scholarly journals Evolution of national climate adaptation agendas in Malawi, Tanzania and Zambia: the role of national leadership and international donors

2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Joanna Pardoe ◽  
Katharine Vincent ◽  
Declan Conway ◽  
Emma Archer ◽  
Andrew J. Dougill ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Climate Change Adaptation ◽  
Climate Adaptation ◽  
National Level ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Adaptation Planning ◽  
Critical Approach ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
National Leadership

AbstractIn this paper, we use an inductive approach and longitudinal analysis to explore political influences on the emergence and evolution of climate change adaptation policy and planning at national level, as well as the institutions within which it is embedded, for three countries in sub-Saharan Africa (Malawi, Tanzania and Zambia). Data collection involved quantitative and qualitative methods applied over a 6-year period from 2012 to 2017. This included a survey of 103 government staff (20 in Malawi, 29 in Tanzania and 54 in Zambia) and 242 interviews (106 in Malawi, 86 in Tanzania and 50 in Zambia) with a wide range of stakeholders, many of whom were interviewed multiple times over the study period, together with content analysis of relevant policy and programme documents. Whilst the climate adaptation agenda emerged in all three countries around 2007–2009, associated with multilateral funding initiatives, the rate and nature of progress has varied—until roughly 2015 when, for different reasons, momentum slowed. We find differences between the countries in terms of specifics of how they operated, but roles of two factors in common emerge in the evolution of the climate change adaptation agendas: national leadership and allied political priorities, and the role of additional funding provided by donors. These influences lead to changes in the policy and institutional frameworks for addressing climate change, as well as in the emphasis placed on climate change adaptation. By examining the different ways through which ideas, power and resources converge and by learning from the specific configurations in the country examples, we identify opportunities to address existing barriers to action and thus present implications that enable more effective adaptation planning in other countries. We show that more socially just and inclusive national climate adaptation planning requires a critical approach to understanding these configurations of power and politics.

scholarly journals Climate Change, Adaptation Planning and Institutional Integration: A Literature Review and Framework

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (19) ◽  
pp. 10708
Author(s):  
Nate Kauffman ◽  
Kristina Hill
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Climate Change Adaptation ◽  
Urban Governance ◽  
Climate Adaptation ◽  
Adaptation Planning ◽  
Institutional Processes ◽  
Institutional Settings ◽  
Planning Processes ◽  
Future Work

The scale and scope of climate change has triggered widespread acknowledgement of the need to adapt to it. Out of recent work attempting to understand, define, and contribute to the family of concepts related to adaptation efforts, considerable contributions and research have emerged. Yet, the field of climate adaptation constantly grapples with complex ideas whose relational interplay is not always clear. Similarly, understanding how applied climate change adaptation efforts unfold through planning processes that are embedded in broader institutional settings can be difficult to apprehend. We present a review of important theory, themes, and terms evident in the literature of spatial planning and climate change adaptation to integrate them and synthesize a conceptual framework illustrating their dynamic interplay. This leads to consideration of how institutions, urban governance, and the practice of planning are involved, and evolving, in shaping climate adaptation efforts. While examining the practice of adaptation planning is useful in framing how core climate change concepts are related, the role of institutional processes in shaping and defining these concepts—and adaptation planning itself—remains complex. Our framework presents a useful tool for approaching and improving an understanding of the interactive relationships of central climate change adaptation concepts, with implications for future work focused on change within the domains of planning and institutions addressing challenges in the climate change era.

scholarly journals Integrating climate change adaptation in coastal governance of the Barcelona metropolitan area

2021 ◽  
Vol 26 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Inga J. Sauer ◽  
Elisabet Roca ◽  
Míriam Villares
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Climate Change Adaptation ◽  
Metropolitan Area ◽  
Management Practice ◽  
National Level ◽  
Adaptation Planning ◽  
Coastal Protection ◽  
Adaptive Governance ◽  
Governance Structures ◽  
Coastal Governance

AbstractCoastal cities are exposed to high risks due to climate change, as they are potentially affected by both rising sea levels and increasingly intense and frequent coastal storms. Socio-economic drivers also increase exposure to natural hazards, accelerate environmental degradation, and require adaptive governance structures to moderate negative impacts. Here, we use a social network analysis (SNA) combined with further qualitative information to identify barriers and enablers of adaptive governance in the Barcelona metropolitan area. By analyzing how climate change adaptation is mainstreamed between different administrative scales as well as different societal actors, we can determine the governance structures and external conditions that hamper or foster strategical adaptation plans from being used as operational adaptation tools. We identify a diverse set of stakeholders acting at different administrative levels (local to national), in public administration, science, civil society, and the tourism economy. The metropolitan administration acts as an important bridging organization by promoting climate change adaptation to different interest groups and by passing knowledge between actors. Nonetheless, national adaptation planning fails to take into account local experiences in coastal protection, which leads to an ineffective science policy interaction and limits adaptive management and learning opportunities. Overcoming this is difficult, however, as the effectiveness of local adaptation strategies in the Barcelona metropolitan area is very limited due to a strong centralization of power at the national level and a lack of polycentricity. Due to the high touristic pressure, the legal framework is currently oriented to primarily meet the demands of recreational use and tourism, prioritizing these aspects in daily management practice. Therefore, touristic and economic activities need to be aligned to adaptation efforts, to convert them from barriers into drivers for adaptation action. Our work strongly suggests that more effectively embedding adaptation planning and action into existing legal structures of coastal management would allow strategic adaptation plans to be an effective operational tool for local coastal governance.

scholarly journals Just Adapt: Engaging Disadvantaged Young People in Planning for Climate Adaptation

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 100-111 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna R. Davies ◽  
Stephan Hügel
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Young People ◽  
Public Participation ◽  
Climate Change Adaptation ◽  
Climate Adaptation ◽  
Sense Of Self ◽  
Educational Interventions ◽  
Adaptation Planning ◽  
Limited Attention ◽  
Climate Action

The visibility of young people in climate change debates has risen significantly since the inception of the Fridays for Future movement, but little is known about the diversity of positions, perspectives and experiences of young people in Ireland, especially with respect to climate change adaptation planning. To close this knowledge gap, this article first interrogates key emergent spaces of public participation within the arena of climate action in Ireland in order to identify the extent of young people’s participation and whether any specific consideration is given to disadvantaged groups. It then tests the impacts of workshops specifically designed to support disadvantaged young people’s engagement with climate change adaptation which were rolled out with a designated Delivering Equality of Opportunity in Schools school in inner-city Dublin, Ireland. We found limited attention to public participation in climate change adaptation planning generally, with even less consideration given to engaging young people from disadvantaged communities. However, positive impacts with respect to enhanced knowledge of climate change science and policy processes emerged following participation in the workshops, providing the bedrock for a greater sense of self-efficacy around future engagement with climate action amongst the young people involved. We conclude that what is needed to help ensure procedural justice around climate action in Ireland are specific, relevant and interactive educational interventions on the issue of climate change adaptation; interventions which are sensitive to matters of place and difference.

scholarly journals Justice in climate change adaptation planning: conceptual perspectives on emergent praxis

2020 ◽  
Vol 75 (4) ◽  
pp. 437-449
Author(s):  
Hartmut Fünfgeld ◽  
Benedikt Schmid
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Climate Change Adaptation ◽  
Political Process ◽  
Geographic Area ◽  
Analytical Framework ◽  
Adaptation Planning ◽  
Critical Approach ◽  
Decision Making Processes ◽  
Planning Processes ◽  
To Come

Abstract. The measures implemented to adapt to climate change are primarily designed to address the tangible, biophysical impacts of climate change in a given geographic area. They rarely consider the wider social implications of climate change, nor the politics of adaptation planning and its outcomes. Given the necessity of significant investment in adaptation over years to come, adaptation planning and implementation will need to place greater concern on justice-sensitive approaches to avoid exacerbating existing vulnerabilities and creating maladaptive and conflicting outcomes. Building on recent calls for more just and transformative adaptation planning, this paper offers a flexible analytical framework for integrating theories of justice and transformation into research on climate change adaptation. We discuss adaptation planning as an inherently normative and political process linked to issues pertaining to recognition justice as well as distributional and procedural aspects of justice. The paper aims to contribute to the growing discussion on just adaptation by intersecting theoretical justice dimensions with spatial, temporal and socio-political challenges and choices that arise as part of adaptation planning processes. A focus on justice-sensitive adaptation planning not only provides opportunities for examining spatial as well as temporal justice issues in relation to planning and decision-making processes. It also paves the way for a more critical approach to adaptation planning that acknowledges the need for institutional restructuring and offers steps towards alternative futures under climate change conditions.

scholarly journals Adaptation confusion? A longitudinal examination of the concept “climate change adaptation” in Norwegian municipal surveys.

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Torbjørn Selseng ◽  
Marit Klemetsen ◽  
Tone Rusdal
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Climate Change Adaptation ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Climate Adaptation ◽  
Building Society ◽  
Questions And Answers ◽  
Local Government Level ◽  
Longitudinal Examination

AbstractIn recent decades, there has been a surge in the scholarship on climate change adaptation (CCA) terminology and diverging interpretations of the term has emerged. Given the crucial role of local governments in building society-wide adaptive capacity, understanding how municipalities understand and interpret CCA, is important. In this study, we analyse twelve large-scale questionnaires from 2007 to 2020 distributed to all Norwegian municipalities. Using a combination of directed and conventional content analysis of the questions and answers, we summarise and map the progress of adaptation work over the 14 years and assess the consistency and the scope of the surveys in light of the current research on climate adaptation. We find diverging views on what adaptation entails, both from the researchers, in the phrasing of questions, and from the respondents. The empirical evidence suggests an overall imbalanced interpretation of CCA, both in terms of the risks and consequences we may face, the climate that needs adapting to, as well as adequate adaptation strategies. We go on to discuss the implications of these findings, highlighting the need for a shared and well-communicated framework for local CCA and a closer monitoring of the actual efforts of the municipalities. If instead left unchecked, this confusion might lead to unsustainable maladaptation at the local government level throughout Norway and beyond.

scholarly journals Mainstreaming Climate Change Adaptation into Planning and Development: A Case Study in Northern Ireland

2021 ◽  
pp. 129-147
Author(s):  
Cathy Burns ◽  
Stephen Flood ◽  
Barry O’Dwyer
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Local Government ◽  
Northern Ireland ◽  
Climate Change Adaptation ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Planning Process ◽  
Local Authority ◽  
Climate Adaptation ◽  
Adaptation Planning ◽  
Policy And Planning

AbstractThis study outlines the adaptation planning journey undertaken by Derry City and Strabane District Council (DCSDC) in Northern Ireland and reflects how the prevailing policy context and level of organisational adaptive capacity create the conditions for mainstreaming climate adaptation into planning and development. This chapter explores the potential of local government in Northern Ireland to integrate local authority policy drivers such as disaster risk reduction (DRR), emergency planning, risk and assurance, and community resilience. The ability to communicate risks and solutions was identified as an important consideration when undertaking adaptation planning, particularly when discussing the adaptation planning process and securing input or support from colleagues. Moreover, a significant amount of engagement was required with local government agencies to increase understanding of the relevance of climate change and DRR. Embedding DRR and climate change adaptation (CCA) within local authority policy and planning can enable a greater understanding of specific risks to local governments and act as a catalyst for further action.

scholarly journals Towards a Comprehensive Climate Adaptation Framework for India’s Port Infrastructure and Operations: Lessons from Global Best Practices

2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 48
Author(s):  
Pushp Bajaj ◽  
Chime Youdon
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Best Practices ◽  
Climate Adaptation ◽  
Local Level ◽  
National Level ◽  
Adaptation Strategy ◽  
Transport Sector ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Port Infrastructure ◽  
Impacts Of Climate Change

The ever-growing impacts of climate change such as extreme heat, more frequent heavy precipitation events, intensifying tropical revolving storms, and sea level rise continue to pose major threats to India’s critical maritime infrastructure. As the country moves towards its ambition of becoming a leading Blue Economy of the world, a wide range of initiatives have been taken by the central and state governments to expand the maritime sector with a specific focus on the transport sector. However, there is little emphasis being paid on protecting the existing and planned seaport infrastructure against the deleterious impacts of climate change. None of the major ports in India have a dedicated climate action strategy and climate adaptation finds no mention in the policy documents pertaining to the maritime transport sector. In this context, this paper aims to highlight the need for a comprehensive, holistic and dynamic climate change adaptation strategy for India’s port infrastructure including support infrastructure and supply chains. The adaptation strategy, at the individual ports’ level and the national level, must be preceded by rigorous risk assessment studies to identify and prioritise the major challenges arising from climate change at the local level. The paper draws upon international best practices in climate risk assessments and adaptation measures to provide a way forward for Indian ports

scholarly journals The role of the community and voluntary sector in identifying vulnerabilities to climate change in coastal areas and implementing climate adaptation responses

2021 ◽  
Vol 69 (4) ◽  
pp. 83-108
Author(s):  
Paul Lawlor
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Climate Adaptation ◽  
National Level ◽  
Coastal Areas ◽  
Coastal Communities ◽  
Climate Change Effects ◽  
Enabling Environment ◽  
Coastal Adaptation ◽  
Vulnerability To Climate Change

Abstract The National Adaptation Framework aims to reduce Ireland’s vulnerability to climate change by establishing climate adaptation considerations as a priority at local, regional and national level. With coastal areas and habitats particularly susceptible to negative climate change effects, it is necessary to build resilience in these areas by devising coastal adaptation responses in collaboration with coastal communities. Policies and structures have also been put in place to create an enabling environment which facilitates community participation. However, the extent of community engagement and its current role in formulating and implementing coastal adaptation responses are unclear. This paper assesses the effectiveness of the enabling environment in encouraging community-led coastal adaptation solutions by identifying community and voluntary groups who are actively engaging with stakeholders at all levels of governance in key adaptation tasks. The findings reveal that the policies and structures for enhanced local participation in coastal adaptation responses are in place, but as only a small number of communities are actively engaging in coastal adaptation solutions, further progress in their implementation is needed.

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