People power should inform policy around climate change adaptation, says researcher

By Greg Chapman

For any climate change actions to be successful communities need to not only better understand the causes but also participate more in designing measures to combat it.

That’s according to CQUniversity PhD student Dhanushki Perera, who will receive her Doctor of Philosophy at the 2026 Brisbane Graduation Ceremony on 14 August.

Dhanushki’s thesis, Complexity Management of Climate Change Social Perceptions and Economic Factors: Towards Well-adapted Australia, found that people’s participation was crucial in combatting climate change.

“My thesis establishes that climate change is a direct outcome of the complexity of Coupled Human and Natural Systems (CHANS),” she said.

“The systematic literature review found that the dominant complexity characteristics are reciprocal effects and feedback loops, meaning that human actions affect the natural environment, which then feeds back into human society and behaviour.”

She said public involvement is a critical driver of successful adaptation to the impacts of climate change.

“The thesis argues that adaptation strategies have often been weakened by insufficient community engagement. Active public participation can improve shared decision-making, increase policy legitimacy and identify issues that may otherwise be overlooked by policymakers,” she said.

“Social perceptions and economic factors are two major internal components of the human system that contribute to the complexity of climate adaptation. The research shows that these factors should not simply be ranked individually; policymakers need to understand how they influence one another.

“The thesis strongly supports a shift from responding to climate disasters after they occur towards building adaptive capacity before impacts become severe.

“Public participation is presented as a mechanism for enabling proactive adaptation, while stronger economic support and appropriate policy instruments can help create the conditions needed for long-term resilience.

She added that a resilient society and a resilient economy cannot be developed separately.

“The research ultimately develops two major conceptual frameworks: a framework for enhancing social perceptions of climate change adaptation and a framework for enabling the economy to transition towards greater resilience,” she said.

“These are then integrated into an overall climate change adaptation policy framework for a well-adapted Australia. The thesis emphasises coordination across the factors rather than isolated interventions. 

“Ultimately the success of adaptation depends on coordination among the different social and economic factors. Policies should therefore not be designed as isolated interventions.

“The overall policy framework is intended to help policymakers coordinate these factors so that adaptation measures become more publicly accepted and economically feasible.”

Dhanushki is one of seven research students expected to cross the stage at the graduation, which will be held at the Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre from 10am-5pm.