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Rural communities


Rural communities face many changes due to the potential impacts on agriculture (1) There will also be changes to



Rural society


Social impacts vary but “human systems, such as welfare, social aid and medical systems, are likely to be affected by climate change.” (2).  Climate change will change the way people live, work, worship and play in their built and natural environments. Some examples of the social impacts of climate change include:

  • a loss of culture - “Climate change will have physical, social and cultural impacts on cultural heritage.” (3) For example, archeological evidence, historical buildings, monuments, and other heritage sites will be directly affected by changes in weather patterns and indirectly by society's changing values.
  • a loss of employment - Although loss of employment may be considered an economic impact of climate change, unemployment, particularly in resource based communities such as forestry and fishing, can affect all aspects of community life. On a personal level, unemployment can increase family stress and on a community level, recreation programs may suffer as families leave the community in search of employment elsewhere.

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Community policy


“The primary task of municipal leaders is to care for their own citizens.” (4) Climate change is affecting municipal policy because it is public institutions who decide on “land-use planning (allowing or avoiding building in areas with a high risk exposure), adopting construction codes (to reduce the impact and costs of extreme weather) and are responsible for the investments in general prevention measures like coastal defences and river embankments.” (5)

Some potential ways that climate change will affect public policy in rural areas include

  • Decision makers will need to become as informed as possible about climate change - a topic that may not have been at the forefront of many past decisions. Specifically, “there is a need for more communication (information sharing and training) between climate change researchers, policy makers, engineers, architects, operators or asset managers in order to mainstream climate change adaptation into design, maintenance and restoration of infrastructure.” (6)
  • Policies and programs will need to shift from what have been labeled mitigation to ones of adaptation. An example of a mitigation strategy is a program that aims to reduce further greenhouse gas emissions, such as the Climate Change Connection's “Healthy Communities Don’t Idle” program. While mitigation programs continue to play an important role, rural communities also need to develop strategies and policies for how they will adapt to the changing climate.