Abstract ID: 3.11980 | Accepted as Talk | Talk/Oral | TBA | TBA

As climate change accelerates, impacting every region and sector, there is growing apprehension about its potential to exacerbate many of the current social, economic, and environmental challenges and threats already being faced. Climate change can contribute to instability, lead to displacement and migration, worsen food production and access, and affect energy supply and the livelihoods of entire communities and regions. In the Hindu Kush Himalayan (HKH) region, climate-related risks to food, water, and livelihoods are already affecting mountain communities, and in many cases forcing people to migrate. The women, children and the elderly are often disproportionately impacted by climate risks. Cascading natural hazards from climate impacts are likely to drive out-migration further and threaten urban settlements in the hills as well as plains. To better understand the challenges that mountain communities face, should the existing adaptation gaps continues to grow, national consultations were held in Nepal, India, and Pakistan. The objective of the consultations was to understand the interconnectedness of climate risks, intersectionality, and how this leads to compounding vulnerability to climate risks. The discussions focused on the interconnection of food insecurity, energy insecurity, livelihood insecurity, and mobility in the HKH region. Through identification of these interconnected risks which are further exacerbated by existing vulnerabilities, the consultations showed how climate vulnerabilities get compounded resulting in socio-economic instability and governance challenges in the region.