Climate change adaptation

Adapting to climate change involves infrastructural, institutional, behavioral and nature-based approaches. Examples shown here from top left are mangrove planting and habitat conservation, building seawalls to protect against sea level rise, selective breeding for drought-resistant crops, and building green roofs to reduce urban heat island effects.

Climate change adaptation is the process of adjusting to the effects of climate change. These can be both current or expected impacts.^[1] Adaptation aims to moderate or avoid harm for people, and is usually done alongside climate change mitigation. It also aims to exploit opportunities. Humans may also intervene to help adjust for natural systems.^[1] There are many adaptation strategies or options. For instance, building hospitals that can withstand natural disasters, roads that don't get washed away in the face of rains and floods.^[2] They can help manage impacts and risks to people and nature. The four types of adaptation actions are infrastructural, institutional, behavioural and nature-based options.^{[3]: Figure 16.5} Some examples of these are building seawalls or inland flood defenses, providing new insurance schemes, changing crop planting times or varieties, and installing green roofs or green spaces. Adaptation can be reactive (responding to climate impacts as they happen) or proactive (taking steps in anticipation of future climate change).

The need for adaptation varies from place to place. Different regions must adapt differently because they each face particular sets of climate risks.^{[4] : 2417} For instance, coastal regions might prioritize sea-level rise defenses and mangrove restoration. Arid areas could focus on water scarcity solutions, land restoration and heat management. The needs for adaptation will also depend on how much the climate changes or is expected to change, which is different from place to place. Adaptation is particularly important in developing countries because they are most vulnerable to climate change.^[5][6] Adaptation needs are high for food, water and other sectors important for economic output, jobs and incomes. One of the challenges is to prioritize the needs of communities, including the poorest, to help ensure they are not disproportionately affected by climate change.^[7]: 1253

Adaptation planning is important to help countries manage climate risks. Plans, policies or strategies are in place in more than 70% of countries.^[8] Agreements like the Paris Agreement encourage countries to develop adaptation plans. Other levels of government like cities and provinces also use adaptation planning. So do economic sectors. Donor countries can give money to developing countries to help develop national adaptation plans. This is important to help them implement more adaptation. Monitoring and evaluation activities are key parts of adaptation efforts. They ensure strategies work well and allow for necessary changes along the way. The adaptation carried out so far is not enough to manage risks at current levels of climate change.^{[9]: 20 [10] : 130} And adaptation must also anticipate future risks of climate change. The costs of climate change adaptation are likely to cost billions of dollars a year for the coming decades. In many cases, the cost will be less than the damage that it avoids.