In this project, Fundación Futuro Latinoamericano (FFLA) and CDKN are exploring whether locally led adaptation is transformative in a deeper sense: whether it shifts who participates and who merely validates, who controls resources and under what rules, whose knowledge counts, who sets the pace of the work, and how the socio-political context shapes what relationships are possible at the local scale. Through this work, CDKN is exploring the transformative potential of locally led adaptation efforts across LATAM, Africa and Asia, and how they are shifting views, practices and structures in ways that shifts power and decision making to the local level. 

CDKN’s partnership with ICLEI South Asia strengthens urban climate resilience in India, Bangladesh, Nepal, and Sri Lanka by supporting local governments and communities to develop inclusive climate action plans, build capacity, and implement locally led adaptation. The programme focuses on gender equity and social inclusion (GESI), ecosystem-based adaptation (EbA), and practical interventions to enhance resilience and improve livelihoods in vulnerable urban areas.

The risks faced by people and ecosystems in a changing climate vary from one locality to another. It’s partly a question of physical geography and partly a question of the human factors – social, economic, cultural – that make people resilient or vulnerable to climate hazards. That is why adaptation should be locally led. Adaptation is most effective when it is centred on people’s human rights and driven by the knowledge and needs that local people, especially the most marginalised groups, bring to the table.