Cities in Asia and the Pacific need to plan for a warmer world. This will require scaling up investments in climate and disaster resilience that benefits all populations. Finance, especially climate adaptation finance could potentially play a critical role in helping cities and communities unlock their potential to grow despite climate challenges.
Compound hazards — when multiple hazards occur simultaneously, or one after another — have come to prominence as countries manage climate and disaster risks while continuing to respond to the COVID-19 crisis. The impacts of climate change, including climate variability and more frequent and intense natural hazards, are increasing the complexity of the disaster ‘riskscape’ across Asia and the Pacific, and particularly for the urban poor.
Heatwaves are projected to become more likely, severe, and persistent with global warming. Urban populations, especially the poor and vulnerable population, will be disproportionately affected by heat stress, given their high exposure due to poor quality and overcrowded housing, informal outdoor work, and limited access to health and other essential services, and will have an impact on lives, health, and productivity.
Resilient households form the basis for ensuring resilient communities and cities. Without resilience at the household level, the urban poor cannot be protected from climate change and disaster-related risks. Building climate and disaster resilience involve multidimensional issues requiring various policy and financial investments on social protection, adequate and resilient housing, access to essential health services, and sustainable livelihoods.
Sheela Patel is the founder Director of the Society for Promotion of Area Resource Centres (SPARC), an NGO that supports community organizations of the urban poor to access secure housing and basic amenities and seek their right to the city. She is also a founder member and former Chair of the Board of Slum Dwellers International (SDI), an international network of urban poor federations in Asia, Africa and Latin America.
Jaya Singh Verma is presently Policy Advisor with the Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office working with the Indo-Pacific Regional Team. She is the Senior Responsible Officer for the Managing Climate Risks for the Urban Poor (MCRUP) Programme. She has over 20 years of development experience including with DFID, international NGO and as an academic. She has led partnerships and managed multi-sectoral program and policy approaches in India, Asia regional, Africa, and established partnerships for innovations and lesson sharing as an acting head of Global Partnerships.
Rapid urbanization in Asia and the Pacific calls for increased actions in climate-resilient urban development given the inordinate demands that it places on cities for improved planning, increased investments in infrastructure, efficient delivery of services, and constant innovation to leverage evolving opportunities.
This presentation gives an overview of key takeaways on climate adaptation.
This presentation provides an overview of the profound implications for sustainable urban design, including sponge cities.