Debra Javeline

Associate Professor of Political Science

Few political scientists study climate change "adaptation" — efforts to reduce vulnerability to climate change. Yet adapting to climate change is fundamentally political, raising questions about political economy (adaptation costs money), political theory (adaptation involves questions of social justice), comparative politics (some countries  pursue adaptation more aggressively than others), urban politics (some cities pursue adaptation more aggressively than others), regime type (democracies and authoritarian regimes may differ in the way they pursue adaptation), federalism (different levels of government may be involved), and many other issues.