Understanding Resilience Terminology
While the concept of resilience has broad applications, Resilience Constellation specialises in building resilience to climate change within agriculture and the rural economy.
This glossary includes the essential terminology you’ll encounter when exploring our projects, resources, and insights. Here you will find definitions of key terms as we use them, along with answers to common questions about our work.
Glossary
Climate Resilience
Climate Vulnerability
Climate Adaptation
Climate Hazard
IPCC, 2022: Climate Change 2022: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability. Contribution of Working Group II to the Sixth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change [H.-O. Pörtner, D.C. Roberts, M. Tignor, E.S. Poloczanska, K. Mintenbeck, A. Alegría, M. Craig, S. Langsdorf, S. Löschke, V. Möller, A. Okem, B. Rama (eds.)]. Cambridge University Press. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK and New York, NY, USA, 3056 pp., doi:10.1017/9781009325844.
In the context of our reports…
Climate Resilience Rating
Farm Business
A business that uses land for agricultural purposes including any of the following:
- Family owned and managed unit;
- Leased unit;
- Unit owned and managed by an agribusiness or consortium;
- Communal or state-owned unit;
- Smallholder based on traditional tenure/ land-use rights;
- Nomadic herder based on traditional grazing rights.
Exposure index
Sensitivity index
Adaptability index
Transformabilty index
What are the different stages involved in a Climate Resilience Ratings project?
Our ratings are delivered through a multi-step process as follows:
- Background Research into the situation and definition of the target groups.
- Configuration of a rating survey based on our templates – customisation or preliminary testing, as required.
- Data collection, which can include training and support of data collectors, if required.
- Data Analysis and triangulation with climate records and satellite information.
- Formation of a climate resilience rating report and feedback to farmers.
Contact us to discuss further details on how we can tailor our approach to the needs of your organisation.
What is a Climate Resilience Rating?
A measure of climate resilience. The resilience rating ranges from A (high resilience/ low vulnerability) to E (low resilience/ high vulnerability). The resilience rating is derived from a resilience index score, which is a function of scores for four separate component indices for exposure, sensitivity, adaptability and transformability
How does Resilience Constellation ensure the success of their projects?
At Resilience Constellation we work closely with our clients throughout the entire project lifecycle to ensure that their objectives are met. Our approach can be tailored to meeting the specific needs of each organisation.
How do our Climate Resilience Ratings benefit the farmers involved?
Our aim is to share the results of our surveys with the farmers who have contributed. To do this we are developing a platform that will enable farmers to:
- Benchmark their performance against other farmers in the same country or region;
- Gain access to ideas from other farmers in the area and individuals with relevant expertise on how to increase their resilience.
The nature of the information we are able to share with farmers will depend to some extent on the requirements of our customers.
What is the difference between climate change adaptation and climate resilience?
While often used interchangeably, in this context, adaptation and resilience have distinct meanings:
Climate change adaptation: Refers to the process of adjusting to immediate or expected impacts of climate change.
Climate resilience: The capacity of systems (social, economic and environmental) to cope with climate hazards. It goes beyond adaptation and includes the ability to anticipate, withstand, recover, and learn to adapt to a changing climate.
What are the key regulatory and voluntary reporting requirements to support climate change and resilience in agriculture?
IPCC, 2022: Climate Change 2022: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability. Contribution of Working Group II to the Sixth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change [H.-O. Pörtner, D.C. Roberts, M. Tignor, E.S. Poloczanska, K. Mintenbeck, A. Alegría, M. Craig, S. Langsdorf, S. Löschke, V. Möller, A. Okem, B. Rama (eds.)]. Cambridge University Press. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK and New York, NY, USA, 3056 pp., doi:10.1017/9781009325844.
Key regulatory and voluntary reporting requirements and standards include the Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR) in the EU, the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) S1, the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD), and Global Reporting Initiative standards (GRI).
Our Climate Resilience Rating Reports can provide you the insights needed to effectively meet these reporting requirements.