Indigenous People Vulnerable to Climate Change

February 21, 2012

chers">Researchers say indigenous people are among the most vulnerable to climate">climate change">change. They’re studying how extreme weather events can">can trigger more disease outbreaks.

cientists">Scientists say extreme weather events have ccompanied">accompanied a rise in global temperatures. Droughts, heavy rains and floods have put indigenous people around the world at risk.

“I would say that indigenous people are cularly">particularly vulnerable to climate">climate change">change cts">impacts cause">because of their close">close relationship with the cal">local environment and cosystems">ecosystems and also their ce">dependence on those cal">local cosystems">ecosystems for their livelihood, as well as a lot of complex">complex and interrelated cial">social issues and inequities and inequalities,” said Sherilee Harper, who’s a Ph.D

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andidate in aboriginal people’s health at the University of Guelph near Toronto, Canada. She’s been studying the effects of climate change on the Batwa people in southwest Uganda.

“So for instance, after a period of heavy rainfall or flooding there’s often increased in bacteria and pathogens in the water due to runoff and things like that. That can increase a risk of exposure to waterborne disease. Now, climate change scenarios are predicting we’re going to see more of these periods of heavy rainfall more frequently, longer duration and more intense instances. So we’re expecting that’ll increase the prevalence and risk of exposure to waterborne disease,” she said.