Editing IPCC:AR6/WGII/Chapter-1 (section)

==== 1.4.4.2 Emerging Importance of Loss and Damage ====

<div id="h3-15-siblings" class="h3-siblings"></div>

The concept of '''Loss and Damage''' (with capitalised letters, L&amp;D) refers to the discussion point under the UNFCCC, which is to ‘address loss and damage associated with impacts of climate change, including extreme events and slow onset events, in developing countries that are particularly vulnerable to the adverse effects of climate change’. Lowercase letters of '''losses and damages''' refer broadly to harm from (observed) impacts and (projected) risks ( [[#IPCC--2018a|IPCC, 2018a]] ). The IPCC report uses the latter for its assessment on loss and damage which may provide useful information for the former. L&amp;D associated with climate change has gained importance supported by the robust scientific evidence on anthropogenic climate change amplifying the frequency, intensity and duration of climate-related hazards ( [[#Mechler--2019|Mechler et al., 2019]] ). Loss and damage associated with those residual losses and damages that are felt beyond the adaptation actions taken imply a sense of limits to adaptation at a given time and within a spatial context ( [[#Tschakert--2017|Tschakert et al., 2017]] ). IPCC’s SRCCL also underlined the unavoidable loss and damage due to changes in tropical and extratropical cyclones and marine heatwaves, where adaptation and resilience limits are being exceeded for the people and ecosystems (Cross-Chapter Box LOSS in Chapter 17; [[#IPCC--2019a|IPCC, 2019a]] ).

Loss and damage has emerged as an important topic in international climate policy ( [[#Surminski--2015|Surminski and Lopez, 2015]] ; [[#Roberts--2016|Roberts and Pelling, 2016]] ; [[#Boyd--2017|Boyd et al., 2017]] ). It originated in assessing compensation for SIDS, related to sea level rise impacts. It has since become formalised under the UNFCCC, through the establishment of the Warsaw International Mechanism ( [[#UNFCCC--2013|UNFCCC, 2013]] ) and Article 8 of the Paris Agreement ( [[#UNFCCC--2015b|UNFCCC, 2015b]] ). The Warsaw International Mechanism promotes the implementation of comprehensive risk management approaches, improves understanding of slow onset events, non-economic losses and human mobility (migration, displacement), and enhances action and support, including finance, technology and capacity building to avert, minimise and address loss and damage associated with climate change impacts, particularly on vulnerable and developing countries ( [[#UNFCCC--2021|UNFCCC, 2021]] ). Different actors have defined loss and damage differently in reference to climate change impacts and responses ( [[#Surminski--2015|Surminski and Lopez, 2015]] ; [[#Roberts--2016|Roberts and Pelling, 2016]] ; [[#Boyd--2017|Boyd et al., 2017]] ; [[#McNamara--2019|McNamara and Jackson, 2019]] ). These understandings include the following: (a) an adaptation and mitigation perspective linking all human-induced climate change impacts to potential loss and damage and a mandate to avoid dangerous anthropogenic interference; (b) a risk management perspective emphasising interconnections among disaster risk reduction, climate change adaptation and humanitarian efforts; (c) a limits to adaptation perspective focused on residual loss and damage beyond adaptation and mitigation; and (d) an existential perspective highlighting inevitable harm and unavoidable transformation for some people and systems. This report assesses the growing literature on loss and damage across sectors and regions linking with adaptation constraints and limits, GWL and incremental and or transformational adaptation to climate risks (Section 8.3.4; Cross-Chapter Box LOSS in Chapter 17; Box 10.7).

To assess the projected losses and damages, residual risks also need to be taken into account. The loss and damage associated with the future climate change impacts, beyond the limits to adaptation, is an area of increasing focus, although yet to be fully developed in terms of methods of assessment. This includes non-economic losses and damages, as well as identifying means to avoid and reduce both economic (loss of asset, infrastructure, land etc.) and non-economic (loss of societal beliefs and values, cultural heritage, biodiversity and ecosystem services) losses and damages ( [[#Fankhauser--2014|Fankhauser and Dietz, 2014]] ; [[#Andrei--2015|Andrei et al., 2015]] ). There is increasing evidence of economic and non-economic losses due to climate extremes and slow onset events under observed increases in global temperatures (Section 8.3.4; [[#Coronese--2019|Coronese et al., 2019]] ; Grinsted et al., 2019; [[#Kahn--2019|Kahn et al., 2019]] ), however assessment of non-economic losses and damages is lacking and needs more attention (Serdeczny et al., 2016; [[#Tschakert--2019|Tschakert et al., 2019]] ). The aggregate losses and damages would be higher if non-economic values are considered in such assessment ( [[#Laurila-Pant--2015|Laurila-Pant et al., 2015]] ; [[#McShane--2017|McShane, 2017]] ). To reduce or avoid loss and damage, there is a need for robust conceptual framework and analysis, focusing on future losses rather than past losses ( [[#Preston--2017|Preston, 2017]] ). This should have an emphasis on avoiding versus addressing loss and damage and the role of justice ( [[#Boyd--2017|Boyd et al., 2017]] ), clarity on detection and attribution (Sections 8.2.1; 8.3.3), effectiveness of risk management and adaptation (Cross-Chapter Box FEASIB in Chapter 18; Section 1.4), the concepts of risk transfer, liability and financing (Cross-Chapter Box FINANCE in Chapter 17; Section 17.4.2) and the role of transformation (Section 1.5).

<div id="1.5" class="h1-container"></div>

<span id="facilitating-long-term-transformation"></span>