VU Experts Available to Comment on UN Climate Report

The United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has released a report outlining actions needed to avert severe repercussions of climate change which could occur by 2030. According to the UN report, climate change impacts for North America could include increased water scarcity, severe flooding and extreme heat risks, all of which would also lead to significant economic losses.

Villanova University faculty experts are available to discuss the UN report, how prepared the U.S. is to handle potential impacts from climate change, and the necessary steps to plan for the health and environmental risks associated with global warming.

Increased Flood Risks

Robert Traver, PhD (above, left), is Professor and Chair of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Director of the Villanova Center for Resilient Water Systems. Traver is a leading national expert in stormwater management who played a significant role in the Corps of Engineers' investigation of the failure of the New Orleans Hurricane Protection System during Hurricane Katrina. Traver is available to discuss the flood risks associated with global warming and the steps at-risk areas should take to prepare for more frequent and severe rain events. 

"These events are tragic, but we can’t pretend they won’t reoccur.  We must learn from what happens, and build this knowledge into our restoration and future decisions. The consequences of ignoring the risk is not serving the public," Traver said. 

Climate-Driven Conflicts

Frank Galgano, PhD (above, middle left), Associate Professor of Geography and the Environment and Lieutenant Colonel, Ret. with the U.S. Army, studies coastal geography and environmental security. Galgano recently published a study examining how climate change has emerged as an integral factor in assessing geographic vulnerability to conflict. Galgano developed a Vulnerability Risk Index (VRI) which assesses and ranks 173 nation states from most to least vulnerable to conflict. 

"Leaders of governmental organizations and non–governmental agencies, as well as the scientific community, have increasingly come to accept that the adverse effects of climate change and other environmental factors have exposed many vulnerable societies to instability and potentially, violent conflict," Galgano said. 

Development in Areas at Risk for Effects of Climate Change

Stephen Strader, PhD (above, middle right), is an Assistant Professor of Geography and the Environment and frequent media source on the intersection of climate change, natural hazards, and society. Strader can discuss the risk and disaster potential of increased population density in areas vulnerable to storms and climate change. He can also discuss what scientists are working on to improve readiness for and responsiveness to severe weather events.

Protecting Coastlines

With the effects of climate change on coastal areas expected to intensify, researchers like Samantha Chapman, PhD (above, right), an associate professor of Biology and member of the NASA Climate Adaptation Science Investigators Group, are examining ways to mitigate these effects. Chapman has researched how mangrove trees in coastal wetlands in the southeastern United States are responding positively to rising temperatures both in their growth and in their ability to build soil to keep pace with sea level rise, protecting coastal areas from sea level rise. 

"Our study provides some evidence that the ongoing reshuffling of species on earth’s surface could allow for some adaptation to the same global changes that are causing them," Chapman said. "Conserving and restoring our coastal wetlands can help humans adapt to climate change."

To contact Traver, Galgano, Strader, or Chapman, click their headshots above, call the Media Relations office at (610) 519-5152 or email mediaexperts@villanova.edu.