Adaptation to climate extremes in developing countries: the role of education

Brian Blankespoor, Susmita Dasgupta, Benoit Laplante and David Wheeler

No 5342, Policy Research Working Paper Series from The World Bank

Abstract: Global climate models predict a rise in extreme weather in the next century. To better understand future interactions among adaptation costs, socioeconomic development, and climate change in developing countries, observed losses of life from floods and droughts during 1960-2003 are modeled using three determinants: weather events, income per capita, and female education. The analysis reveals countries with high female education weathered extreme weather events better than countries with equivalent income and weather conditions. In that case, one would expect resilience to increase with economic growth and improvements in education. The relationship between resilience in the face of extreme weather events and increases in female education expenditure holds when socioeconomic development continues but the climate does not change, and socioeconomic development continues with weather paths driven by"wet"and"dry"Global Climate Models. Educating young women may be one of the best climate change disaster prevention investments in addition to high social rates of return in overall sustainable development goals.

Keywords: Hazard Risk Management; Population Policies; Climate Change Economics; Climate Change Mitigation and Green House Gases; Climate Change Impacts (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2010-06-01
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-ene and nep-env
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (5)

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