Climate change policies and agendas: Facing implementation challenges and guiding responses. Issue 104 (February 2020)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Alves, Fátima; Leal Filho, Walter; Casaleiro, Paula; Nagy, Gustavo J.; Diaz, Harry; Al-Amin, Abul Quasem; de Andrade Guerra, José Baltazar Salgueirinho Osório; Hurlbert, Margot; Farooq, Harith; Klavins, Maris; Saroar, Mustafa; Lorencova, Eliska Krkoska; Suresh, Jain; Soares, Amadeu; Morgado, Fernando; O'Hare, Paul; Wolf, Franziska; Azeiteiro, Ulisses M.
• Is Part Of: Environmental science & policy. Issue 104(2020)
• Page Start: 190
• Page End: 198
• Publication Date: 2020-02
• Subjects: AII Adaptation Initiative Index -- AUS Australia -- BGD Bangladesh -- BRA Brazil -- CAN Canada -- COP Conference of the Parties -- CRI Global Climate-Risk Index -- CZE Czech Republic -- DEU Deutschland -- EEA European Environmental Agency -- ENG England -- EU European Union -- GBR United Kingdom -- HDI United Nations Human Development Index -- HSER Human and socioeconomic resources -- IND India -- LVA Latvia -- MOZ Mozambique -- MYS Malaysia -- NAP National Adaptation Plan -- NAS National Adaptation Strategy -- ND Gain-Notre Dame University Gain Index -- PRT Portugal -- UNFCCC United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change -- URY Uruguay; Climate change -- Climate change adaptation policies -- National adaptation plans -- Global/Local vulnerabilities; Environmental policy -- Periodicals; Environmental sciences -- Periodicals; Environnement -- Politique gouvernementale -- Périodiques; Sciences de l'environnement -- Périodiques; Environmental policy; Environmental sciences; Periodicals; Electronic journals; 363.70561
• DOI: 10.1016/j.envsci.2019.12.001
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1462-9011

Abstract

Highlights: NAPs reflect a global agenda instead of local specificities and characteristics. To succeed, National Adaptation Plans/Strategies (NAPs/NASs) need broad support. Mitigation measures need to be complemented by evaluation mechanisms. Limited participation of non-governmental stakeholders in the development of NAPs constrains the effectiveness of responses. The mechanisms of engagement are identical among countries despite their different socio-cultural characteristics. Abstract: Climate policies are essential to mitigate climate change and to develop successful adaptation processes. However, there is a paucity of international studies that analyse the status of climate change policies. This paper reports on research undertaken in a sample of 13 highly diverse countries, in regards to their geography, socioeconomic development, vulnerability elements, adaptation, and climate-risks. The results draw attention to the global spread and standardisation of climate change policies, namely through the adoption of comprehensive National Adaptation Plans/Strategies (NAPs/NASs) that include mitigation measures and evaluation mechanisms. Although NAPs tend to take into account different non-governmental stakeholders, they are still mainly state-centred (i.e. their steering and implementation are the responsibility of each country´s Ministry of the Environment) in most of the 13 countries in which this study was carried out. The results show that NAPs' objectives mainly reflect more a global agenda and pay less attention to national/regional vulnerabilities and contexts. In fact, despite different socioeconomic levels of development, diverse climate-risks, and dissimilar vulnerability and readiness status among countries, the examined NAPs tend to focus on the same critical sectors and objectives. Notwithstanding their similarities, our results highlight two different logics of adaptation reflected on the NAPs: one focused on economic risks and opportunities, characteristic of developed countries; and others focused on natural resources and conservation, characteristic of developing countries.