CLIMATE VARIABILITY-Issues and Perspectives for Bangladesh

This book is for those who have interest in and concern about what is happening to the climate of Bangladesh. They would like to find out whether Bangladesh is going through climate change or climate variability, whether such phenomena is unprecedented, and whether such phenomena is likely to continue into an unknown future. Does any extreme weather event mean either climate change or climate variability? What exactly do the terms weather, climate, climate change, climate variability, and climate system mean when national and international professionals talk about them and warn that Bangladesh is a victim of Climate Change? What can we do to prevent our weather and climate getting worse or help them getting better? What is IPCC, and why was it formed, for what purposes, with what mandate? What is ClimateGate that we hear about? What is Kyoto Protocol? What issues are important from Bangladesh perspectives? This book, as a sequel to our earlier book titled Climate Change: Issues and Perspectives for Bangladesh (published 2011), tries to provide answers to some of these and other pertinent questions in as simple terms as possible, and gives a Bangladesh perspective to the global scenario. The articles selected were written by professionals who have contributed to the appreciable volume of scientific literature that has grown over the last 30 years or soon the relevant fields here in Bangladesh. The overall findings are unmistakably clear: both the weather and the climate of Bangladesh is variable. The climate is marked by seasonality and extreme events. The causes are mostly natural. It would take long term careful research with scientific objectivity based on our national data to determine the nature and causes of changes, if any, in our climate here in Bangladesh. Climate related measures, such as adaptation, mitigation and risk reduction plans, programs and activities would be better tuned if the attention is on the challenges of the extreme climatic events. Meanwhile, the pace of economic development, based on agriculture, fisheries and livestock, as well as on industry, trade and transport, must go ahead impeded, keeping the considerations of environmental sustainability in one planning and budgeting. Our continued focus on the present certain problems and issues and more research effort on issues of climate in an uncertain future would be better productive to the development planning of Bangladesh.