Join Eugene Richardson, M.D., Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Global Health and Social Medicine, Harvard Medical School; Assistant Professor of Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital for a discussion on his Mittal Institute faculty climate grant project, “Climate Change, Loss and Damage, and Habitability.” With moderator Maxine Burkett, Professor of Environmental Social Sciences, Stanford University.
About the Project:
This project investigates climate change vulnerability in Nepal with a focus on recent extreme weather events such as the September 2024 floods in and around Kathmandu. The talk will also present data from Africa and South America, highlighting its relevance to planned research in Nepal. It addresses current limitations in Loss and Damage (L&D) mechanisms by examining both economic and non-economic losses, including the degradation of livelihoods, cultural heritage, and biodiversity. The project explores how local communities perceive climate risks, the limitations of prescribed adaptation strategies, and the role of socio-historical and geopolitical factors in shaping vulnerabilities.
The research, conducted through a collaboration between the Planetary Health Lab at Harvard Medical School and the Planetary Health Research Centre in Nepal, will employ a cross-scale, multi-stakeholder ethnographic approach. Data collected from semi-structured interviews with diverse stakeholders will enhance our understanding of how climate-induced human mobility and displacement intersect with local expectations of environmental justice. The findings will inform policy recommendations and support efforts to establish frameworks for filing L&D claims for affected populations in Nepal and contribute to the evidence base on habitability in South Asia.
