Research

The climate crisis poses immense challenges to societies worldwide—not only through destructive extreme weather events but also due to its far-reaching social consequences. Care systems are particularly affected: they are indispensable for the functioning of communities, yet climate shocks threaten their stability, increase the demand for caregiving, and deepen social inequalities. Women bear a disproportionate share of this burden—both in unpaid and paid carework. C(L)ARE brings the often overlooked connection between climate change, gender inequality, and carework into focus. Using the September 2024 floods in Lower Austria as a case study, the project investigates how climate-induced disasters disrupt care systems, weaken caregiving networks, and exacerbate social disparities. These questions remain largely unexplored in Europe, as international research has predominantly focused on the Global South. Climate disasters severely impact already underfunded care systems: care facilities are closed, infrastructure is damaged, and family networks collapse. At the same time, the need for carework and the burden on careworkers, who are often inadequately supported, are increasing. C(L)ARE highlights these dynamics and closes existing knowledge gaps by providing crucial insights into the vulnerability of care systems and the long-term negative impacts of climate-related disasters. C(L)ARE uses a mix of qualitative case studies and quantitative impact cost estimates to assess the long-term costs of disruption to paid and unpaid care systems caused by natural disasters using the example of the floods in Lower Austria in 2024. C(L)ARE’s goal is to develop actionable strategies for resilient and gender-equal care systems in times of extreme weather events and natural disasters related to climate change. C(L)ARE seeks to capacitate Austrian policymakers to integrate carework as a central pillar of climate adaptation and disaster management strategies. To achieve this, the project will produce specific recommendations for infrastructure improvements, disaster preparedness plans, support mechanisms for caregivers, and long-term strategies for gender-equitable care systems that can withstand climate-related challenges. By emphasising the importance of care systems for societal and economic resilience, C(L)ARE sets a new benchmark for integrating social justice with sustainable climate policy.

Scientific design and focus of the LTSER Eisenwurzen platform (M1 – 36) in cooperation with the Federal Environment Agency Service description: • Further development of the LTSER Eisenwurzen platform in line with European platform criteria and standard observations to sharpen the socio-ecological research profile • Implementation of platform-specific strategic steps within the framework of the eLTER process (e.g., revision of the MoU according to eLTER criteria) • Integration of the research needs of the LTSER platform into national/international projects • Socio-ecological orientation of the data strategy and further development of the socio-ecological data concept • Establishment of a database for socio-ecological data sets • Documentation of existing data sets in the DEIMS metadata database, in accordance with requirements and available resources Implementation of selected standard observations in LTSER platforms (M1 – 24) in cooperation with the US Environmental Protection Agency Service description: • Selection of eLTER standard observations for implementation in LTSER platforms • Coordination of implementation • Pre-implementation of selected eLTER standard observations in the field of social ecology

LTSER 5 supports the implementation of the European eLTER infrastructure. The eLTER RI is to be formally established as the ERIC in 2026. The operating institutions of the national eLTER sites and eLTSER platforms and their financial funder (largely the federal ministries) are required to contribute concerted Austrian positions to the ongoing eLTER RI detailed planning and its implementation and to consolidate their network of sites to such an extent that it can be incorporated into the eLTER RI. To make this possible, the organization of the national eLTER RI process was embedded in LTER Austria in 2020 and defined by statutes. This pursues the following key objectives: ● Structuring the formation of opinions on eLTER design and services in the areas of responsibility of the ministries concerned (bottom-up, site-responsible expert view) ● Coordination of (1) the technical contributions of site-operating institutions and scientific teams with (2) strategic aspects from the institutional management level (top-down, management, directorates, rectorates) ● Creation of a platform for national opinion and strategy formation ● Interface between opinion and strategy formation of the site coordinations and their institutional representatives with the formal representation of Austria in the European eLTER ESFRI process ● Time- and cost-efficient representation of Austria in the eLTER Interim Council as the central decision-making body for the design and implementation of the eLTER RI