A key area of advancement since AR5 is how incremental adaptation and transformational adaptation relate to limits to adaptation. Incremental adaptation maintains 'the essence and integrity of a system or process at a given scale', while transformational adaptation 'changes the fundamental attributes of a social-ecological system' . Both incremental and transformational adaptation may expand the adaptive possibilities for a system, providing additional adaptation options after a system reaches a soft limit . However, it is critical to note that adaptation, whether incremental or transformational, must support securing an actor's objectives or system's needs from intolerable risks. Once objectives or needs have been abandoned or transformed, a limit to adaptation has occurred. However, objectives or needs may change over time as values of a society change , thus adding further complexity to assessing limits to adaptation.
IPCC
Climate Change 2022: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability
IPCC Report