weADAPT – Collaborating on Climate Adaptation
Background and Goals
weADAPT is an online knowledge platform that provides climate adaptation data including the synergies between adaptation and climate protection and therefore enables experts, scientists and political decision makers to access relevant information and share experiences with the weADAPT community.
The knowledge platform is designed to make shared learning, collaboration and knowledge integration on a wide variety of issues easier. It thus supports the practice of climate adaptation, provides access to instruments relevant for policy, develops guidelines for planning climate adaptation and supports decision making. weADAPT has created an online compendium of methods and tools that can be suitable for assessing the effects of climate change, vulnerability and adaptation.
Content time
Research area/region
Country
- Germany
- global
Steps in the process of adaptation to climate change
Step 1: Understand and describe climate change
Approach and results
weADAPT provides climate scenarios from different climate models in the Climate Information Portal (CIP), a component of the knowledge platform.
Parameter (climate signals)
- Altered rainfall patterns
- Higher average temperatures
Further times
varies according to climate model
Step 2a: Identify and assess risks - climate effects and impact
Approach and results
Information about climate effects is presented in numerous case studies, projects and initiatives.
Step 2b: Identify and assess risks - Vulnerability, risks and chances
Approach and results
One of the initiatives in the project is aiming to compile studies and findings on vulnerability of communities or at national level. This will enable weADAPT to provide vulnerability information, which can be viewed using the Adaptation Layer. Social and physical vulnerability issues and factors will be studied, along with dynamic and "multi-stressor" vulnerability, for the areas of agriculture, water management, forestry and health. Guidelines for assessing vulnerability will also be provided, and an overview of different vulnerability tools and methods created.
Step 3: Develop and compare measures
Measures and/or strategies
Adaptation measures can be viewed and selected using the "Adaptation Layer". To provide this facility, weADAPT is working with Google.org to identify ways of improving access to information about climate change adaptation using Google Earth. Based on user input, a fast and easy method has been created for finding out who is doing what and where in terms of climate change adaptation.
"Knowledge integration" tools in weADAPT include:
- Adaptation Layer: The weADAPT/Google Earth interface shows who is acting on climate adaptation, how and where. Case studies, projects, videos and experiences can be browsed and displayed by region.
- wikiADAPT: wikiADAPT is integrated into the climate change adaptation knowledge base. Users can review existing items in this collection and add new articles.
- Adaptation Decision Explorer (ADx): This decision-making tool reviews adaptation options, provides guidance in selecting locally effective and appropriate strategies, and outlines various sources of uncertainty and the level of reliability of information.
- Climate Information Portal (CIP): The climate information portal provides historic climate data and a series of future climate scenarios from different climate models. "Climate knowledge" also assists users in interpreting the content.
Thematic areas in weADAPT:
1. Economics of climate adaptation,
2. Using climate knowledge for adaptation,
3. Social learning,
4. Urban adaptation to climate change,
5. National adaptation planning,
6. Vulnerability,
7. Ecosystem-based adaptation,
8. Forests and climate change,
9. Climate adaptation training,
10. Adaptation knowledge platform for Asia (AKP).
Participants
Funding / Financing
Through a series of projects and the individual contributions of partners; sponsors include: Sida (Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency), European Commission and Defra (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs in GB); major partners in the initial phase were AWhere Inc., ENDA Tiers-Monde, START and the University of Cape Town.
Project management
Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI)
Cooperation/Partners
Cooperation with an ever growing array of partners / members.
Contact
Stockholm Environment Institute - Oxford
Florence House 29, Grove Street, Summertown
OX2 7JT Oxford
United Kingdom
