Climate actions: A multi-stakeholder approach
An effective response to climate change and its impacts needs to be based on a multi-stakeholder approach. That means that the government, financial institutions, technical experts, non-governmental organisations and the community all need to be involved.
Government actions on mitigation and adaptation
All countries that submitted nationally determined contributions to the UNFCCC in accordance with the Paris Agreement have formulated national climate change policies and national adaptation plans. Key features of government actions on mitigation and adaptation include the following:
- National development strategies and plans — especially policies on agriculture, disaster risk reduction and displacement — are aligned to support climate resilience.
- Multilateral funding, financial support from various instruments under the UNFCCC, corporate donations and government funding are used to undertake climate actions that will benefit local communities. These actions include schemes to support local governments, civil society organisations and research and to promote innovation, capacity building and leadership.
- The priorities of various countries’ national climate change plans and national adaptation strategies are contextual and focus on the specific vulnerabilities their countries are facing in terms of geographical and climatic conditions and developmental needs.
- Mitigation actions include introducing renewable energy options to replace the use of fossil fuels for electricity and in transport and industry, and developing a low-carbon infrastructure are key to reducing emissions.
- Planning how to implement adaptation strategies to build climate resilience and deal with the increasing climate impacts being felt by vulnerable countries is a key priority.
- There is a focus on institutional strengthening and capacity building of stakeholders to help them make climate-smart choices to mitigate and adapt to climate change.
- There is support for community-led adaptation strategies at the local level, especially those involving women and young people, through new and revised policies, implementation schemes and partnerships with the UN, corporate donors and NGOs.
Assessment
Formative assessment: 4.1
Think about what climate solutions governments should provide and how they should provide them.
Write your thoughts in your journal.
Climate actions in developing countries should focus on using climate-smart agriculture practices to reduce emissions and improve food security.
Climate-smart agriculture “is a comprehensive strategy for managing farmlands, crops, livestock, and forests that counteracts the negative impacts of climate change on agricultural productivity” (IAS Parliament, 2023). It includes:
- Adapting to climate change and its impacts by strengthening the agricultural infrastructure to help it cope better with the destructive effects of global warming and minimise susceptibility to climate-related threats like floods, droughts or extreme heat. The entire system of agriculture from the procurement of resources – for example, seeds, equipment, finances — to sowing crops, harvesting, storing and transporting crops can be strengthened by using climate-smart and adaptive technology and practices.
- Enhancing crop and livestock production, which increases farm profitability and provides greater food security.
- Taking action to reduce the amount of greenhouse gases released into the atmosphere because of farming activities — for example, reducing methane emissions from livestock, paddy rice cultivation and synthetic fertiliser use.
Climate-smart agriculture combines traditional knowledge and techniques with modern knowledge and techniques to help farmers adapt to the impact of climate change and increase their incomes.
Reading
IAS Parliament. (2023, 28 November). Climate smart agriculture (CSA). https://www.iasparliament.com/current-affairs/climate-smart-agriculture-csa
The figure below shows some climate-smart agriculture techniques.
As discussed, climate-smart agriculture requires everyone to work together, whether they are involved in policy, research, technology, finance or practice. To find out more, watch the video Climate Smart Agriculture in Action by Farming First.
We will now look in more detail at some of the technologies we can use to develop climate resilience.
Watch the video Climate Resilient Agriculture Technology by Discover Agriculture to learn more about the importance of climate-resilient agriculture technology and how it can contribute to sustainable development and climate change mitigation and adaptation efforts. It explores the concept of climate-resilient agriculture technology and discusses six key practices and technologies: crop diversification, improved crop varieties, agroforestry, soil and water management, integrated pest management, and weather-based advisory services.
Case study
Small-holder farmers and climate-smart agricultural practices
Krishantha and his mother live beside the Mahameda Wewa reservoir in Nawagattegama, Sri Lanka. Prolonged drought in the area has resulted in a lack of water, which is creating a major hindrance to farmer. The Climate Resilient Integrated Water Management project, which is implemented by the Government of Sri Lanka with technical support from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and funded by the Green Climate Fund, provides support to small-holder farmers to adopt climate-smart agricultural practices. Krishantha has switched to improved water management practices and growing crops organically — and the improved crop yields have benefitted his family. To find out more, watch the video Climate Smart Agriculture by the UNDP, Sri Lanka.
Source: UNDP Sri Lanka. (n.d.). Climate smart agriculture. https://youtu.be/Ttosezyc7Gw?feature=shared
Activity
Think about the different methods used in climate-smart agriculture. Would any of these practices work well in your area? Do you already use any of them?
Make a note of the CSA practices that are most relevant to your area
Nature-based solutions for disaster risk reduction
Mangroves play an important role in shielding coastal areas from the impacts of rising sea levels and severe weather events. It is therefore important to protect them. The following case studies look at some projects to protect mangroves.
Case study
Mangrove restoration in Mozambique
Mozambique’s mangrove restoration project near the Limpopo River in the Mahielene-Xai Xai district, 200 km north of Mozambique’s capital, Maputo, “combines a traditional model of planting and cultivating mangrove seedlings with an innovative technique that uses hydrological restoration to speed up the usually slow process of regrowing mangroves.” This involves opening “channels inside the forest, allowing seawater to come in with seedling seeds and propagate and that will help accelerate bringing back the natural conditions of the forest . . . This is the first application of hydrological restoration in Mozambique, a technique that is now being scaled up to neighbouring countries including Madagascar.” The community’s women farmers are closely involved in this activity.
Source: UNEP. (2023, 25 August). How a salt-loving tree is helping to protect Mozambique from climate change. https://www.unep.org/news-and-stories/story/how-salt-loving-tree-helping-protect-mozambique-climate-change
Case study
The Sri Lanka mangrove conservation project
This project also involves communities in mangrove conservation. Mangroves are an important part of Sri Lanka’s defence against severe weather events. Watch the video Sri Lanka Mangrove Conservation Project by the UNCC to learn about a community-based mangrove conservation project.
Coastal communities’ and fishers’ livelihoods are heavily impacted by severe weather events. Local communities have the knowledge and understanding they need to adapt to the changing weather and climate, but they need more information and support to help them cope with the impact of sudden or unexpected weather events.
Reflect
How are the examples of mangrove restoration from Mozambique and Sri Lanka relevant to your context? Besides restoring mangroves, have the agriculture, fisheries, livestock management, or grassland or forest restoration communities used other nature-based solutions?
Write your thoughts in your journal.
Early warning systems
Bangladesh has efficient disaster detection and warning systems. They use “a variety of communication methods, including TV and radio broadcasts, push messages via mobile phone networks, targeted SMS notifications, and a helpline which people can dial to listen to pre-recorded voice messages.”
However, “the key to reaching as many people as possible – known as ‘the last mile’ by disaster risk reduction experts – lies in the country’s huge network of volunteers. . . . The biggest factor in the success of any disaster preparedness programme is ‘people knowing what to do,’ [and] Bangladesh’s volunteer system has become ‘a very, very good means of empowering people to know what to do.’”
Women make up 50 per cent of the volunteer force. “Female volunteers are able to access spaces that men might not, ensuring that vital messages about incoming cyclones are spread among female networks which might otherwise remain isolated” (Davison, 2022).
Source: Davison, C. (2022, 20 July). How Bangladesh system fights cyclones, climate disasters. BBC News. https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20220719-how-bangladesh-system-fights-cyclones-climate-disasters
Afforestation
Forests and grasslands are carbon sinks and are therefore potentially great resources for reducing carbon emissions in the atmosphere. Green areas also help to regulate the ambient temperature, foster biodiversity and provide local communities with a source of food and ways to earn a livelihood. Traditionally, many Indigenous communities have lived in harmony with forests. This balance has been disrupted because forests have been cut down and land is being used for other purposes.
Case study
The Billion Tree Tsunami project
Pakistan recognised that it needed to regenerate the forests that had degraded over the years to help it survive the impacts of climate change. As a result, The Billion Tree Tsunami project was launched in 2014. Watch the video Pakistan: Adapting to Climate Change by the International Monetary Fund to learn more about this project.
Reflect
Are there any examples of degraded areas in your local area? If so, is afforestation an option?
Write your thoughts in your journal.
Water resources and water security
Holistic water management plans, known as integrated water resource management, take into account the entire water cycle: from source to distribution, treatment, reuse and return to the environment. Rainwater harvesting systems, solar-powered wells, boreholes, micro-irrigation technologies and water reuse systems can all be used to develop comprehensive and long-term water security for a community. Malawi, for example, has adapted innovative solutions, such as building irrigation canals and connecting water sources to community gardens, to provide year-round water access to support vegetable production.
Case study
The Jal Jeevan Mission
Water security mapping is an important activity to protect water resources. It:
- combines technology — in the form of GIS mapping — with local knowledge,
- designs plans that take into consideration local water sources and projected needs for water at the village level, and
- includes restoring local water sources — for example, wells, ponds and streams — and creating new infrastructure based on the water security mapping projections.
It also uses a decentralised process, which means that the community, and especially women, have ownership of the water resource management.
Various national initiatives on water conservation and management are undertaking local water security planning that involves the community. The Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) in India, for example, uses water experts, technology innovators, researchers and civil society organisations to build capacity among state, district and local government bodies in water conservation and water management. The JJM’s comprehensive and holistic approach contributes significantly to water security and climate resilience. (For more information about the JJM, see https://jaljeevanmission.gov.in/.)
Case study
Water storage solutions
In the past, communities used local water storage structures such as tanks, ponds and wells. Over the years, water management has moved from being a community activity and responsibility to a supply-oriented system, which has made local water storage structures redundant. However, traditional water sources must be included in any water management planning, as they can go a long way towards helping local communities adapt to the changing climate. When local options available, communities are not totally dependent on external water supplies and have access to water almost year-round. The ancient water tanks of Sri Lanka are one example of the role that traditional water storage structures can play. Watch the video Ancient water tanks of Sri Lanka to adapt to a changing climate by UNDP Climate to find out more.
Activity
Create a map of water resources in your village, using the map above for guidance.
Remember this would be a community process, so you and other members in the community can work together to create the map.
You can use locally available stones, twigs, grain, leaves, etc. to create your map on the ground, or you can use a large sheet of paper and coloured pens, pencils or crayons to draw it.
Begin by drawing the outer boundary of your village, followed by roads, streams and key landmarks such as the school.
Now draw the houses, agricultural land, etc.
Finally, mark all the water resources on the map – streams, wells, ponds and any other structures that can be considered water resources.
Each category can be marked in a different colour or by a distinct marker. Have a legend on one side of the map to explain the marking system you have used for the various categories.
Promoting renewable and clean energy solutions
Renewable energy sources such as wind and solar can replace the use of fossil fuel–based electricity in, for example, agriculture, cooking and industry. Decentralised solutions such as micro-grids and technologies such as cooling solutions, solar dryers, solar cookers, solar pumps, etc. all offer alternatives to high-emission energy options. Energy-efficient appliances and clean energy technologies such as solar cookers, solar dryers and similar technologies that can be used at local levels can support women’s enterprises — for example, women’s and community enterprises in the fishery sector can use solar dryers to dry fish, which will help them diversify their business and increase their storage capacity.
Case study
Clean energy for displaced communities
Clean energy options can help people who have been displaced because of severe weather events. Watch the video SDG 13: Climate Adaptation in Mozambique Brings Clean Energy to Displaced Communities by IOM UN Migration to find out more about this topic.
Activity
Identify community-based enterprises in your community. Think about how they could use renewable and decentralised solutions.
Write your thoughts in your journal and then discuss them with other community members.
