Mobilising knowledge,
capacity and Southern leadership to improve the
well-being of the most
climate-affected people
Lady with plants
CDKN
We work with the public, private and non-governmental sectors in support of locally-owned and -led climate-resilient action.
This English language site features projects in the 70+ countries where we’ve worked, and resources and blogs from those and more.
Feature
2nd June 2023
Lives of the Lakes: The significance of indigenous knowledge in fostering community resilience in India Knowledge-Into-Use Award recipient, Rhea Shah, takes us on a photo journey with a community in Gujarat, India, which relies on indigenous and ecological knowledge for their livelihoods. As the area urbanises, this knowledge is being lost, so Aranya Design Studio is working with students to document these traditional practices to strengthen resilience.
Feature
2nd June 2023
Shades of resilience in the Sundarbans, Bangladesh Catalytic Grants winner Afsana Afrin Esha details the adverse effects of climate change on communities in the Sundarbans, a mangrove forest located in southwestern Bangladesh. Afsana highlights the importance of holistic solutions that fully engage the local community.
Feature
29th May 2023
The role of traditional pottery in beating rural heat stress in Maharashtra, India Prajkta Harishchandra Gaikwad from the Yashwantrao Chavan School of Social Work describes how communities in the Satara district of Maharashtra are using traditional earthen pots to keep drinking water cool during heat waves. Prajkta shares how important it is to preserve these local resilience practices to effectively combat climate change.
News
18th May 2023
Opportunity: Are you a champion of Locally Led Adaptation? Help us tell your story to the world! The Global Center on Adaptation (GCA) and CDKN are pleased to announce a call for stories on community-driven and locally-led adaptation. These stories will be collaboratively developed and featured in a publication to be launched at the 28th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP28) in November 2023.
Event
17th May 2023
CDKN at CBA17 The 17th International Conference on Community-Based Adaptation to Climate Change (CBA17), hosted by the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED), will take place from 22-25 May in Bangkok, Thailand. CDKN will be co-hosting two sessions and hosting a marketplace stall. Find out more and register below.
News
15th May 2023
Opportunity: IPBES call for contributions on Indigenous and local knowledge The Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) has launched a call inviting Indigenous and local communities from around the world to support three new biodiversity assessments. Submit your contribution before 31 May 2023.
Event
20th April 2023
Resilience Evidence Forum Registration is now open for the Resilience Evidence Forum, to be held in Cape Town in June 2023. The forum, co-hosted by USAID and the Global Resilience Partnership (GRP), aims to take stock of the latest evidence on resilience and its implications for policy and programming and spark further collaborations and capacity exchange across geographic contexts, sectors and actors.
Event
3rd April 2023
CDKN at the UN Water Conference The UN 2023 Water Conference took place from 22-24 March 2023 in New York and online. The conference raised awareness of the global water crisis, while deciding on concerted action to achieve internationally agreed water-related goals and targets. CDKN co-organised three virtual events. Find out more below.
Resource
3rd April 2023
Making local action on adaptation count in the Global Stocktake How can the Global Stocktake best integrate local action on adaptation? Through interviews with researchers and practitioners, this video aims to answer that question and propose solutions to getting local action reflected in global assessments of adaptation progress.

Where we work

CDKN works across Africa, Asia and Latin America and the Caribbean. Find out more by navigating to our country pages.

CDKN on film

Find out more about the challenges and opportunities for non-motorized transport in one of Africa's fastest growing cities.

Gender Equality in a Low Carbon World

Innovations for women’s economic empowerment and climate action

Africa factsheet series

Discover the IPCC Sixth Assessment Report's findings for Central, East, North, southern and West Africa

Voices from the Frontline

How local communities are pursuing SDGs in the pandemic era and how to support them

Knowledge brokering for climate action

Exploring the role of knowledge brokers as facilitators of change