This thesis evaluates and develops a method for studying the occurrence of cascading effects between critical infrastructures. The thesis also analyzes how the results of previous research using the method may have been affected by certain aspects of the method. Applying different inclusion thresholds and exploring how material could be gathered differently, the thesis provides some tentative answers to the value of using newspaper articles when studying cascading effects. In addition, the thesis offers recommendations for future research and policy on the protection of critical infrastructures.

This thesis evaluates and develops a method for studying the occurrence of cascading effects between critical infrastructures. The thesis also analyzes how the results of previous research using the method may have been affected by certain aspects of the method. Applying different inclusion thresholds and exploring how material could be gathered differently, the thesis provides some tentative answers to the value of using newspaper articles when studying cascading effects. In addition, the thesis offers recommendations for future research and policy on the protection of critical infrastructures.

Droughts can have far-reaching and devastating effects on all sectors of society and ecology and future changes to drought and flood patterns are uncertain. This uncertainty has led to a lax response from local officials in dealing with mitigation and adaptation, particularly in Sweden. As such, this study focused on providing more localized estimates of future drought trends in Sweden so that policy makers can make informed decisions. To assess impacts to different sectors, the results from ten different climate model simulations between 1961-2100 under different emission scenarios, along with hydrological model simulations, were evaluated throughout Sweden for 50 different catchments using a variety of meteorological and hydrological drought indices. We projected a consistent and significant increase in drought severity, duration, and intensity over the course of the 21st century in many parts of Sweden under both moderate and high emission scenarios (RCP 4.5 and RCP 8.5). However, models were in less agreement on the sign of change of drought frequency. These results are highly consistent with more regional pan-European studies on drought, but also show significant departures due to local catchment-specific variability in some forms of drought. Local impacts to agriculture, energy production, water supply, public health, and fresh-water ecosystems are briefly discussed. These results are likely underestimates of future drought due to biases in the models. Improved formulations of drought indices along with a more robust statistical handling of the model output could reduce these uncertainties. / Torka kan ha förödande effekter på samhälle och ekosystem. På grund av ökande nederbörder och temperaturer är förändringar i torka och översvämningar osäkra. Dessa osäkerheter har lett till slappa åtgärder från politiker och lokala tjänstemän vars syfte är att anpassa samhället inför torka och översvämningar. I och med detta fokuserade denna studie på att ge mer lokaliserade uppskattningar av framtida torktrender i Sverige så att beslutsfattare kan fatta välgrundade beslut. För detta utvärderades resultat från olika klimatmodeller och simuleringar av avrinnesområden mellan 1961-2100 under olika utsläppsscenarier. Dessa utfördes i hela Sverige för 50 olika avrinningsområden för att bedöma effekterna av framtida torka på olika samhällsfunktioner, så som jordbruk, energiproduktion, vattenförsörjning, folkhälsa, och ekosystem. De flesta modellerna visade en överensstämmande ökning av torkans magnitud, varaktighet och intensitet under 2007-2100 i många delar av Sverige under både måttliga och höga utsläppsscenarier. Modellerna var dock mindre överens om förändring av torkfrekvensen. Dessa resultat överensstämmer mycket väl med mer regionala studier av Europa men visar också tydliga skillnader på grund av lokal variation, vilket har olika effekter på olika samhällsfunktioner. Det visade sig även att klimatmodellerna och våra metoder hade en tendens att överskatta bland annat nederbörd, vilket innebär att dessa resultat sannolikt är underskattningar av framtida torka.

In our highly digitalized society, the dependence on digital solutions and systems is integral to the function of society. While digitalization has brought numerous benefits, it has also exposed society to vulnerabilities, making it susceptible to cyberattacks. The structure of vital societal functions, involving private subcontractors and long and digital supply chains. Along with the cooperation between public and private entities having inherent weaknesses it has created a vulnerable system. As vital societal functions bear the responsibility for public services and the protection of the personal information in their possession, it is crucial that they remain open to critical examination. Due to the complexity of cybersecurity and closely related subjects, the media plays an important role in conveying a nuanced depiction of the hacker attacks and establishing important connections to closely related discourses. This is essential for fostering critical examination and public debate, especially considering the assumed limited prior knowledge of the public. This thesis examines in what way cyberattacks against vital societal functions are portrayed in the Swedish media discourses and what connections to closely related discourses are being made. The focus is specifically on New Public Management, Public-Private Partnership, and Digital Supply Chains. Through a discourses analysis using an analytical framework inspired by Carol Bacchi, this thesis concludes that cyberattacks against vital societal functions are represented in a simplified way. The vital connections to other discourses are few and weak, resulting in a content-poor discourse that possibly hinders both critical examination and a public discussion on the subject.