Post date: Mar 5, 2018 4:39:36 PM
de Sherbinin, A., A. Apotsos, and J. Chevrier. 2017. Mapping the future: policy applications of climate vulnerability mapping in West Africa. The Geographical Journal 183, no. 4 (December):414–425. http://doi.org/10.1111/geoj.12226.
Abstract: We describe the development of climate vulnerability maps for three Sahelian countries – Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger—and for coastal West Africa, with a focus on the way the maps were designed to meet decision-making needs and their ultimate influence and use in policy contexts. The paper provides a review of the literature on indicators and maps in the science‒policy interface. We then assess the credibility, salience, and legitimacy of the maps as tools for decision-making. Results suggest that vulnerability maps are a useful boundary object for generating discussions among stakeholders with different objectives and technical backgrounds, and that they can provide useful input for targeting development assistance. We conclude with a discussion of the power of maps to capture policy-maker attention, and how this increases the onus on map developers to communicate clearly uncertainties and limitations. The assessment of policy uptake in this paper is admittedly subjective; the article includes a discussion of ways to conduct more objective and rigorous assessments of policy impact so as to better evaluate the value and use of vulnerability mapping in decision-making processes.
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