Public Participation and Climate Adaptation in China

About this episode

This episode explores how public demand for climate adaptation emerged in China following the 2021 Henan flood, emphasizing the role of governance and public participation.

In episode 246 of America Adapts , host Doug Parsons hosts Dr. Shiran Victoria Shen , assistant professor at Washington University in St. Louis, for a closer look at how climate adaptation actually emerges in China. Drawing on her research after the devastating 2021 Henan flood, Shen shows how public demand for adaptation surged—not through climate change language, but through calls for safety, infrastructure, and risk reduction, often using formal government channels. The conversation highlights adaptation as a lived governance issue rather than an ideological one, and surfaces practical lessons about public participation, the limits of top-down approaches, and what governments everywhere tend to respond to when climate risk becomes impossible to ignore. Transcript of interview here . Key Themes Covered in This Episode How public demand for climate adaptation emerges after extreme disasters Why people often ask for adaptation without using "climate change" language The 2021 Henan flood as a national turning point for adaptation awareness in China Public participation and formal governance channels, including the Local Leaders' Message Board Differences between adaptation and…

People in this episode

Host: Doug Parsons

Guest: Dr. Shiran Victoria Shen

Topics covered

• public participation
• climate adaptation
• China
• governance
• disaster response
• infrastructure
• risk reduction

Keywords

• climate adaptation
• public participation
• Henan flood
• governance
• risk reduction
• infrastructure
• disaster response

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Washington University in St. Louis

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