Of the over 880 million people in the Global South who live in slums, approximately one in three resides in a floodplain. Floods in slums can lead to severe and lasting socioeconomic impacts, such as homelessness, waterborne diseases and mental health issues. Joint endeavors between the government and community members can achieve outcomes beyond traditional flood protection systems and disaster preparedness alone.

Roughly 490,000 deaths are attributable to heat annually, yet mortality is only the tip of the iceberg. In many countries, formal data often fails to capture the full scope of heat-related impacts. Community-based surveys and interviews are essential for critical insight into health and social consequences that are otherwise missed, and to identify unrecognized symptoms, capture indirect effects, and highlight vulnerable groups.

Tapping into the knowledge and experience of people in informal settlements is vital to shaping effective investments for climate adaptation in highly complex urban environments. Communities have a vital role as holders of information not captured in official statistics. Community-led data collection can provide disaggregated data for better targeting and delivery of climate adaptation programs; provide new insights into the contexts and conditions for project delivery; and add value to World Bank project context analysis.

Effectively protecting children from the adverse effects of climate change requires considering the interconnectedness of their needs and replacing siloed work with integrated action. Here are some key insights on how children have been impacted in West Bengal, India and how climate action can better respond to their unique vulnerabilities.

Record-breaking extreme heat, reaching 40 to 50°C, is threatening lives, livelihoods, and economies across the Asia-Pacific region. Proposed solutions range from developing and expanding heat forecasting informed by real-time data to empowering community-led initiatives that integrate traditional knowledge with modern science. Given that this threat is not unique to any single country, it is critical that the Asia-Pacific collectively strengthens coordination, deepens community involvement and protects vulnerable populations.

Climate change is a significant challenge for smallholder farmers in northeast Madagascar, where 94% of farmers surveyed reported impacts due to temperature rise and 91% due to reduced rainfall. 57% expect to have much less food, and 35% somewhat less food, to feed their families in the future due to these changes. Yet adaptation is limited by existing socioeconomic inequalities involving access to market activities and gender.

Plenty of research suggests that national and local actors are much better placed to identify and respond to protection concerns in disaster response and need to be better resourced and supported to do so. This research paper outlines the findings from Vanuatu, Tonga and Solomon Islands on the interface between localization and protection in the Pacific, and seeks to better understand the combination of local, national and international roles that can provide the best possible protection outcomes for affected people in disasters.

Large-scale adoption of sustainable land management and nature-based solutions to drought is not a standalone transformation – it is an integral part of rethinking how we value land and relearning how to manage land sustainably. A whole-of-society approach can ensure the voices and experiences of all actors and those most impacted by droughts are considered, helping improve coordination on drought preparation, response, recovery, and adaptation.

Less than 5% of total public adaptation finance provided between 2016-2021 reached Least Developed Countries (LDCs). To rectify this, LDCs have signed a compact with development partners to spark a transformation in how LDCs finance, develop, deliver and learn from long term adaptation and resilience efforts.

Expanding LLA strategies by communities in Senegal, Nigeria and Ghana can play a major role in addressing the unique challenges posed by climate change on local communities. Experience across Ghana, Nigeria and Senegal demonstrate that communities have been adapting to the impacts of climate change, to varying degrees. But LLA strategies in west Africa face a number of stumbling blocks.

A one- size-fits-all approach to establishing heat safety thresholds won’t work. Instead, heat safety limits need to be evaluated for different socially vulnerable groups, such as neonates, infants, children, and pregnant and postpartum women.

Community initiatives are the starting point for transformative adaptation to ready our world for a changed climate, according to this study.

MSMEs, smallholder farmers and informal individual entrepreneurs are the most important private sector actors for truly locally led adaptation because they are already heavily invested in adapting to climate change impacts.

An Indian philanthropy is redefining the relationship between fund providers and recipients.

Climate knowledge is often built top-down, overlooking diverse experiences and expertise of women and marginalized communities. This needs to change.

Global warming is shifting rainfall patterns across South Asia, and each area will be affected differently — local approaches are needed to track and respond to these changes.

Experiences from the Local Climate Adaptive Living Facility (LoCAL) in Niger, Lesotho and Cambodia indicate that while the Facility is a powerful vehicle for engaging local governments in LLA efforts, local governments often mirror the power dynamics of higher levels of governments and have exclusionary politics, which the LoCAL mechanism alone cannot shift. Intensifying efforts to involve non-governmental entities could enhance community participation in planning and budgeting processes.

Local communities bear the brunt of climate change-related disasters, made evident in three municipalities of Nepal (Aathbis, Panchadewal Binayak, and Barbardiya), where residents face challenges recovering from and responding to flooding, landslides and drought. As a result, residents often resort to loans for infrastructure reconstruction, while others relocate entirely.

Limited knowledge exists on the real-world experiences and outcomes from applying the Principles for Locally Led Adaptation in practice, especially in relation to water which is critical in climate change adaptation. Progress and lessons learned from water adaptation initiatives in East Africa’s drylands are examined to assess the alignment of water adaptation projects with these principles.

A study of six locally-led adaptation (LLA) water-related projects in Kenya and Tanzania indicate how donors, government and civil society actors can support the implementation of LLA approaches.

As cities aim to transition their buildings to include more green and sustainable sources of electricity, retrofitting – or installing – fossil fuel-based buildings with high-efficiency and clean electricity is crucial. However, one size does not fit all. Including historically disadvantaged communities in the design of retrofit programs helps to identify and incorporate the individual needs and priorities of each community.

Pond sand filters and water harvesting have brought multiple benefits to coastal communities in south-west Bangladesh, including reduced expenditure on drinking water, reduced risk of gender-based violence, reduced health risks, and improved access to education.

Successful implementation of locally led adaptation (LLA) interventions requires shifting away from top-down approaches to inclusive development structures that align with community needs. This requires us to re-evaluate how power dynamics are defined, how knowledge is dissemination and valued, and how financing is distributed to LLA efforts. 

While the effects of climate change are experienced globally, climate risks and impacts felt at the local level can vary from place to place, based on geographic and biophysical characteristics of the area. Local governments, with their firsthand experience of climate impacts, are well-placed to address climate change effects by tailoring solutions to local needs. Nonetheless, their adaptation needs often exceed local planning, technical and fiscal capacities. Cooperation is therefore necessary across levels of government to foster climate change adaptation at the local level.

The poor are most affected by climate change, as their livelihoods depend on fewer assets. Nonetheless, their vulnerability is not just about financial resources. Their vulnerability is also tied to a reliance on community and market-level resources, like suppliers, trading centers, and healthcare providers, and state and national resources, such as government agencies.