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Aral Sea Demise as a Dry Run for Climate Change: From Cumulative to Cascading Impacts

Disaster by Design: The Aral Sea and its Lessons for Sustainability

ISBN: 978-1-78190-375-9, eISBN: 978-1-78190-376-6

Publication date: 29 November 2012

Abstract

This chapter explores the lessons of the Aral Sea disaster for social learning and for achieving future sustainability in the Aral region. Evident is what might be called “the law of delayed response” which states that social response tends to lag behind deteriorating ecological conditions. The bounding of the Aral Sea problems at various scales of consideration from local to global is explored, with a particular emphasis on the importance of a bioregional approach. Not only is the Aral disaster a global problem, part of the overall climate crisis, but it is also a much replicated disaster, sharing a global but decentralized impact. Proposals address the need for sustainable outcomes in the Aral region.

Citation

Edelstein, M.R. (2012), "Aral Sea Demise as a Dry Run for Climate Change: From Cumulative to Cascading Impacts", Edelstein, M.R., Cerny, A. and Gadaev, A. (Ed.) Disaster by Design: The Aral Sea and its Lessons for Sustainability (Research in Social Problems and Public Policy, Vol. 20), Emerald Group Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 415-441. https://doi.org/10.1108/S0196-1152(2012)0000020041

Publisher

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Emerald Group Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2012, Emerald Group Publishing Limited