¶ … climate and economy in two world cities. There are six references used for this paper.
The world is currently undergoing a number of changes both in terms of the climate and the economy. It is important to look at Lima, Peru and Canberra, Australia and determine what effect the changing climates could have on the economies there.
Canberra, Australia
Canberra is the capital city of Australia and over the past eighty years has grown into a governmental powerhouse, as well as being home to "the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization, the Academy of Science and the National Science and Technology Centre (www.tomw.net.au/cnbst1.html)."
Economy
Australia enjoys a "prosperous Western-style capitalist economy, with a per capita GDP at the level of the four dominant West European economies (www.photius.com/wfb/wfb1999/australia/australia_economy.html)." Due the high level of natural resources available, the major exports of the country are "agricultural products, minerals, metals, and fossil fuels, which account for 57% of total exports (www.photius.com/wfb/wfb1999/australia/australia_economy.html)." This leaves the country vulnerable economically whenever there is a decline in commodity prices throughout the world.
While the country experienced "low growth and high unemployment in the early 1990s, the economy has expanded at reasonably steady rates in recent years. Canberra's emphasis on reforms is a key factor behind its economy's resilience to the regional crisis and its stronger than expected...
For this reason, the research has now moved toward the ultimate goal of being able to fully assess the risks to farming, and the tools available to control these risks, in an environment where seasonal climate variation so strongly dominates the productive capacity of broadacre farming (http://www.abareconomics.com/research/farmbusiness/climate.htm)."
It is predicted that if there is continued improvement in the seasonal conditions and climate, the farm economy which saw an increase of 17.3% during the second half of 2003 will continue to grow and "farm production will increase in volume terms by 1.9% in 2004-05, thus contributing significantly to the city's growth in economic activity (http://www.abareconomics.com/australiancommodities/ACMARCH%2004_
EconOverview.pdf).
Impact of El Nino on Lima, Peru
The El Nino effect is responsible for shifting the weather patterns in Lima every three to seven years. "The phenomenon usually brings weather extremes - either torrential rain or severe drought, depending on the region - so the farmers have learned to change their…
