Politics of attributing extreme events and disasters to climate change

Climate change certainly shapes weather events. However, describing climate and as the cause of disasters can be misleading, since are caused by pre-existing fragilities inequalities on ground. Analytic frames that attribute disaster to divert attention from these place-based vulnerabilities their socio-political causes. Thus, while politicians may want blame crises change, members public prefer hold government accountable for inadequate investments in flood or drought prevention precarious living conditions. To both strategic moral, framing choices must therefore sensitive context-dependent political meanings particularities, how values implicit within analytic about causes shape policy responses. Such sensitivity requires multicausal analysis weather-linked illuminate a broader range means reduce damages associated with extremes. Through examples around world, especially Brazil, we discuss why climate-centric erase view—and, thus, agendas—the very socio-economic factors most centrally vulnerability suffering extremes disasters. We also offer theoretical discussion attribution is not neutral. frameworks always embed matter, thus inherently normative consequential understandings responsibility action. This article categorized under: Social Status Change Knowledge > Science Decision Making Highlight Attributing only mechanical, points view.