The UNFCCC adaptation knowledge hub, the Nairobi Work Programme (NWP), collaborates with universities to close adaptation knowledge gaps in a number of countries. Working closely with guidance from specific national and regional partners, graduate students from accredited universities undertake specific project as a part of producing their Master’s theses. 

These collaborations add value by:

The UN Climate Change and Universities Partnership Programme, led by the NWP, invites collaboration with other accredited universities, particularly in the global South. The programme also aims to manage a wider portfolio of projects, thematic areas and outputs, which also respond to the mandates of various UNFCCC constituted bodies.  

The projects provide opportunities for students to apply their skills to undertake practical adaptation work and collaborate with a local or regional partner. The research findings and knowledge products are also shared within the UNFCCC process, adding visibility to linkages with the intergovernmental process. 

One recent example is our partnership supporting local subsistence farmers adapt to climate change in Namibia. Read more about this project in the following section.

Biodiversity and climate change adaptation, focusing on forests and grasslands, is one of the priority areas under the NWP in 2020-21. In July, we convened the first meeting of the expert group members, representing international, regional and national organizations, indigenous peoples organizations, think tanks and research institutions. We have received a number of case studies detailing lessons learned on this theme and are looking for additional case studies, particularly related to forests and grasslands. If you would like to share a case study with us, please fill out the following form.

We are currently drafting a scoping paper on biodiversity and climate change adaptation with inputs from our expert group. The key findings from this paper will be shared at the NWP’s "Addressing knowledge gaps: biodiversity and climate change adaptation" event during the November Climate Dialogues on 26 November 13:30-15:00 CET. You can find more details below in our Climate Dialogues section.

We also have a biodiversity thematic page on the Adaptation Knowledge Portal. We will be adding new updates, relevant case studies and other resources on this page on a regular basis.

The NWP is making good progress with regional partners to close pre-identified adaptation knowledge gaps in the Gulf Cooperation Council Countries (GCC) and North Africa through the Lima Adaptation Knowledge Initiative (LAKI). Over the last few months, we have engaged with organizations working in the two sub-regions to map out ongoing adaptation initiatives. Between December 2020-February 2021, we will hold three virtual meetings to:

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

The NWP in collaboration with UNEP through the Global Adaptation Network, and NWP partner the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environmental Programme, have kickstarted the process of understanding the knowledge gaps in the Pacific Small Island Developing States. Under the LAKI, a rigorous methodology will be applied to identify and prioritize adaptation knowledge gaps for the sub-region. 

In February 2020, three graduate students from the University of Michigan’s School for Environment and Sustainability began a research project titled ''Strengthening Adaptation Solutions for Agricultural Development: A Study to Assess Potential 

This project seeks to address two knowledge gaps related to water resources and agriculture identified in the context of the LAKI in the Southern Africa region. COVID-19 has had implications on the research work, but with the support of partners, the University of Namibia, Global Water Partner-ship South Africa and the Namibia Water Partnership, progress is underway. The students have written a news story to share their progress.

Get involved with our United Nations Climate Change and Universities Partnership Programme to catalyze more projects like this one.

The 38th meeting of the Least Developed Countries Expert Group (LEG) took place online from 17 to 21 August 2020. In the meeting, the Group updated its activities for 2020-2021 and the modalities of delivering the work due to the COVID-19, to ensure continued progress in supporting the least developed countries (LDCs). The meeting was also attended by representatives from the LDCs to discuss their needs and the provision of technical guidance and support.

The LEG also engaged representatives of the Green Climate Fund and the Global Environment Facility to discuss matters related to funding access for the LDCs, like the formulation and implementation of national adaptation plans. Many organizations continue to actively engage in the meetings of the LEG to coordinate efforts in providing support to LDCs.

The National Adaptation Plan (NAP) Champions Webinar 'Advancing adaptation through National Adaptation Plans' was held on 14 October 2020. The event discussed:

It was conducted as part of the NAP Champions Webinar Series designed to advance NAPs at the highest levels of leadership. The series aims to promote the NAP as the central vehicle to addressing climate change impacts, vulnerabilities and risks at the national level. 

The second NAP Country Platform was held virtually on 29 October 2020. Organized as part of NAP Expos, developing countries presented their NAPs. Representatives from Guatemala, Paraguay, Uruguay, Suriname and Grenada highlighted their respective adaptation priorities in the NAPs, and showcased how they will implement the identified policies, projects and programmes in their NAPs. The platform encouraged countries to share lessons learned in their work; how collaborations with other countries can be catalyzed; and how progress and effectiveness of their adaptation efforts will be monitored.

Integrating Gender into National Plans 

Recordings of the speaker presentations, and participant feedback are available online. As some regional workshops included simultaneous translation, recordings are also available in Spanish for the Northern America and LAC workshop, in French for the Sub-Saharan Africa workshop and Arabic for the MENA workshop. 

Make sure to join the Global Gender Event during the November Climate Dialogues to hear about progress on the implementation of the gender action plan in 2020 and share how you plan to work on this nexus to inspire others and identify synergies and room for collaboration.

The Technology Executive Committee (TEC) held a deep dive session at the fourth Global Sustainable Technology and Innovation Community Conference to discuss “Innovative Approaches for Climate Adaptation Technologies" on 27 October 2020.

Congratulations to the newly elected co-chairs and vice co-chairs of the Facilitative Working Group (FWG) of the Local Communities and Indigenous Peoples Platform (LCIPP), Andrea Carmen and Clement Yow Mulalap were elected on 5 October 2020, during the Third Meeting of the FWG. They are supported by their vice co-chairs, Jane Au and Irina Barba.

The FWG annually elects two co-chairs and two vice co-chairs from among its fourteen representatives to serve for a term of one year each. As per the current mandate, there is balance between representatives of indigenous peoples and Parties in these leadership roles. Andrea Carmen and Jane Au represent indigenous peoples, while Clement Yow Mulalap and Irina Barba represent Parties.  

The Consultative Group of Experts (CGE) continued to provide technical support to experts from developing countries on matters related to the measurement, reporting (MRV) and the enhanced transparency framework (ETF). Two handbooks, namely the 'Handbook for country Parties on preparing for implementation of the enhanced transparency framework under the Paris Agreement' and the 'Handbook on institutional arrangements to support MRV/transparency of climate action and support', provide guidance to improve awareness and understanding of the ETF. They also enhance institutional arrangements that promote transparency in climate action and support.

The Consultative Group of Experts (CGE) organized two webinar series, one on 'Transitioning from the revised 1996 to 2006 IPCC guidelines for national GHG inventories' and the other on 'Synergies, at national level, to collection information for reporting under MRV, ETF, SDGs and other international instruments.'

Climate change threatens biodiversity and ecosystems which people rely upon in order to adapt to the impacts of climate change and reduce (disaster) risk. As part of the Nairobi work programme (NWP) thematic area on biodiversity, experts will discuss the value of integrating forest and grasslands ecosystems into adaptation strategies.

Join us on Thursday, 26 November 13:30 - 15:00 CET when our panelists, including members of the NWP thematic expert group, will explore benefits for mitigation, biodiversity conservation, and avoidance of land degradation and desertification. Panelists will discuss preliminary findings from a thematic scoping paper that will be published in January 2021.

On 30 November 2020 12:30 - 14:00 CET, this event will highlight collaboration with universities, global and regional centres and networks to address adaptation knowledge needs of targeted knowledge users in countries and subregions. 

Join the expert discussion on this topic on Technology Day during the UNFCCC Climate Dialogues, on 25 November 2020.                 

The session will showcase and discuss various innovation and innovative approaches, including challenges and good practices, to deploying, disseminating and scaling up climate-smart agriculture solutions and technologies. The roles of different roles stakeholders will be discussed along with the effective measures to implement these approaches. 

On 26 November 2020, the Consultative Group of Experts (CGE) plans to organize its informal forum to show-case its work conducted in 2020 and to engage with key stakeholders. Relevant stakeholders will informally reflect and exchange views on country experiences and evolving needs and priorities in the implementation of the MRV arrangements, and preparation for the transition to the enhanced transparency framework under the Paris Agreement.

The Paris Committee on Capacity-building (PCCB) is continuing to connect climate actors, facilitate collaborative capacity-building activities, and foster engaging discussions through virtual means, despite the current limitations. Focused on capacity-building for a better recovery, the PCCB in collaboration with six members of the PCCB Network will launch a series of events in November entitled Capacity-building Momentum to Recover Better, scheduled to take place every Wednesday of November.

Global Adaptation Month or GAMeOn! was created to raise awareness of the urgent need for climate adaptation. During the month of April, GAMeOn! recruits adaptation commitments and shares climate adaptation actions to track progress worldwide. The first GAMeOn! was piloted in April 2020. EcoAdapt coordinated GAMeOn! which was planned by a 13-person planning committee. We are recruiting new planning committee members to help guide GAMeOn! 2021 and to elevate the needs and adaptation actions around the world. EcoAdapt is a U.S.-based non-profit organization with the mission of building a robust future in the face of climate change.

The EPIC model, a partnership initiative helping cities and universities to strengthen climate resilience, is coming to Asia! The call for applications for the EPIC Asia-Pacific workshop is now open to cities and universities in the Asia-Pacific region. The workshop will take place virtually on 8-9 March 2021. The event will pair universities and cities to gain skills in the use of the EPIC model for strengthening capacities to build university-city partnerships and to address climate change adaptation and resilience challenges. 

application. The application deadline for the workshop is December 10th. For more information, please click below or contact Mzime Murisa: [email protected]. 

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