively little is known about whether public concerns about climate change may also be associated with perceived changes in other weather‐related events, such as precipitation or …
Climate services for society: Origins, institutional arrangements, and design elements for an evaluation framework
Climate services involve the generation, provision, and contextualization of information and knowledge derived from climate research for decision making at all levels of society. These services are mainly targeted at informing adaptation to climate variability and change, widely recognized as an important challenge for sustainable development. This paper reviews the development of climate services, beginning with a historical overview, a short su…
Actionable Knowledge for Environmental Decision Making: Broadening the Usability of Climate Science
Despite the rapid evolution and growing complexity in models of science-society interaction, the rate and breadth of use of scientific knowledge in environmental decision making, especially related to climate variability and change, remain below expectations. This suggests a persistent gap between production and use that, to date, efforts to rethink and restructure science production have not been able to surmount. We review different models of s…
Usable Science? The U.K. Climate Projections 2009 and Decision Support for Adaptation Planning
With future changes in climate being inevitable, adaptation planning has become a policy priority. A central element in adaptation planning is scientific expertise and knowledge of what the future climate may hold. The U.K. Climate Projections 2009 (UKCP09) provide climate information designed to help those needing to plan how to adapt to a changing climate. This paper attempts to determine how useful and usable UKCP09 is for adaptation decision …
Examination of climate risk using a modified uncertainty matrix framework—Applications in the water sector
Robust adaptation to climate change
This is the peer reviewed version of the following article: WILBY, R.L. and DESSAI, S., 2010. Robust adaptation to climate change. Weather, 65 (7), pp.180-185, which has been published in final form at https://doi.org/10.1002/wea.543. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with Wiley Terms and Conditions for Use of Self-Archived Versions.
Public perception of drought and climate change in southeast England
Droughts occur as a natural feature of many climates. Several southern areas of the UK experienced water stress during 2004–2006 because of low water availability and high water demand. Climate change scenarios suggest that drought frequency could increase here in the future. This will increase the competition for water across all sectors. Understanding people's perceptions of drought and climate change is likely to be an important factor for sus…
Are there social limits to adaptation to climate change?
Predicting, deciding, learning: Can one evaluate the ‘success’ of national climate scenarios
Scenarios may be understood as products and/or processes. Viewing scenario exercises as productive tends to emphasize their tangibility: scenario products may acquire value unrelated to the processes of their creation. Viewing scenario exercises as procedural tends to emphasize their modes of formation: the process of constructing scenarios may have benefits irrespective of the value of ensuing products. These two framings yield different expecta…
Unstable climates: Exploring the statistical and social constructions of ‘normal’ climate
Integrating mitigation and adaptation into climate and development policy: Three research questions
The right stuff? informing adaptation to climate change in British Local Government
Local government has a crucial role to play in climate change adaptation, both delivering adaptation strategies devised from above and coordinating bottom-up action. This paper draws on a unique longitudinal dataset to measure progress in adaptation by local authorities in Britain, comparing results from a national-scale survey and follow-up interviews conducted in 2003 with a second wave of research completed a decade later. Whereas a decade ago…
Assessing the robustness of adaptation decisions to climate change uncertainties: A case study on water resources management in the East of England
Climate services for society: Origins, institutional arrangements, and design elements for an evaluation framework
Climate services involve the generation, provision, and contextualization of information and knowledge derived from climate research for decision making at all levels of society. These services are mainly targeted at informing adaptation to climate variability and change, widely recognized as an important challenge for sustainable development. This paper reviews the development of climate services, beginning with a historical overview, a short su…
Negotiating future climates for public policy: A critical assessment of the development of climate scenarios for the UK
Mini-me: Why do climate scientists’ misunderstand users and their needs
Increasingly climate scientists and the users of climate information are being asked to deliberately co-produce knowledge to improve decision-making about adaptation to climate change. To do this, scientists not only need to be committed and willing to interact with users but also have the capacity to listen, understand, and respond to their needs. Yet little is known about how climate scientists perceive users and respond to their needs when del…
On the role of climate scenarios for adaptation planning
The Marrakech Accords to the Kyoto Protocol: Analysis and future prospects
Heat protection behaviors and positive affect about heat during the 2013 heat wave in the United Kingdom
Heat waves pose serious health risks, and are expected to become more frequent, longer lasting, and more intense in the future under a changing climate. Yet, people in the UK seem to feel positive when thinking about hot weather. According to research on the affect heuristic, any positive or negative emotions evoked by potentially risky experiences may be used as cues to inform concerns about risk protection. If so, then their positive feelings t…
Public perception of drought and climate change in southeast England
Droughts occur as a natural feature of many climates. Several southern areas of the UK experienced water stress during 2004–2006 because of low water availability and high water demand. Climate change scenarios suggest that drought frequency could increase here in the future. This will increase the competition for water across all sectors. Understanding people's perceptions of drought and climate change is likely to be an important factor for sus…
Vulnerability to Climate Variability and Change in East Timor
This paper presents the results of a preliminary study of climate vulnerability in East Timor. It shows the results of projections of climate change in East Timor. The country's climate may become hotter, drier, and increasingly variable. Sea levels are likely to rise. The paper then considers the implications of these changes on three natural resources--water, soils, and the coastal zone--and finds all to be sensitive to changes in climate and s…
Assessing the value of seasonal climate forecasts for decision‐making
Seasonal climate forecasts (SCF) can support decision‐making and thus help society cope with and prepare for climate variability and change. The demand for understanding the value and benefits of using SCF in decision‐making processes can be associated with different logics. Two of these would be the need to justify public and private investment in the provision of SCF and demonstrating the gains and benefits of using SCF in specific decision‐mak…
Examination of climate risk using a modified uncertainty matrix framework—Applications in the water sector
Challenges and Outcomes at the Ninth Session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
Public priorities and expectations of climate change impacts in the United Kingdom
Irrespective of the success of climate mitigation efforts, societies worldwide face the challenge of adapting to a changing climate. In this paper, we examine UK residents’ expectations of future threats and opportunities associated with climate change impacts, along with willingness to prioritise different climate change impacts for investment. Using a national survey (n = 2007), we report on three main findings. First, UK residents tend to expe…
Profile - Why did The Hague Climate Conference Fail
(2001). Profile - Why did The Hague Climate Conference Fail? Environmental Politics: Vol. 10, No. 3, pp. 139-144
Adapting to Climate Change: Thresholds, Values, Governance
Adapting to climate change is a critical problem facing humanity. This involves reconsidering our lifestyles, and is linked to our actions as individuals, societies and governments. This book presents top science and social science research on whether the world can adapt to climate change. Written by experts, both academics and practitioners, it examines the risks to ecosystems, demonstrating how values, culture and the constraining forces of gov…
Profile - Why did The Hague Climate Conference Fail
(2001). Profile - Why did The Hague Climate Conference Fail? Environmental Politics: Vol. 10, No. 3, pp. 139-144
The Marrakech Accords to the Kyoto Protocol: Analysis and future prospects
Does climate adaptation policy need probabilities?
Estimating the likelihood of future climate change has become a priority objective within the research community. This is the case because of the advancement of science, because of user demand and because of the central role played by climate prediction in guiding adaptation policy. But are probabilities what climate policy really needs? This article reviews three key questions: (1) Why might we (not) need probabilities of climate change? (2) Wha…
Challenges and Outcomes at the Ninth Session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
Integrating mitigation and adaptation into climate and development policy: Three research questions
On the role of climate scenarios for adaptation planning
Does tomorrow ever come? Disaster narrative and public perceptions of climate change
The film The Day After Tomorrow depicts the abrupt and catastrophic transformation of the Earth’s climate into a new ice age, playing upon the uncertainty surrounding a possible North Atlantic thermohaline circulation (Gulf Stream) shutdown. This paper investigates the impact of the film on people’s perception of climate change through a survey of filmgoers in the UK. Analysis focuses on four issues: the likelihood of extreme impacts; concern ove…
Negotiating future climates for public policy: A critical assessment of the development of climate scenarios for the UK
Assessing the robustness of adaptation decisions to climate change uncertainties: A case study on water resources management in the East of England
Vulnerability to Climate Variability and Change in East Timor
This paper presents the results of a preliminary study of climate vulnerability in East Timor. It shows the results of projections of climate change in East Timor. The country's climate may become hotter, drier, and increasingly variable. Sea levels are likely to rise. The paper then considers the implications of these changes on three natural resources--water, soils, and the coastal zone--and finds all to be sensitive to changes in climate and s…
Predicting, deciding, learning: Can one evaluate the ‘success’ of national climate scenarios
Scenarios may be understood as products and/or processes. Viewing scenario exercises as productive tends to emphasize their tangibility: scenario products may acquire value unrelated to the processes of their creation. Viewing scenario exercises as procedural tends to emphasize their modes of formation: the process of constructing scenarios may have benefits irrespective of the value of ensuing products. These two framings yield different expecta…
Unstable climates: Exploring the statistical and social constructions of ‘normal’ climate
Are there social limits to adaptation to climate change?
Robust adaptation to climate change
This is the peer reviewed version of the following article: WILBY, R.L. and DESSAI, S., 2010. Robust adaptation to climate change. Weather, 65 (7), pp.180-185, which has been published in final form at https://doi.org/10.1002/wea.543. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with Wiley Terms and Conditions for Use of Self-Archived Versions.
Public perception of drought and climate change in southeast England
Droughts occur as a natural feature of many climates. Several southern areas of the UK experienced water stress during 2004–2006 because of low water availability and high water demand. Climate change scenarios suggest that drought frequency could increase here in the future. This will increase the competition for water across all sectors. Understanding people's perceptions of drought and climate change is likely to be an important factor for sus…
Usable Science? The U.K. Climate Projections 2009 and Decision Support for Adaptation Planning
With future changes in climate being inevitable, adaptation planning has become a policy priority. A central element in adaptation planning is scientific expertise and knowledge of what the future climate may hold. The U.K. Climate Projections 2009 (UKCP09) provide climate information designed to help those needing to plan how to adapt to a changing climate. This paper attempts to determine how useful and usable UKCP09 is for adaptation decision …
Examination of climate risk using a modified uncertainty matrix framework—Applications in the water sector
Actionable Knowledge for Environmental Decision Making: Broadening the Usability of Climate Science
Despite the rapid evolution and growing complexity in models of science-society interaction, the rate and breadth of use of scientific knowledge in environmental decision making, especially related to climate variability and change, remain below expectations. This suggests a persistent gap between production and use that, to date, efforts to rethink and restructure science production have not been able to surmount. We review different models of s…
Climate Change Beliefs and Perceptions of Weather‐Related Changes in the United Kingdom
Public perception research in different countries has suggested that real and perceived periods of high temperature strengthen people's climate change beliefs. Such findings raise questions about the climate change beliefs of people in regions with moderate climates. Relatively little is known about whether public concerns about climate change may also be associated with perceived changes in other weather‐related events, such as precipitation or …
Climate services for society: Origins, institutional arrangements, and design elements for an evaluation framework
Climate services involve the generation, provision, and contextualization of information and knowledge derived from climate research for decision making at all levels of society. These services are mainly targeted at informing adaptation to climate variability and change, widely recognized as an important challenge for sustainable development. This paper reviews the development of climate services, beginning with a historical overview, a short su…
Psychological responses to the proximity of climate change
Heat protection behaviour in the UK: Results of an online survey after the 2013 heatwave
Our study has found a high level of awareness of the actions to take during heatwaves in the UK, and has identified important demographic indicators of sections of the UK population that might benefit from additional or more targeted information. The health agencies should attempt to provide better information about heatwaves to those vulnerable (elderly, those at risk living in London, low income earners) or identify any barriers that might be p…
The right stuff? informing adaptation to climate change in British Local Government
Local government has a crucial role to play in climate change adaptation, both delivering adaptation strategies devised from above and coordinating bottom-up action. This paper draws on a unique longitudinal dataset to measure progress in adaptation by local authorities in Britain, comparing results from a national-scale survey and follow-up interviews conducted in 2003 with a second wave of research completed a decade later. Whereas a decade ago…
Heat protection behaviors and positive affect about heat during the 2013 heat wave in the United Kingdom
Heat waves pose serious health risks, and are expected to become more frequent, longer lasting, and more intense in the future under a changing climate. Yet, people in the UK seem to feel positive when thinking about hot weather. According to research on the affect heuristic, any positive or negative emotions evoked by potentially risky experiences may be used as cues to inform concerns about risk protection. If so, then their positive feelings t…
Climate change (33 works) · Political science (21 works) · Environmental resource management (19 works) · Psychology (18 works) · Climate Change Communication and Perception (17 works) · Sustainability and Climate Change Governance (17 works) · Economics (16 works) · Geography (15 works) · Computer Science (14 works) · Ecology (14 works)