scholarly journals Legal Aspects of Urban Climate Change Adaptation

2021 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-29
Author(s):  
Riccardo Stupazzini
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Climate Change Adaptation ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Heat Waves ◽  
Urban Climate ◽  
Ghg Emissions ◽  
Geographic Location ◽  
Legal Aspects ◽  
Three Dimensions ◽  
Adaptation Measures

Much of the climate discourse of today is held the reduction of greenhouse gases (GHG) emissions and reducing humanity’s ecological footprint on Earth. However, as climate change is already impacting our planet, adaptation measures to climate change are also required. Rising temperatures, the multiplication of intense precipitation events and related pluvial and river floods, drought events and water scarcity, the increase of frequency of wildfires represent a few of the multiple climate change impacts that governments and citizens have to deal with. For ecological reasons, climate change affects areas very differently based on geographic location and urban centers represent climate ‘hotspots’ as areas with high vulnerability. As a consequence of this, cities and towns play a crucial role in tackling climate change effects. The aim of this essay is to analyze the legal aspects of climate change adaptation set by local governments to prevent and manage damages related to climate-related risks. More in detail, after determining the international, European and national legal framework on adaptation, the purpose of the article is to identify the legal instruments used by local administrations to develop adaptation measures. In particular, the analysis focuses on the legal aspects related to three dimensions of local adaptation: urban greening as a nature-based solution for heat waves risks; the management of water-related risks; the civil protection planning function of municipalities. Considering the impacts of the mainstreaming process on planning tools, special attention is directed towards the integration and coordination issue between the different urban and sectoral planning instruments required by the Italian multi-level governance legal system.

BUILDING URBAN CLIMATE CHANGE ADAPTATION STRATEGIES: THE CASE OF RUSSIAN ARCTIC CITIES

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nikolai Bobylev ◽  
Sebastien Gadal ◽  
Valery Konyshev ◽  
Maria Lagutina ◽  
Alexander Sergunin
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Climate Change Adaptation ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Urban Climate ◽  
Adaptation Strategy ◽  
Adaptation Strategies ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Russian Arctic ◽  
Adaptation Measures ◽  
Climate Change Adaptation Strategies

AbstractRussian Arctic is a highly urbanized region, with most towns built in the Soviet era to facilitate extraction industries as well as provide and maintain military facilities. Global environmental and developmental changes, as well as national political decisions open up Russia’s Arctic to massive investment, industrial and socioeconomic development. How do Russian Arctic cities, towns, and municipalities reflect on new opportunities in terms of designing their climate change adaptation strategies at a local level? Starting with theoretical discourse on urban climate change adaptation strategy, this research examines state-of-the-art, challenges and trends in planning for adaptation measures in Russia’s Arctic industrial centers. Special attention is given to a comparative analysis of the cities’ climate change adaptation strategies. The role of civil society institutions and business community in the adaptation strategy planning process is explored. Moreover, conflict sensitive approaches to ensure participatory processes for designing and implementing adaptation measures are discussed. The field component of research is based on cities of Apatity, Arkhangelsk, Murmansk, Norilsk, Salekhard, Severodvinsk and towns of Monchegorsk, Nickel and Vorkuta. The study concludes that in spite of significant challenges identified, the total “balance sheet” of the Arctic cities’ efforts to enhance their adaptive capacities is quite positive: Russian northern urban settlements do their best in addressing existing challenges via planning for sustainability approach. However, there is more to do and municipalities should learn from one another’s experiences, as the different approaches can be helpful in developing adequate climate change adaptation strategies at the local level.

System for supporting detailed implementation plan on measures for adaptation to climate change of local governments

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Huicheul Jung ◽  
Jaeuk Kim ◽  
Insang Yu ◽  
Sung-Hun Lee
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Climate Change Adaptation ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Assessment Tool ◽  
Current Status ◽  
Adaptation To Climate Change ◽  
Government Officials ◽  
Implementation Plan ◽  
Adaptation Measures ◽  
Implementation Plans

<p>It is mandatory to establish a detailed implementation plan on measures for adaptation to climate change of local governments, based on the Article 48 of the Framework Act on Low Carbon, Green Growth and Article 38 of the Enforcement Decree of the same Act of South Korea. However, it is difficult for local governments to establish such detailed implementation plan due to high budget spending, lack of experts in climate change field and the shift in cyclical positions of government officials. The Korea Adaptation Center for Climate Change(KACCC) has developed a system for supporting local governments to overcome the difficulties. The system provides integrated data regarding climate change adaptation, such as general information, current status and prospect of climate change, climate change impact analysis, vulnerability and risk assessment to climate change using VESTAP (Vulnerability Assessment Tool to Build Climate Change Adaptation Plan) for each region. Based on the integrated information regarding adaptation to climate change, local governments conduct a survey targeting general public, civil servants, experts, etc. using the questionnaire on adaptive awareness provided by the system. Each local government can analyze the information and inventory of adaptation measures and diagnose the policies to establish detailed implementation plans for each sector. By establishing the system, it is expected to support government officials’s task through standardization and automation of detailed implementation plans and reduce budget and time required for data collection and analysis. It is possible to improve the quality and maintain the consistency of plans by local governments. The system also supports decision making by rapid and reasonable adaptation measures leading to establishing highly effective and managed implementation plans for local governments.</p><p>※ This work was supported by Korea Environment Industry & Technology Institute(KEITI) through Climate Change Correspondence Program, funded by Korea Ministry of Environment(MOE)(2018001310004).</p>

Awareness of Climate Change Adaptations Among Dutch Housing Associations

2012 ◽  
Vol 37 (4) ◽  
pp. 61-71
Author(s):  
Martin Roders ◽  
Ad Straub ◽  
Henk Visscher
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Climate Change Adaptation ◽  
Heat Waves ◽  
Mitigation Measures ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Housing Associations ◽  
Adaptation Measures ◽  
Dutch Housing ◽  
The Impact

Climate change: the question is not anymore if it happens, but what the impact is of its effects such as drought, heat waves and increased precipitation on the quality of our lives in cities, offices and houses. A significant share of the Northern European housing stock is owned and maintained by large stock owners, such as housing associations. It is their responsibility to be aware of changes and risks that might challenge the quality of life of their tenants. Moreover, in order to provide housing with a good market value in the future, adaptation to climate change can no longer be overlooked. With the aim to discover the level of awareness of climate change adaptation among Dutch housing associations, a content analysis was undertaken on the policy plans and the annual reports of the 25 largest housing associations. Subsequently they were classified according to their level of awareness. The analysis returned no topics that directly referred to climate change adaptation, which implies that all housing associations are categorised as being ‘unaware’. Therefore, in order to reach higher levels of awareness and to incentivize the implementation of adaptation measures, appropriate governance strategies need to be developed. Future research will define the characteristics of these strategies in relation to the level of awareness of the housing associations. Adoption of the measures could be easier if adaptation measures are combined with maintenance activities, as this has been the case with mitigation measures.

Analysis of Ideal Directions of Climate Change Adaptation and Problems in Implementing Them for Local Japanese Governments

2015 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 420-428 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nobuo Shirai ◽  
◽  
Mitsuru Tanaka
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Climate Change Adaptation ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Climate Change Impacts ◽  
Adaptive Governance ◽  
Subject Formation ◽  
Adaptation Measures ◽  
Research Level ◽  
The Future

Additional adaptation measures such as “basic improvement of sensitivity” and “adaptive governance against mid and long term impacts” are set as ideal directions for local governments. The study of the situations for implementing additional adaptation measures by local governments were determined by using checklists. It is clarified as a result that additional adaptation measures have not been considered enough. The following problems in implementing measures from the “Japan local Forum for Climate Change Adaptation Society” were found: (1) Prediction and evaluation of climate change impacts, (2) Concretization and evaluation of adaptation measures, (3) Communication and subject formation and (4) Implementation of the measures and preparation of conditions. In the future, it is necessary to concretize additional adaptation measures at the research level, to share these additional adaptation measures with concerned parties and to promote the exchange of opinions.

Challenges of Implementing Climate Change Adaptation Policy for Disaster Risk Reduction – Implications from Framing Gap Among Stakeholders and the General Public –

2015 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 404-419 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kenshi Baba ◽  
◽  
Mitsuru Tanaka ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Climate Change Adaptation ◽  
General Public ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Climate Change Policy ◽  
Adaptation Policy ◽  
Adaptation Measures ◽  
Climate Change Risk ◽  
Change Policy ◽  
Climate Change Adaptation Policy

Local governments are expected to play a significant role in making cities resilient, especially in reducing disaster risks and adapting to climate change. To obtain the relevant actors’ understanding and cooperation in implementing adaptation measures, it is essential that the potential framing gaps which may arise between them in terms of the impacts and risks of climate change be filled in. In this study, we have identified the framing gaps between stakeholders and the general public. We analyzed the questionnaire data obtained from the general public and the stakeholder data obtained by means of a case study carried out in Tokyo. We then integrated the results and derived three implications: i) it is effective to implement climate change adaptation policy that local governments obtain an understanding of multi-benefit of the the policy as well as climate change risk from the public through community-based groups, avocational groups and other organizations in the local community. ii) as for a firmly locked-in view of climate change policy that the policy means just reducing greenhouse-gas emissions, communication strategies for accurately explaining the relationship between adaptation measures and mitigation measures is required, and iii) as for the challenges of agenda setting for incorporating climate change risk into administrative plans, the department of the environment who is in charge of climate change policy is required to take a leadership in a coordinating function, for example, raising the awareness of other departments in terms of adaptation measures and providing them with scientific knowledge of climate change risk.

scholarly journals The European Union’s external Policy on climate change adaptation: from conditionality-driven action to sustainable development

2016 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Beatriz Pérez de las Heras
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Developing Countries ◽  
Climate Change Adaptation ◽  
Development Cooperation ◽  
Three Dimensions ◽  
Policy Coherence ◽  
Adaptation Measures ◽  
Eu Policies ◽  
International Climate

T he European Union (EU) has been promoting climate change adaptation measures in developing countries for the last 15 years. EU support is channeled through a number of external policies, but the development cooperation policy is particularly significant. Support has traditionally been conditional upon recipient countries’ adopting a National Adaptation Plan (NAP). This conditionality-based action has not only helped to promote NAPs in developing countries but also enabled these countries to participate in international climate governance. Yet this approach by itself, combined with certain inconsistencies, has failed to achieve sustainable development, one of the overarching goals of all EU policies. On the basis of this experience, the emphasis of the EU’s external climate policy is currently shifting towards a broader approach that takes into account the three dimensions (economic, social and environmental) of sustainable development. This more comprehensive approach and corresponding tools are more in line with the EU’s legal commitment to ensure Policy Coherence for Development.

Overcoming Barriers to Climate Change Adaptation—A Question of Multilevel Governance?

10.1068/c0941 ◽  
2010 ◽  
Vol 28 (2) ◽  
pp. 276-289 ◽  
Author(s):  
Helene Amundsen ◽  
Frode Berglund ◽  
Hege Westskog
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Climate Change Adaptation ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Multilevel Governance ◽  
Adaptation Measures ◽  
Policies And Measures ◽  
Key Factor ◽  
Adaptation Policies ◽  
Adaptation Processes ◽  
Municipal Level

This paper analyses the results from two surveys which were sent to all Norwegian municipalities in 2007 and gives an overview of adaptation measures undertaken by local governments. Our analyses show that municipalities have more often invested in measures related to extreme precipitation and flooding than in measures for securing buildings and infrastructure against climate change. One key factor explaining their efforts is whether they have experienced extreme events. Hence adaptation efforts are mainly reactive. With a changing climate comes a greater demand for proactive adaptation processes, as well as knowledge of how adaptation policies and measures could be implemented successfully. This paper emphasises the importance of enhancing institutional capacity in order to address the challenges of climate change adaptation at the municipal level; and asserts that a multilevel governance framework is a way of advancing proactive adaptation and overcoming the identified barriers to adaptation.

scholarly journals Urban climate adaptation and the reshaping of state–society relations: The politics of community knowledge and mobilisation in Indore, India

Urban Studies ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 55 (8) ◽  
pp. 1766-1782 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eric K Chu
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Climate Change Adaptation ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Climate Adaptation ◽  
Urban Climate ◽  
Political Networks ◽  
Infrastructure Provision ◽  
Indian City ◽  
Urban Futures ◽  
Adaptation Processes

Current research on climate change adaptation in cities highlights the role of local governments in facilitating adaptation actions, but rarely assesses whether (and if so, how) local communities organise around emerging climate priorities to affect political change. This paper explores changing state–society relationships through the reconstitution of community collectives and advocacy organisations for advancing climate change adaptation in the Indian city of Indore. The paper shows that communities are indeed recognising the need for adaptation but are, at the same time, integrating adaptation actions with existing strategies for advocating development rights. Communities are also rebuilding alliances between municipal and local institutions for public service and infrastructure provision, which point to the centrality of community politics in urban climate adaptation processes. However, such mobilisations are often dependent on existing political networks and a legacy of advocacy around poverty alleviation needs, which sideline more transformative agendas around inclusiveness, equity, and resilient urban futures.

scholarly journals Public Perceptions Concerning Responsibility for Climate Change Adaptation

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (22) ◽  
pp. 12552
Author(s):  
Erik Persson ◽  
Åsa Knaggård ◽  
Kerstin Eriksson
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Climate Change Adaptation ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Public Perceptions ◽  
Adaptation Measures ◽  
Public And Private ◽  
Property Owners ◽  
People’S Attitudes ◽  
Private Actors ◽  
Decision Boundaries

For successful climate change adaptation, the distribution of responsibility within society is an important question. While the literature highlights the need for involving both public and private actors, little is still known of how citizens perceive their own and others’ responsibility, let alone the moral groundings for such perceptions. In this paper, we report the results of a survey regarding people’s attitudes towards different ways of distributing responsibility for climate change adaptation. The survey was distributed to citizens in six Swedish municipalities and completed by 510 respondents. A large number of respondents wanted to assign responsibility for making decisions about and implementing adaptation measures to local governments, but also to property owners, whereas the national government was raised as responsible for setting decision boundaries and for financial support. The most preferred principles for a fair distribution of responsibility among the respondents were desert, ability, efficiency and need, while the principle of equal shares found less support. All principles received some support, indicating that it is necessary to consider several principles when distributing responsibility for climate change adaptation. Compared to earlier studies, this study shows more nuanced perceptions on who should be responsible and on what moral grounds.

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