Abstract

Why a HRM Climate SMART Community Guide to Climate Change? One of the greatest challenges facing the world is from global climate change. In 2003 and 2004, Nova Scotians and we in HRM experienced several extreme weather events - an ice storm, torrential rains and flooding, Hurricane Juan, and the Blizzard of ‘04 (also known as White Juan). In response to concerns about global climate change and the impacts from such extreme events, which are associated with climate variability brought about from increased emissions of green-house gasses, HRM initiated Climate SMART (Sustainable Mitigation and Adaptation Risk Toolkit). Climate SMART is a leading edge partnership between HRM, the Province of Nova Scotia, the Government of Canada, and private companies. Its goal is to develop management and planning tools to prepare for climate change impacts, and to develop strategies to reduce practices that contribute to global warming in the first place - primarily by reducing greenhouse gas emissions.