18 ACUMEN • SPRING 2023 disadvantaged communities often don’t have the same resources to rebuild or return to their homes after a devastating event like a hurricane or flood. When Hurricane Katrina stormed New Orleans in 2005, for example, there was much greater loss of homes and lives in the Black communities. Wealthier and white neighborhoods were better protected from the storm and flooding. This problem persists because the decisionmaking processes behind climate adaptation are not favorable to the most vulnerable populations, says Holland. An associate professor of political science and part of the Environmental Initiative, she has led multiple research projects investigating the issue of justice in climate adaptation and has found that it’s not a just process. “The processes to determine how to adapt to climate change and how to allocate resources for adaption are not just or fair,” says Holland. She explains one big issue is that vulnerable populations don’t have a voice in decisions about climate adaptation. While some decisionmakers may purportedly claim to enact change that will benefit a vulnerable population, it’s usually all talk—or it misses the mark entirely. For example, when policymakers in an urban area are trying to figure out how to adapt to increasing heat waves and unbearably hot temperatures, what vulnerable populations really need in this situation is air conditioning and the means to afford operating it during heat waves. However, what they might get instead is a tree planted in a park that will provide shade several years down the road, says Holland. “Vulnerable populations don’t have any control over decision processes, so they don’t get resources to adapt, and things often become even worse for these groups,” Holland explains. “There is often a lot of conversation about how people are suffering, but those same people are not given any power to influence decisions.” In order to influence political decisions, groups need to have alliances with powerful stakeholders, like interest groups or government officials, she explains. And, if the conversation about adaptation incorporates expertise, groups need to have access to experts who can weigh in on the debate. Since vulnerable populations have fewer connections to stakeholders and experts, their voice— and interests—get left out of the conversation. Breena Holland says that climate policy is highly politicized. “ The people most vulnerable to climate harms must have the political capability to influence climate adaptation decisions in their communities.” CHRISTINE KRESCHOLLEK
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