New projects to drive locally led adaptation in Africa

As the impacts of climate change increase around the world, an all-of-society response is needed to accelerate climate action. More organizations and individuals are needed to help close knowledge-to-action gaps and drive locally led adaptation, particularly in the Global South.

“These newly approved projects will cultivate capacity and talent to drive local adaptation efforts in Africa,” said Marie-Eve Landry, the IDRC program officer responsible for the projects.

They will be led by Africa-based partner organizations and will complement previous Step Change investments, including through a climate action initiative led by the Climate and Development Knowledge Network, which was launched in 2022.

With these new projects, which together represent an investment of CAD5.3 million, Step Change is now supporting efforts to drive equitable, evidence-based adaptation in 16 countries in the Global South.

Step Change, a five-year partnership between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands and IDRC, seeks to accelerate equitable and locally led adaptation in the Global South.

Learn more about the newly approved Step Change projects:

• BAOBAB: synthesis program for African research on climate change — a project co-funded with the Climate Adaptation and Resilience (CLARE) programme

• BRokering Innovation for Decentralized climate finance and Gender Equality (BRIDGE)

• Building community resilience through strengthening agricultural adaptation knowledge systems in Uganda (CRAKS)

• Decentralizing climate funds to reinforce the resilience of vulnerable communities (DEFOCLIM)

• Locally led adaptation metrics for Africa (LAMA)

• Mainstreaming gender equality and social inclusion in climate action for adaptation

• Strengthening the capacity of the extension system to use proven knowledge to sustain equitable locally led adaptation among smallholder farmers (SCALE)