Adaptation refers to the process of adjusting social, economic, and ecological systems to respond to the actual or expected impacts of climate change. Its primary goal is to reduce vulnerability and build resilience, minimizing the harm caused by unavoidable climate-related events like rising sea levels and extreme weather.
Adaptation is one of the two main pillars of climate action, alongside mitigation. While mitigation focuses on reducing or preventing greenhouse gas emissions to slow down climate change, adaptation deals with managing its unavoidable consequences. It is a proactive and reactive process for governments, communities, and businesses to prepare for and respond to climate impacts that are already happening or are certain to occur. This is crucial because even if global emissions were to stop today, past emissions have already locked in a certain degree of climate change.
The core purpose of adaptation is to enhance resilience and reduce the vulnerability of human and natural systems. This involves anticipating risks and implementing measures to protect populations, infrastructure, and economies.
Adaptation strategies can be categorized into several key types:
- Structural and Physical: These involve tangible engineering or technological solutions. This can include building physical defenses or modifying infrastructure to withstand new climate realities.
- Institutional: These are policy-based actions. This includes creating new laws, regulations, and policies, such as updated building codes, land-use planning, or establishing early warning systems for extreme weather events.
- Social: These strategies focus on changing behaviors and empowering communities. Examples include educational programs on water conservation, diversifying livelihoods to reduce dependence on climate-sensitive industries, and community-based disaster risk management.
Concrete Examples
- Coastal Cities: A city like Rotterdam in the Netherlands has implemented an extensive system of dikes, storm surge barriers (like the Maeslantkering), and "Room for the River" projects. These structural measures are designed to protect the low-lying city from rising sea levels and increased river flooding, making it a global benchmark for urban climate adaptation.
- Agriculture in Developing Nations: In regions of Sub-Saharan Africa facing increased drought, farmers are shifting from traditional crops like maize to more drought-resistant alternatives such as sorghum or millet. They also adopt new farming techniques like drip irrigation and rainwater harvesting, which are social and physical adaptations to ensure food security in a changing climate.
Successfully implementing these measures requires significant investment, known as adaptation finance. This is a critical component of climate finance, channeling funds towards projects that build resilience. [Learn more in our guide to Climate Finance]. For an authoritative overview of global adaptation efforts, refer to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) documentation on Adaptation and Resilience.