Moving towards inclusive urban adaptation: approaches to integrating community-based adaptation to climate change at city and national scale

Abstract

Adaptation to climate change in urban areas presents a complex challenge. Consequently, approaches to urban adaptation should be both multilevel and multidimensional. Community-based adaptation (CBA) presents an opportunity for locallevel participation in framing adaptation planning and activities, with wider transformative potential for urban governance. This paper presents five case studies from cities in the Global South which offer insights into the different scales at which CBA can be mainstreamed in urban contexts, and the various ways in which this is happening. These examples demonstrate five emerging opportunities for mainstreaming urban CBA, which include using CBA as part of a wider package of approaches; seizing processes of institutional reform as an opportunity to integrate community perspectives; institutionalizing new actors and approaches as a mechanism for scaling up multi-stakeholder approaches; ensuring topdown planning approaches are connected to local dynamics; and using participatory research to facilitate local communities in shaping planning processes. The cases also demonstrate that while obstacles to mainstreaming in urban contexts remain, some lessons in addressing these challenges have emerged, and CBA should, therefore, be a part of the toolbox of local and national urban adaptation policy frameworks.

Mapping Cross-Boundary Climate Change Vulnerability—Case Study of the Hualien and Taitung Area, Taiwan

“…Not only will global warming cause uncertainty, it will also impact our daily lives differently [1][2][3][4]. To minimize these impacts, the United Nations proposed two major strategies: mitigation and adaptation [4,5].…”

Building Resilient Cities through Community Empowerment: Principles and Strategies for Taiwan

“…Since urban adaptation to climate change is a relatively new field, and adaptation activities must be context-specific, no standards currently exist for planning and adaptation on the city scale, and various cities have used different approaches to planning and implementing adaptation-related activities (Anguelovski & Carmin, 2011;Jha, Miner, & Stanton-Geddes, 2013;Archer et al, 2014).…”

“…Community-based adaptation refers to the participatory identification and implementation of community-based development activities that increase the capacity of local people and community to adapt to climate change, and building on communities' expressed needs and perceptions to address local development concerns that are related to vulnerability (Ayers & Forsyth, 2009). Civil society can have a role in preparing for climate change, both through local non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and local communities, which integrate adaptive governance methods with tools for participatory planning (Archer et al, 2014).…”

“…Climate change has brought new challenges, including uncertainty in climate change and various impacts on everyday life (Andersson-Sköld et al, 2015;Archer et al, 2014;IPCC, 2014; UNEP FI Principles for Sustainable Insurance Initiative, 2014;The Royal Society, 2014). In the upcoming decades, the major driver of damage and losses that are caused by associated disasters will be the growth of populations and assets in harm's way, especially in urban areas (IPCC, 2012;Revi et al, 2014).…”

“…They must adapt to past and future effects of climate change, despite related uncertainty and unknown risks and its local effects (Andersson-Sköld et al, 2015;Archer et al, 2014;IPCC, 2012;Pelling, 2010). Cities must constantly improve their communication and management of risk, early warning systems, emergency contingencies, evacuation plans, and recovery plans.…”