A report released today by British-based Maplecroft states that Canada is the country positioned the best to deal with global warming and its related effects.
6 factors were examined:
- economy
- natural resources and ecosystems
- poverty, development and health
- agriculture
- population, settlement and infrastructure
- institutions, governance and social capital
African nations dominated those that will most strongly be effected by changes in the future. Other developed nations were also better situated, largely due to their non-equatorial positions.
The UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change previously looked at the impact of global warming. What this report did is look at how countries are prepared to meet these changes.
Dr. Andy Thow, one of the report contributors, said,
Canada… is extremely well equipped to adapt to changes in climate. It scores well across all aspects of the index. This is because of the low pressure on natural resources resulting from a low population density and large land area, combined with high agricultural capacity, a healthy economy, few development and health challenges and excellent public institutions.
However, severe impacts to wildlife will still be seen in the Canadian Arctic.
The entire report can be viewed here:
The ethical issue many have wondered is how fair is it that the countries generating the most pollution and contributing the the greenhouse effect are least affected. The majority of the world’s population will experience the fallout of a small wealthy minority. Should there be legal obligations to assist those affected by our lifestyles?
Canada though, unlike many other developing nations, is doing more to address the issue of climate change.
Least Vulnerable: Canada, Ireland, Norway, Denmark, Sweden, Finland, New Zealand, France, Uruguay, Switzerland, USA, United Kingdom, Japan, Iceland, Luxembourg, Germany, Austria, Hungary, Estonia, Australia.
Most Vulnerable: Comoros, Somalia, Burundi, Yemen, Niger, Eritrea, Afghanistan, Ethiopia, Chad, Rwanda, Haiti, Pakistan, Sudan, Kenya, Uganda, Djibouti, Nepal, Burkina Faso, Mali, Mauritania.
