AdaptNet for 25 January 2011

1. Heatwaves – The Southern Australian Experience of 2009

2. Climate and Disaster Resilience – Metro Manila

3. US Policy Goals to Advance National Climate Adaptation

4. Prioritizing Adaptation Investment at Local Government Levels

5. Private Sector Engagement in Urban Resilience Building

6. Urban Adaptation to Climate Change – Short Course

Heatwaves – The Southern Australian Experience of 2009                

This study examines the impact, vulnerability, and adaptation responses to the heatwave of 2009 at state and sub-regional levels in southern Australia with an emphasis on Victoria and South Australia. It identifies barriers and challenges to climate change adaptation. The study articulates the lessons learnt within sectors, sub-regions and communities, and suggests further areas for research to enhance adaptive capacity. 

Impacts and Adaptation Response of Infrastructure and Communities to Heatwaves: The Southern Australian Experience of 2009, Jim Reeves et al., Report for the National Climate Change Adaptation Research Facility (NCCARF), Gold Coast, Australia, 2010 [4.24 MB, PDF]

Climate and Disaster Resilience – Metro Manila      

This city profile assesses the current level of climate disaster resilience of Metro Manila’s 16 cities and 1 municipality through a questionnaire survey. It utilises the planning officers of each city of Metro Manila as the survey respondents. The study applies a holistic approach by considering five dimensions (physical, social, economic, institutional, and natural) to address disaster risk reduction (DRR) and climate change adaptation (CCA).

Metro Manila City Profile: Climate and Disaster Resilience, Rajib Shah et al., Climate and Disaster Resilience Initiative (CDRI), Graduate School of Global Environmental Studies, Kyoto University, Japan, 2010 [2.32 MB, PDF]

US Policy Goals to Advance National Climate Adaptation        

The report assesses what the US Federal Government is doing to adapt to climate change. It outlines a set of guiding principles, strategic priorities, and near-term actions that are intended to: (1) further focus and strengthen the US Federal Government’s efforts on climate change adaptation; and (2) promote greater coordination and collaboration among stakeholders within and outside the Government to advance a national climate change adaptation strategy.

Progress Report of the Interagency Climate Change Adaptation Task Force: Recommended Actions in Support of a National Climate Change Adaptation Strategy, The White House Council On Environmental Quality, Executive Office of the President of the United States, USA, 2010 [1.03 MB, PDF]

Prioritizing Adaptation Investment at Local Government Levels       

The paper focuses on an investment tool that relates adaptation strategies to climatic extremes for the local governments. It uses an example of Ku-ring-gai council in Australia to assess the economic cost and benefit of climate adaptation options. Overall, the paper introduces a method to obtain a prioritized set of adaptation options for local scale climate extreme events.

Prioritizing Climatic Change Adaptation Investment at Local Government Levels, Supriya Mathew, Ann Henderson-Sellers and Ros Taplin, The Economic, Social and Political Elements of Climate Change, Climate Change Management, Part 4, pp. 733-751, 2011 [subscription required]

Private Sector Engagement in Urban Resilience Building    

The report identifies business opportunities in urban climate change resilience building (UCCRB) and attempts to understand the drivers and inhibitors to private sector participation. It focuses on the vulnerabilities of and opportunities in Gorakhpur and Surat in India, Semarang in Indonesia, and Chiang Rai in Thailand. The report finds that opportunities for the private sector do exist in UCCRB; some are clear models in mature markets, while others are in under-developed markets and require market making support.

Opportunities for Private Sector Engagement in Urban Climate Change Resilience Building, Devyani Parameshwar and Stefan Pellech, Intellecap-India and the Rockefeller Foundation-Thailand, 2010 [1.44 MB, PDF]

Urban Adaptation to Climate Change – Short Course

This intensive course, hosted by the International Centre for Climate Change and Development, will take place from 2-9 April 2011 in Dhaka, Bangladesh. It aims to equip practitioners working in urban areas in low- and middle-income countries to integrate climate change adaptation into their work more effectively. Applications may be submitted by 31^st January 2011.      

Short Course: Urban Adaptation to Climate Change – Building Capacity for Adaptation to Climate Change, International Centre for Climate Change and Development, Independent University, Dhaka, Bangladesh, 2-9 April 2011

Nautilus Institute and affiliated information services

• Climate change adaptation (AdaptNet – this newsletter): Archives.
• Australian region (APSNet): Archives.
• Northeast Asia (NAPSNet): Archives.

Subscribe to these bulletins: https://nautilus.org/mailing-lists/sign-up-for-mailing-lists

For further information or to unsubscribe, please contact the editor, Saleem Janjua: adaptnet@rmit.edu.au

Professor Darryn McEvoy, Program Leader, RMIT University Climate Change Adaptation Programme

Professor Peter Hayes, Co-founder and Executive Director of Nautilus Institute for Security and Sustainability

Saleem Janjua, editor AdaptNet.