"In tropical zones, people have learned to put certain adaptation measures in place, while in temperate zones those have not been a priority," said Francesca Chiaromonte, a statistician at Pennsylvania State University. In general, however, adaptation measures in temperate zones "have been lagging behind, compared to the tropics, where people traditionally have had to cope with these kind of catastrophic events", Chiaromonte said. "Thirty years ago, it was relatively seldom that a big disaster hit one of these (temperate) places. With two in three of the world's people expected to live in cities by 2050, ensuring construction there can stand up to worsening climate threats is particularly important, she noted. Chiaromonte also emphasised that adaptation efforts should not shift from tropical countries to temperate ones, but should be expanded in both.

Source: bd News24 October 12, 2019 05:15 UTC