A recent highlight includes the NWP policy brief on oceans which outlines key knowledge gaps and collaborative actions to build resilience of oceans, coastal areas and ecosystems. 

The NWP expert group participated as a panel member in the Ocean and Climate Change Dialogue. This was the first occasion for the NWP expert group to have an official role in a UNFCCC mandated event. The dialogue provided an opportunity to share progress on collaborative actions and showcase the role of the NWP expert group to strengthen action on ocean and climate change under the UNFCCC process. 

The UN Climate Change and Universities Partnership Programme was launched at the event.  

The Secretariat convened a session during 

the Gobeshona Global Conference in 2021 to highlight key learning from other partners and initiatives that are engaging young professionals and universities in building resilience. The event also explored 

The Lima Adaptation Knowledge Initiative (LAKI) in partnership with the Global Adaptation Network co-organized a technical meeting for the West Asia/GCC and North Africa subregions to close adaptation knowledge gaps. Held on 8-10 December, the event hosted a number of organizations and institutions, including the Government of Jordan.  

The participants expressed interest to work together to address persisting adaptation knowledge gaps. They presented potential actions that can be co-designed and implemented with other organizations. Building on the ideas shared, a second meeting was held from March 23 to 25, 2021 to concretize actions. The third and final meeting will take place on May 5, 2021. 

For more information on this work, please contact: [email protected] 

The session highlighted the critical importance of context-specific knowledge for targeted users, and the need for useful methods and approaches to close persisting knowledge gaps. The session illustrated a commitment by NWP partners to mobilize collaborative actions through the LAKI. The session was jointly organized by the UNFCCC secretariat and UNEP. 

During the LAKI priority-setting workshop held from February 23-26, climate change experts discussed and prioritized adaptation knowledge gaps for Pacific SIDS. The priority knowledge gaps span multiple sectors, and they include a lack of knowledge on how to include women, girls, and people with disabilities in designing and implementing adaptation plans and policies. Another priority knowledge gap is the lack of knowledge of climate change officers, finance officers, and relevant sector officers to access climate change adaptation funds. See the full list of priority knowledge gaps here.  

As part of the Local Communities and Indigenous Peoples Platform's (LCIPP’s) Initial Work Plan (2020-2021), the LCIPP will produce a Technical Paper mapping existing policies and practices for the participation of indigenous peoples and local communities. The focus will be on climate change-related bodies and processes both under and outside the UNFCCC. To complete the mapping process, the LCIPP has re-launched a Call for Submissions to collect further views from Parties, indigenous peoples organizations, observers, and other stakeholders.

The deadline for submissions is 15 April 2021.  

Adaptation Committee 

How developing countries are addressing hazards, focusing on lessons learned and good practices   

Data for adaptation at different spatial and temporal scales  

Practical and technical solutions for averting, minimizing, and addressing loss and damage  

The Executive Committee of the Warsaw International Mechanism (WIM ExCom) is convening inaugural meetings of three expert groups to advance technical work on slow onset events and non-economic losses and to address support aspects.  

The 13th meeting of the WIM Excom will take place on 27-30 April. It will provide an opportunity to learn about the activities to be carried out and technical products to be developed by the expert groups in 2021/2022 timeframe and specific engagement opportunities for collaboration. The WIM Excom will also advance the preparation for its contribution to the first global stocktake to take place in 2023. The registration deadline is 12 April 2021.  

New call for submissions for the Gender Action Plan 

In the framework of Priority Area A of the Lima Work Programme on Gender and its Gender Action Plan, Parties, relevant organizations and the research community are invited to share submissions on dimensions and examples of the gender- differentiate impacts of climate change; the role of women as agents of change; and opportunities for women. 

               

Check out the compilation on international collaborative initiatives on climate technology research development & demonstration (RD&D) produced by the Technology Executive Committee (TEC).          

Several bilateral and multilateral initiatives are being implemented in Asia-Pacific, Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean, Europe and North America that promote and support RD&D of various climate technologies, from smart electricity grids and energy storage to water management and drought forecasting. The publication analyses these initiatives and extracts good practices on governance structure, funding model, stakeholders engagement, long-term sustainability that can be replicated in other locations and future initiatives. The aim is to facilitate the effective participation of developing countries in collaborative RD&D initiatives on climate technologies.

Some recent news stories on the Adaptation Knowledge Portal:

Expert insights and learning: why do biodiversity and adaptation actions matter?  

Coastal adaptation in Odisha 

The Nairobi Work Programme launched a new policy brief on the ocean 

UN Climate Change & Universities Partnership Programme at the Gobeshona Global Conference 2021   

The open-access book, “Climate Risk in Africa - Adaptation and Resilience” captures experiences from the major Future Climate for Africa (FCFA) programme that aims to promote more effective use of climate information in resilience building and adaptation action across sub-Saharan Africa.  

In December 2020, Community Forests International launched the VIUNGO Project in Zanzibar to help small-scale farmers transition to climate-adaptive growing practices. 

With a focus on women and youth, the project is expected to reach over 20,000 farmers over its four-year timeline. VIUNGO builds on the organization's previously funded Global Climate Change Alliance initiatives celebrated in an award-winning short documentary on National Geographic. 

As a recognition of the crucial role that wetlands play in the mitigation and adaptation to climate change, the Association for Promoting Sustainability in Campuses and Communities coordinated the launch of the ‘Green Protocol for Wetlands’ in partnership with Pondicherry University, Govt. of Puducherry: Directorate of Forests and Wildlife & Department of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare.  

On 25 January 2021, African leaders from politics, business, and civil society gathered virtually to discuss how to accelerate adaptation in Africa at the Climate Adaptation Summit.  

These insights fed into a short film, that captures these interviews and shares compelling examples of Africa’s adaptation solutions and innovations. The film is also available with French subtitles. 

A working paper was also published, based on these interviews, which lays out an agenda for unlocking effective, accelerated adaptation at scale in Africa 

We’ve reached over 2,924 followers on our Twitter handle! Be sure to follow us, @AdaptXChange, to get daily updates on NWP's work and the work of our partners. The NWP's Twitter profile enables us to promote the NWP and UNFCCC's adaptation work as well as other partners' work on adaptation and resilience. On a daily basis, we share new and emerging adaptation knowledge and related events.