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Global Network News
How countries can better cope with flood risk - A new story explores the growing threat of climate-induced flooding and how countries can take on the challenge. "More accurate and reliable data are helping to pinpoint risks." The Flood and Drought Portal, maintained by UNEP-DHI, aggregates and translates publicly available data from a range of sources, making it accessible to water authorities to support decisions at a local level.
Report: The State of Finance for Nature in the G20 - The State of Finance for Nature in the G20 attempts to capture the complete amount and future need for G20 country spending on nature-based solutions assets and activities. The report calls for G20 countries to scale-up annual nature-based solutions spending to $285 billion by 2050 to tackle the inter-related nature, climate and land degradation crises.
Wetlands: the unsung heroes of the planet – A new story from UNEP explains why wetlands are some of the planet’s most important ecosystems. “They store more carbon than any other ecosystem, with peatlands alone storing twice as much as all the world’s forests. Inland wetland ecosystems also absorb excess water and help prevent floods and drought, widely seen as critical to helping communities adapt to a changing climate.”
Recommendations for incorporating climate resilience in the Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) – Following the first draft of the GBF, the Partnership for Environmental Disaster Risk Reduction and the Friends of EbA network have provided recommendations for Member States to help ensure a final GBF that maintains the resilience of biodiversity and ecosystems in the face of climate change and increasing disaster risk.
Adaptation Gap Report survey - Following the release of the Adaptation Gap Report 2021: The Gathering Storm in November, UNEP would like to invite you to take this short survey on the report, which will help to strengthen future editions of the Adaptation Gap Report. The latest edition found that while policies and planning are growing for climate change adaptation, financing and implementation are still far behind where they need to be.
Geneva Nature-based Solutions Dialogues - The Geneva Nature-based Solutions Dialogues, held from April to December 2021 by the Geneva Environment Network and IUCN, aim to "facilitate further engagement and discussion among the stakeholders in International Geneva and beyond in the lead-up to a critical year for nature and society." View the website for more information.
Enhancing resilience of oceans, coastal areas and ecosystems through collaborative partnerships – This publication, developed in partnership with the Nairobi Work Programme's Expert Group on Oceans, can help countries and coastal communities build resilience and address challenges in adapting to the adverse impacts of climate change. The report highlights solutions and good practices.
Course: Nature-based Solutions for Disaster & Climate Resilience - In December, Inc. Magazine featured UNEP's online course on Nature-based Solutions for Disaster and Climate Resilience as one of the top 25 online courses of 2021. The course also featured as the second most popular course on Edx for 2021. One year from its initial launch, the course has brought together 50,000+ people from 192 countries. Register here!
News from the Regions
Africa
Forestry in the Gambia: A climate adaptation case study - UNEP is helping the government of Gambia to build climate resilience with one of the largest development projects in the nation's history. Funded by the Green Climate Fund, the project aims to restore almost 13,000 hectares of degraded ecosystems to increase the resilience of rural villages to storm surges and floods. Read about some the lessons learned to date in a new case study here.
Nigeria launches National Adaptation Plan project - With support from UNEP, the Federal Government of Nigeria has launched a new project to develop a National Adaptation Plan, aiming to strengthen the capacity of Nigeria’s government to build resilience to climate change impacts. The 3-year project is funded by the Green Climate Fund. UNEP is now assisting around 20 countries with the development of their National Adaptation Plans.
EBAFOSA’s Climate Action Digest – The latest issue of the Ecosystem-based Adaptation for Food Security Assembly’s (EBAFOSA) newsletter focuses on The Implications of the COP26 Conference: What does it mean for Africa? EBAFOSA is the Global Adaptation Network's regional adaptation network for the Africa region, seeking to combat food insecurity, climate change, ecosystem degradation and poverty on the continent. Read more here.
News from the Regions
Asia Pacific
Welcome to APAN’s new coordinator! – Hélène Marre has been appointed as the Coordinator for the Asia Pacific Adaptation Network, GAN’s regional network for the Asia Pacific, to support adaptation practitioners with knowledge exchange, capacity development and partnership-building opportunities. Before joining APAN, Hélène worked in nature conservation with a focus on coastal ecosystems and the communities that depend on them.
Locals lead adaptation efforts in drought-stricken Cambodian forests – A story by Climate Change News covers a UNEP adaptation project in Cambodia, financed by the Adaptation Fund and executed by Cambodia’s Ministry of Environment. "Through reforestation, the planting of drought-tolerant rice varieties, and the use of effective irrigation systems like pumps and tanks, villagers have been able to adapt and mitigate against the worst impacts of climate change."
Climate Security in the Pacific – UNDP’s Climate Security in the Pacific project has released its latest podcast episode, an intriguing discussion with the National Adaptation Plan Coordinator for the Republic of the Marshall Islands. The episode is part of the Catching The Last Wave podcast series. You can also find a brand-new story about the climate security project here, titled Building resilience through community cohesion.
How Timor-Leste is using the National Adaptation Plan process to scale up ecosystem-based adaptation - Timor-Leste’s National Adaptation Plan (NAP) recognizes the practice of ecosystem-based adaptation (EbA) as a foundational element in supporting a systems approach to climate adaptation. A new case study discusses these efforts, and shares lessons for other countries seeking to use the NAP process to implement EbA.
News from the Regions
Latin America & the Caribbean
In Jamaica, farmers struggle to contend with a changing climate - A project backed by 6 UN bodies is helping Mount Airy’s farmers adapt to climate change. Farmers in Jamaica, an island nation of 3 million, are especially vulnerable to climate change. In 2020, Jamaica became the first Caribbean country to submit a tougher climate action plan to the UN because the country was at risk from rising sea levels, drought and more intense hurricanes, its government said.
Nature-based Solutions for Climate-resilient Infrastructure: A Market Assessment for Latin America and the Caribbean - This market assessment examines how nature-based solutions can contribute to climate-resilient infrastructure. It offers recommendations for infrastructure project developers and financial institutions to create a more enabling environment for nature-based solutions and to increase private sector involvement.
News from the Regions
Europe
Climate fears driving up demand for disaster insurance – According to an article in the Financial Times, the major reinsurance company Munich Re is “expecting a sustained rise in Europe’s relatively low levels of property catastrophe insurance – and in the cost of cover – following last summer’s disastrous floods on the continent." The floods were Europe’s costliest climate catastrophe to date, with loss and damages worth €46bn.
Regional South Caucasus meeting promotes adaptation in mountains - In December, the NGO Sustainable Caucasus and UNEP organized a regional meeting for stakeholders to present experiences and adaptation solutions for mountain communities on the ground, and share the latest work on data, information and monitoring for climate change adaptation. Dozens of mountain adaptation solutions can be accessed in this online portal.
Upcoming Events
February 28
Press Conference: Release of the Working Group II Summary for Policymakers
February 28 - March 2
5th Session of the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA-5.2)
February 28 - March 3
Middle East and North Africa Climate Week 2022
March 27 - April 1
6th Gobeshona Conference: Exploring Locally-led Adaptation & Resilience for COP27
For more information, please contact Marcus.Nield@un.org
