climate cop11 anne hammill

Portfolio Screening for Mainstreaming Adaptation to Climate Change: 

Portfolio Screening for Mainstreaming Adaptation to Climate Change Richard J.T. Klein1,2, Siri E.H. Eriksen3, Lars Otto Næss4,5, Anne Hammill6, Carmenza Robledo7,8, Karen L. O’Brien1 1 Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, Potsdam, Germany; 2 SEI–Oxford, Oxford, UK; 3 University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway; 4 CICERO, Oslo, Norway; 5 University of East Anglia, Norwich, UK; 4; 6 IISD, Geneva, Switzerland; 7 Intercooperation, Berne, Switzerland 8 Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Testing and Research, Dübendorf, Switzerland Paper presented at conference “Development Day” Montreal, 3 December 2005

Adaptation and development co-operation: 

Adaptation and development co-operation Climate change may undermine development activities (e.g. infrastructure, water, health, agriculture) Communities and ecosystems that are intended to benefite from ODA may be vulnerable to climate change Development activities can affect vulnerability and adaptive capacity …Emerging interest and follow-up from donor agencies

‘Mainstreaming’: 

‘Mainstreaming’ Involves the integration of policies and measures that address climate change into development planning and ongoing sectoral decision-making Ensures the long-term sustainability of investments and reduces the sensitivity of development activities to both today’s and tomorrow’s climate Efficiency and effectiveness gains

Mainstreaming adaptation: 

Mainstreaming adaptation Not only top-down integration of ‘traditional’ technology-based adaptation measures based on future climate scenarios (e.g. sea walls, promotion of drought resistant crops) Also involves integration of measures that address the underlying factors of vulnerability and don’t unwittingly increase vulnerability to climate variability and change (i.e. maladaptation)

Portfolio screening: 

Portfolio screening Systematic examination of an agency’s set of policies, programmes or projects, with the aim of identifying the links between climate change and an agency’s development priorities, such as poverty reduction, institutional development and capacity building.

Why portfolio screening?: 

Why portfolio screening? Identify linkages between climate change and an agency’s development priorities/activities Where there are experiences in dealing with climate variability and change, identify options for building on this (identify needs for capacity building) Where the linkages appear weak, identify entry points through which climate adaptation can be supported Help operationalise linkages in the agency’s development strategies and planning tools at different levels

Agency screenings to date: 

Agency screenings to date Several agencies have conducted reviews or screenings of their policies, strategies, programmes or projects with respect to climate change World Bank, GTZ, NORAD, OECD, SDC Summarise experiences and draw lessons for a formalised portfolio screening tool to expand focus on climate-development linkages

Agency screenings: Lessons from review of current policies, programmes and projects: 

Agency screenings: Lessons from review of current policies, programmes and projects Many linkages – climate change relevant to a large share of agencies’ activities Little or no consideration of climate change vulnerability and adaptation, even in areas with high current climate sensitivity Climate change mainly seen as a mitigation concern Agency staff unclear on whether and how climate links to their day-to-day work

Agency screenings: Lessons from screening processes: 

Agency screenings: Lessons from screening processes Review policies and strategies (NORAD): + good basis for strategic discussions of links between ODA and climate change - lack of links to practical development Review programmes and projects (GTZ, SDC, WB): + clearest on how to incorporate adaptation into practical ODA activities - less clear on strategic choices Country case studies (OECD): Clearest descriptions of country-specific climate change issues and links to development agenda Country-specific screening less likely to be relevant in other areas and countries

Agency screenings: Recommendations: 

Agency screenings: Recommendations Need for practical tools for “climate proofing” of development co-operation Use current climate risks as a starting point Focus on increased future flexibility Integrate evaluation of climate change in existing planning routines Need for awareness raising within agencies Use pilot activities to help implementation of adaptation measures

Challenges: 

Challenges Reframing climate change from a predominantly environmental issue to also a concern for poverty reduction Identifying linkages and balance between climate change and other external stressors (economic globalisation, demographic changes, health challenges, other natural hazards) Relate climate change to stakeholders’ concerns Make use of past experiences with climatic variations Develop tools that are cost-effective and adapted to current modes of operation

Outline of a portfolio screening…framework: 

Outline of a portfolio screening…framework Work in progress Complement other screening tools (World Bank, Danish Development Cooperation) Four general components: Identify links between climate and development activities – types of assessment Compare against past and current activities Raise awareness Establish (other) conditions for success

Identify Links…: 

Identify Links… Defining parameters – scale, type of development activity to be screened Different ways of understanding links (esp at project level) Risk Assessment: Quantifying the extent to which CC impacts pose risk to cost-effectiveness and other aspects of the viability of a project Vulnerability Assessment: Evaluating the vulnerability of community/ecosystem at which project is targeted Environmental and Social Impact Assessment: Analysing the extent to which a project would affect (pos or neg) a system’s vulnerability to climate change

Compare against past and current activities: 

Compare against past and current activities Build on existing experiences in dealing with climate risks Information, partnerships, coping and adaptation strategies Assess capacity building needs Identify entry points Strategically Agency operations

Raise awareness: 

Raise awareness Climate stress Climate change Responses – mitigation and adaptation Make the direct link to development activities

Establish conditions for success: 

Establish conditions for success Within the agency Embedding screening within the agencies Cross-departmental cooperation Devising a strategy for implementing results across the agency Outside the agency Sharing experiences and results with other development agencies Co-ordinating the portfolio screening with other policy processes

Conclusions and the way forward: 

Conclusions and the way forward Clear rationale for more attention to adaptation in development agencies’ work Large scope for mainstreaming by using past experiences as well as current institutional set-up and procedures Mainstreaming is not about applying climate change scenario(s) to current development interventions Screening tool per se no panacea - process rather than a finished product Ultimately, screenings must address not only the way interventions are undertaken, but also which development pathways are chosen