As is becoming increasingly evident by extreme weather events and disasters triggered or exacerbated by climate change, the coming decade will not only be immensely crucial in terms of climate change mitigation. The extent of loss to lives and assets will also depend to a significant degree on whether or not climate change adaptation can be intensified and expanded to constituencies thus far not engaged in it. To date, tangible progress with climate change adaptation at the municipal scale is mostly limited to metropolises and large cities. The majority of small-and medium-sized municipalities (SMMs) are either stalling at the stage of developing adaptation plans or are not yet engaged in adaptation at all. Not only confronted with the consequences of climate change but also with limited resources and capacities for adaptation, SMMs face structural as well as political obstacles to the coming decade's imperative of expanding adaptation. This paper takes stock of adaptation in SMMs and reviews known barriers as well as enabling factors across different geographic and thematic areas. The analysis of documented cases highlights a research bias toward organisation for economic co-operation and development (OECD) countries and, thematically, on multilevel governance challenges for SMM adaptation. Recent trends as part of a 'second phase' of adaptation that extends to SMM are a move from adaptation planning to implementation. In scoping out knowledge gaps requiring further research, the review explores areas of opportunity and mechanisms for supporting and upscaling SMM adaptation efforts in the near future.
Fünfgeld, H; Fila, D; Dahlmann, H
Upscaling climate change adaptation in small- and medium-sized municipalities: current barriers and future potentials
Current Opinion In Environmental Sustainability