Unveiling the links between ICTs & climate change in developing countries - a scoping study

Abstract

Amidst the unmistakable signs of a changing climate, the global community is just beginning to understand the potential magnitude and severity of its impacts, not just now but for generations to come. Melting glaciers, displaced populations seeking refuge after floods, crops lost during overextensive periods of drought, or entire villages devastated by the implacable force of cyclones and hurricanes, are just some of the stories emerging from different corners of the planet; in particular from the poorest, most vulnerable countries of the world. Emerging evidence indicates that both acute (i.e. extreme weather events) and chronic climate effects (i.e. longer-term changes in the environment) can have serious developmental effects that hit particularly hard those countries that are already experiencing the hardships of poverty and marginalization (IPCC, 2007).