World Bank2014-09-152014-09-152014https://hdl.handle.net/10986/20116Recognizing the importance and uniqueness of the Sundarbans, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) declared the Indian portion of the forest a World Heritage Site in 1987, and the UNESCO Man and the Biosphere Program has included the Sundarbans Biosphere Reserve in the Global Network of Island and Coastal Biosphere Reserves Contributing to Action on Climate Change and Sustainable Development. While the Sundarbans region is celebrated for its ecological attributes, it is a difficult place to live in. The inhabited portions of India s Sundarbans are characterized by severe poverty, which both contributes to and arises from the vulnerability of the population to a growing range of natural hazards. Resilience is characterized by a capacity to adapt to changing conditions and persistent stresses by responding effectively. However, the resilience of those residing in the Sundarbans has been undermined by a long series of persistent pressures. Sea level rise, salinization of soil and water, cyclonic storms and flooding have combined over the past century to render this one of the most hazardous areas in the Indian subcontinent.en-USCC BY 3.0 IGOADVERSE EFFECTSAGRICULTURAL PRODUCTIONAGRICULTURAL SUBSIDIESAGRICULTUREAIRAIR POLLUTIONAIR POLLUTION CONTROLALTERNATIVE ENERGYANIMALANIMALSAQUACULTUREAQUATIC SPECIESBASIC HUMAN NEEDSBAYBEARBIODIVERSITYBIODIVERSITY CONSERVATIONBIODIVERSITY LOSSBIODIVERSITY PROTECTIONBIOSPHEREBIOSPHERE RESERVEBUFFER AREACARBONCARBON CREDITSCARBON DIOXIDECARBON MARKETSCASE STUDIESCHILD MORTALITYCITIZENSCLEAN DEVELOPMENT MECHANISMCLIMATECLIMATE CHANGECOCO2COASTCOASTAL COMMUNITIESCOASTAL ZONECOASTAL ZONE MANAGEMENTCOLORSCOMMUNITY DEVELOPMENTCONSERVATIONCONSERVATION GOALCONSERVATION INTERVENTIONSCONSERVATION OF NATURECONSTRUCTIONCORE AREACRITICAL AREASCROPSCYCLONESDEFORESTATIONDESALINATIONDEVELOPING COUNTRIESDEVELOPMENT EFFORTSDEVELOPMENT STRATEGIESDISABILITYDISADVANTAGED GROUPSDISEASESDISSEMINATIONDRINKING WATERECONOMIC DEVELOPMENTECONOMIC GROWTHECONOMIC OPPORTUNITIESECOSYSTEMECOSYSTEMSELECTRICITYELECTRICITY DEMANDEMISSIONS FROM DEFORESTATIONEMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIESENTITLEMENTSENVIRONMENTALENVIRONMENTAL DAMAGEENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATIONENVIRONMENTSEQUILIBRIUMEROSIONEROSION CONTROLESTUARIESESTUARINEESTUARINE SYSTEMSFAMILY HEALTHFERTILITYFISHFISH PRODUCTIONFISHERIESFISHINGFLOODINGFLOODSFOOD SECURITYFORESTFOREST COVERFOREST DEGRADATIONFOREST ECOSYSTEMFOREST PRODUCTSFOREST USEFOREST ZONEFORESTRYFORESTSFRAMEWORK CONVENTION ON CLIMATE CHANGEFRESHWATERFUELSGLOBAL CLIMATE CHANGEGOVERNMENT DEPARTMENTSGROSS DOMESTIC PRODUCTHABITATSHARMHEALTH INTERVENTIONSHEALTH RISKSHEALTH SERVICESHOUSINGHUMAN CAPITALHUMAN DEVELOPMENTHUMAN HABITATIONHUMAN LIFEHUMAN SETTLEMENTSHUMAN­WILDLIFE CONFLICTSHYDROLOGYILLNESSILLNESSESINSTITUTIONAL CAPACITYIPCCISSUESKNOWLEDGE BASELAND AREALAND SUBSIDENCELAND USELEGAL STATUSLEVEL OF EDUCATIONLIQUID PETROLEUM GASLIVELIHOOD OPPORTUNITIESLIVESTOCKLIVING STANDARDSLOCAL AUTHORITIESLOCAL COMMUNITYLOCAL GOVERNMENTSLOCAL POPULATIONMANGROVE ECOSYSTEMSMANGROVE FORESTMANGROVE REFORESTATIONMANGROVESMEDICAL CAREMETALSMETEOROLOGYMIGRANTMIGRANTSMIGRATIONMORTALITYNATIONAL ACTIONNATIONAL ACTION PLANNATIONAL PARKNATURAL HABITATSNATURAL RESOURCESNUTRIENT CYCLINGNUTRITIONOSMOSISPERSONAL CAPACITYPERVERSE INCENTIVESPETROLEUMPLANTPLANTATIONSPOACHINGPONDSPOOR HEALTHPOPULATION FIGURESPOPULATION GROWTHPOPULATION PRESSURESPROPERTY RIGHTSPUBLIC HEALTHPUBLIC SERVICEQUALITY OF LIFEREDUCING EMISSIONSREFERRAL SYSTEMREGULATORY AUTHORITIESREGULATORY AUTHORITYRESERVE AREASRESERVE FORESTSRESERVESRESTORATIONRICE PRODUCTIONRISK MANAGEMENTRIVERRIVER DOLPHINRIVER SYSTEMSROADSRURAL AREASRURAL COMMUNITIESRURAL DEVELOPMENTSAFE DRINKING WATERSAFE WATERSAFETY NETSALINITYSANITATIONSATELLITE IMAGERYSCHOOL-AGE CHILDRENSEA LEVELSEA LEVEL RISESEASONAL BASISSEDIMENTSERVICE DELIVERYSOCIAL CONDITIONSSOCIAL WELFARESOCIOECONOMIC DEVELOPMENTSPECIESSTORMSSTREAMSSTUDY AREASURFACE AREASUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENTSUSTAINABLE MANAGEMENTTECHNICAL ASSISTANCETEMPORARY MIGRATIONTIGERTIGER RESERVETIGERSTIMBERTIMBER PRODUCTSTOURISMTOURISM DEVELOPMENTTOXIC METALSTRANSPORTATIONTROPICAL CYCLONESURBAN AREASURBAN ENVIRONMENTSVILLAGESVOCATIONAL TRAININGVULNERABILITYVULNERABLE POPULATIONSWATER MANAGEMENTWATER RESOURCESWATER SUPPLIESWETLANDWETLAND MANAGEMENTWILDLIFEWILDLIFE SANCTUARIESWILLINGNESS TO PAYWMOWORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATIONWTP10.1596/20116