Risk perception of climate change and natural hazards in global mountain regions: A critical review
Schneiderbauer, Stefan, Fontanella Pisa, Paola, Delves, Jess L., Pedoth, Lydia, Rufat, Samuel, Erschbamer, Marlene, Thaler, Thomas, Carnelli, Fabio and Granados-Chahin, Sergio, (2021). Risk perception of climate change and natural hazards in global mountain regions: A critical review. Science of the Total Environment, 784 1-17
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Article
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Sub-type Journal article Author Schneiderbauer, Stefan
Fontanella Pisa, Paola
Delves, Jess L.
Pedoth, Lydia
Rufat, Samuel
Erschbamer, Marlene
Thaler, Thomas
Carnelli, Fabio
Granados-Chahin, SergioTitle Risk perception of climate change and natural hazards in global mountain regions: A critical review Appearing in Science of the Total Environment Volume 784 Publication Date 2021-04-07 Place of Publication Amsterdam Publisher Elesevier B.V. Start page 1 End page 17 Language eng Abstract Mountains are highly sensitive to climate change. Their elevated areas provide essential ecosystem services both for the surrounding mountainous regions and particularly for adjacent lowlands. Impacts of a warmer climate affect these services and have negative consequences on the supply of water, on biodiversity and on protection from natural hazards. Mountain social-ecological systems are affected by these changes, which also influence communities' risk perception and responses to changing climate conditions. Therefore, to understand individual and societal responses to climate change in mountain areas, aspects and drivers of risk perception need to be scrutinised. This article presents the findings of a literature review of recent English language publications on risk perception in connection to climate change and related natural hazards in mountain regions worldwide. Studies were selected from recorded entries in JSTOR, Science Direct, Scopus and Web of Science covering the period 2000–2019 and analysed in two steps (structured exploratory analysis, n=249 and in-depth analysis, n= 72) with respect to the studies' research question, methodology, geographical scope and risk perception drivers. The review reveals that socio demographic factors, like gender, age and personal experiences, have a crucial impact on individual risk perception. Some of the less tangible but nevertheless decisive factors are important in mountain regions such as place attachment and socio-cultural practices. In conclusion, there is however little information in the literature which addresses the specific situation of risk perception in mountain areas and its influence on communities' responses to environmental changes. Further, we observed a strong gap concerning the integration of indigenous knowledge in risk perception research. Many studies overlook or oversimplify local knowledge and the cultural dimensions of risk perception. Based on these results, the paper identifies several gaps in research and knowledge which may influence the design of climate risk management strategies as well as on their successful implementation. Keyword Risk awareness
Mountain risks
Mountain hazard processes
Climate risk reduction
Risk perception driversCopyright Holder The Authors Copyright Year 2021 Copyright type Creative commons ISBN 00489697 DOI 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.146957 -
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