Climate change adaptation: Lessons from Governments

Transcription

1 GUIDANCE BRIEF Climate change adaptation: Lessons from Governments Exploring the adaptation policy nexus with governments In adapting to a changing climate, governments* play a central role as developers and enforcers of regulatory frameworks, as well as being representatives of local and national communities. The potential for individuals and societies to adapt to climate change is framed by how governments can develop and implement effective strategies that cut across spatial, sectoral, and temporal challenges and opportunities (Adger, 2011). In an Australian context, governments include three tiers: local, state, and federal. Each tier is legally responsible for various regulation and policy that can influence adaptation priorities and agendas. This multiscalar, constitutionally-based approach to governance means that each level of government is responsible for different aspects of law-making, however it can also act to limit knowledge uptake and implementation. For governments to make effective decisions that support the sustainability of human settlements and society, as well as ecological systems, it is important that they consider climate adaptation and resilience in their decision-making processes. (Bulkeley and Newell, 2015). The ability of all levels of government in Australia to integrate climate adaptation research for policy making is an important question that requires investigation (Barnett et al. 2015). Importantly, bringing together key decision makers from each tier of government provides a platform for open dialogue exploring ways to ensure climate adaptation research is beneficial for policy makers. *For the purposes of this document, the term government refers to local, state and federal governments

2 National Adaptation Network Social, Economic and Institutional Dimensions Sharing lessons The CURF Seminar Series on 16 May, 2016 featured four guest speakers, representing local, state, and federal government, who are involved in climate adaptation decision-making. The public forum provided an opportunity for industry, government, researchers and the community to consider the diversity and breadth of adaptation knowledge held by the panel, as well as explore challenges and opportunities for the uptake of climate adaptation knowledge in and across governments. The panel discussed their approaches to adaptation challenges, including community involvement and cross sector collaboration, and the adoption of iterative and systems thinking as methods to embed climate adaptation into decision-making processes. Speakers from the CURF Forum, from left: Antonio Mozqueira ACT Government, Kate Rodgers Australian Government, Norm Lenehan Eurobodalla Shire Council and Simon Holloway Queanbeyan-Palerang Council. The Paris Agreement The Convention of the Parties (COP) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) meeting in Paris, in December 2015, resulted in a landmark agreement. It is the first international agreement to achieve holding the increase in the global average temperature to well below 2 C above pre-industrial levels and to pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5 C above pre-industrial levels, recognising that this would significantly reduce the risk and impacts of climate change. (Article 2(1)(a), The Paris Agreement). One hundred and seventy four member States and the European Union have signed the Paris Agreement, with nineteen having ratified it. Australia became a signatory on 22 April The Paris Agreement will come into force on 4 November The United State and China both ratified the Agreement on 3 September This first step in global governance is expected to have flow on effects for national (domestic) legislative and governance frameworks in mitigating greenhouse gas emissions. The National Strategy The Australian Government launched its National Climate Resilience and Adaptation Strategy in November This strategy recognises a critical need for governments to consider both mitigation and adaptation to a changing climate to be able to establish priorities. for action. It also promotes a risk reduction and risk management approach to achieving resilient outcomes that are evidenced-based, collaborative, and inclusive. The National Strategy s sectors of focus include: Coasts Cities and the built environment Agriculture, fisheries and forestry Water resources Natural ecosystems Health and wellbeing Disaster risk management A secure and resilient region (including the Pacific). The Commonwealth partners with a number of other agencies working across levels of government, including CSIRO, and state governments, in providing support for a range of mitigation and adaptation outcomes.

3 National Adaptation Network Social, Economic and Institutional Dimensions Approach Using pathways and processes of decision making that are broad and iterative can help to build evolving and robust processes for governments. This is important as they seek to balance regulatory and community demands for climate adaptation (Wise et al. 2014). Supporting the integration of knowledge across sectors and institutions remains a high priority (Adger et al. 2005). In 2016, the University of Canberra's Canberra Urban and Regional Futures (CURF) hosted a focus group with 11 key decision makers representing the three tiers of government. Representation included New South Wales, Australian Capital Territory state governments; the Federal Government; and two New South Wales local councils (one coastal, one rural and regional). Participation was anonymous. The project had University of Canberra ethics approval (HREC16-113). The focus group ran for 1.5 hours, was recorded and the transcript analysed to derive common themes. The focus group discussion was semi-structured, providing flexibility for participants (Silverman, 2006), though centered on the following questions: 1. How can knowledge uptake by Local, State, and Federal governments for climate adaptation be improved? 2. How can researchers ensure that adaptation research is beneficial for policymakers? For successful climate adaptation, the importance of an integrated approach across all levels of government cannot be understated. Professor Barbara Norman Case study: NSWAdapt The New South Wales government has developed a range of approaches to embed adaptation into decision-making. The Adaptation Research Hub, launched in 2013, is a collaboration between NSW universities and the NSW Office of Environment and Heritage. Under three broad nodes (Biodiversity, Coastal Processes and Responses, and Adaptive Communities), there are major research projects that will help to support government policy and community engagement. In addition, NSWAdapt provides support to local governments by providing risk management and vulnerability assessment tools, including facilitation of an Integrated Regional Vulnerability Assessment (known as NARCliM - NSW / ACT Regional Climate Modelling). NARCliM provides a basis for detailed community collaboration. These processes are supported by the provision of regional climate change data snapshots which provide details of changes in temperature, rainfall, weather and expected extreme temperatures. Climate change adaptation: Lessons from Governments

4 Challenge Governments are subject to competing demands from a range of stakeholder groups, communities, industry, and individuals. These multiple pressures from multiple interests can produce varying outcomes across, within and between each level of government. Participants in the focus group recognised stakeholders can impact policy development. It was noted that these stakeholders can be addressing climate change even if they don t describe (or even use) the words climate change for these policy initiatives and outcomes. Participants recognised that even if all policy levers were activated, political pressures may result in different outcomes (Moser, 2009; Gibbs, 2016). It was recognised that climate change adaptation policy remains challenging for governments, with an on-going lack of co-ordination across portfolios, to embed climate change into current or future risk management. In discussing climate adaptation knowledge gaps within governments, participants reflected that being part of a collaborative conversation early on with the research community was critical in identifying knowledge gaps. There is a need to manage the temporal disconnect between the urgent demands of policy-making versus the more slowly-paced timelines of research. Knowledge gaps for policy, once identified, often need a rapid evidence-based response. Finally, questions on economic pressures, particularly for big infrastructure items, and the requirement for long term, strategic planning was recognised by all participants. It was surmised that greater recognition of both mainstreaming of costs, and the identification of the benefits of long term planning, could alleviate these pressures and build organisational leadership. Meeting the challenge How can researchers ensure that adaptation research is beneficial for policymakers? Participants in the focus group discussed the following options for successful uptake of research, that may help ensure that such research is beneficial for policymakers: Making sure the research actually addresses prevalent issues, particularly at the local scale; Providing research through demonstration, or other creative ways of community engagement; Researchers need to clearly understand the research problem; Ensuring research results are articulated so that end-users can understand and apply it. Visual representation is a very powerful tool; Ensure research is accessible, in language, format, and availability; The importance of partnerships between governments and universities was recognised as a strong way to meet the multiple and varying needs of governments and of the broader community. Aerial image Mandurah boat harbour

5 GUIDANCE BRIEF Successes Case study: Mandurah Local Government The City of Mandurah is located 72 kilometres south of Perth in Western Australia (WA). Mandurah s geography comprises 50 kilometres of coast line, with residential housing assets and public infrastructure assets located in and around the low-lying harbour. Mandurah has a steadily growing population currently at 84,500 with expected growth to over 120,000 by year Mandurah has the highest proportion of retirees in WA (over 20% of the population), with the remaining population evenly split into those working and living in Mandurah, and those living in Mandurah but working outside the local government area. In more recent times growth in the mining sector has slowed, which is leading to the beginnings of social change in Mandurah as people return to the city seeking employment. Mandurah was one of the first local government authorities to develop a climate adaptation planning framework, the City of Mandurah Coastal Zone Climate Change Risk Assessment and Adaptation Action Plan 2009, funded under the Australian Federal Government s Local Adaptation Pathways Project (LAPP). Image: Carnegie wave energy Mandurah s approach to addressing challenges, as well as meeting opportunities arising under a changing climate, is based on an integrated strategic planning approach. Integrated planning at the local level has long been recognised as a critical foundation for developing and implementing long term adaptation strategies (Gurran et al. 2012). To address the competing needs of an aging population with a diverse and younger workforce in a high risk location, since 2009 Mandurah has modified planning processes, amended standards, and has reviewed requirements for decision making (Hamin and Gurran, 2011). These changes were necessary due to the significant and intersecting risks Mandurah faces in a changing climate. These included increased flooding and coastal erosion events, a reduced water supply, an increased risk of major heat events which will particularly affect older community members, and impacts to the local economy as employment markets change combined with potential impacts to tourism. Mandurah is well noted for going beyond treating symptoms of climate change, particularly in how it integrates its tourism industry with long term climate adaptation (Bradley et al. 2015, p17). More recent innovations include investment from all levels of government into the world s first commercial scale wave energy grid (The CETO 6 project), part funded by the WA Government s Low Emissions Energy Development (LEED) fund and the Australian Federal Government s Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA).

6 GUIDANCE BRIEF References and further reading: Adger, W. N., Arnell, N. W. and Tompkins, E. L. (2005) Successful adaptation to climate change across scales. [in special issue: Adaptation to Climate Change: Perspectives Across Scales] Global Environmental Change, 15, (2), Adger, W. N., Brown, K., Nelson, D. R., Berkes, F., Eakin, H., Folke, C., Galvin, K., Gunderson, L., Goulden, M., O'Brien, K., Ruitenbeek, J. and Tompkins, E. L. (2011) Resilience implications of policy responses to climate change. WIREs Clim Change, 2: Bradley, M., Van Putten, I., and Sheaves, M. (2015) The pace and progress of adaptation: marine climate change preparedness in Australia's coastal communities. Marine Policy, 53. pp Bulkeley, H., and Newell, P. (2015) Governing Climate Change. Routledge. Barnett, J., Evans, L. S., Gross, C., Kiem, A.S, Kingsford, R. T., Palutikof, J. P., Pickering, C. M., and Smithers, S. G. (2015) From barriers to limits to climate change adaptation: path dependency and the speed of change. Ecology and Society 20(3): 5. Commonwealth of Australia (2015) National Climate Resilience and Adaptation Strategy. Gibbs, M. (2016) Why is coastal retreat so hard to implement? Understanding the political risk of coastal adaptation pathways Ocean and Coastal Management 130, Gurran, N., Norman, B., Hamen, E. (2012) Climate change adaptation in coastal Australia: An audit of planning practice, Ocean & Coastal Management ocecoaman Hamin, E.M. and N. Gurran. (2011) Local Actions, National Frameworks: A Dual-Scale Comparison of Climate Adaptation Planning on Two Continents. Working paper available at Moser, S. Whether our levers are long enough and the fulcrum strong? Exploring the soft underbelly of adaptation decisions and actions in Adger, W.N., Lorenzoni, I. and O Brien L. K. (eds) (2009) Adapting to Climate Change: Thresholds, Values, Governance. Cambridge University Press. Newell, P., Bulkeley, H., Turner, K., Shaw, C., Caney, S., Shove, E. and Pidgeon, N. (2015), Governance traps in climate change politics: re-framing the debate in terms of responsibilities and rights. WIREs Clim Change, 6: Silverman, D. (2006). Interpreting qualitative data: Methods for analyzing talk, text, and interaction. London: SAGE Publications. United Nations. Framework Convention on Climate Change (2015). Adoption of the Paris Agreement. 21st Conference of the Parties, Paris. United Nations. Wise, R.M., Fazey, I., Stafford Smith, M., Park, S.E., Eakin, H.C., Archer Van Garderen, E.R.M., Campbell, B. (2014) Reconceptualising adaptation to climate change as part of pathways of change and response. Global Environmental Change, 28: The Social, Economic and Institutional Dimensions Network (SEI network) NCCARF s four National Adaptation Networks, hosted by universities across Australia, are a community of researchers and practitioners working together to progress climate change adaptation knowledge. The aim of the networks is to communicate and connect with researchers and research users in government, sectors and communities with a view to building and maintaining capacity to adapt to a changing climate. The SEI-network is a large, inclusive and diverse community of researchers, practitioners and decision makers from universities, government, the private sector and civilsociety. The SEI-network is hosted by the Sustainability Research Centre at the University of the Sunshine Coast and in partnership with Swinburne University of Technology, University of Canberra, University of Adelaide, Murdoch University and Girringun Aboriginal Corporation. The SEI Network is producing a number of guidance briefs for each of its focus themes. For more information please visit: Cite this document: O Donnell, T., Norman, B., Smith, T., and Connor, S. (2016). Climate Change Adaptation: Lessons from governments. Exploring the adaptation policy nexus within governments. National Adaptation Network: Social, Economic and Institutional Dimensions briefing document. Gold Coast, Australia, National Climate Change Adaptation Research Facility. Support for this resource has been provided by the Australian Government Department of the Environment and Energy and the National Climate Change Adaptation Research Facility. We are also grateful to the University of the Sunshine Coast and the Canberra Urban and Regional Futures at the University of Canberra. The views in this resource do not necessarily reflect the views of the Australian Government Department of the Environment and Energy, the University of the Sunshine Coast or the National Climate Change Adaptation Research Facility.