Climate Research

Austrian climate system research and research on climate change impacts strongly relate to the Alps, since they cover about two thirds of the surface area of the country. Austrian research on the impacts of climate change focuses on floods, forests, agriculture, glaciers, etc, all of which are topics of vital interest to the country. The research programmes ‘StartClim’, ‘Floodrisk’ and ‘ProVision’ have been launched over the last years, to meet this challenge through an interdisciplinary approach. In addition to the physical impacts, these programmes also investigate the socio-economic impacts and potential adaptation options. Research on socio-economic aspects of climate change and on adaptation measures is also on the increase. In 2005, the Wegener Centre for Climate and Global Change was founded to promote research on socio-economic aspects of climate change in Austria. Information provided in this section is based on the the BMWF - Federal Ministry of Science's "Strategy on Climate Research" and a report by ERA-NET CIRCLE ("Extended Country Report -Issue 2").