Our aims: 

Unlike climate change mitigation, there are no standards or rules by which to allocate the cost of adaptation in ways that are equitable and efficient.

This CCAP set of activities aims to convene a research group of eminent philosophers, economists, development practitioners, political scientists, and sociologists who will develop a set of qualitative and quantitative indices that should govern the allocation of incremental adaptation driven by anthropogenic climate change.  This group will:

1. Examine the evolving climate change adaptation practices and rationales of international institutions such as the Global Environment Facility, the World Bank, the IFC, the WTO, etc; and will engage prominent practitioners in the field of climate change adaptation such as insurance companies, bankers, architect and engineering firms, etc.
2. Evaluate the potential for cities to become the prime drivers for an equitable and efficient global strategy to adapt to climate change.
3. Examine the potential for a city-city level global compact on climate change adaptation to supplement or complement the post-Kyoto Protocol state-level framework for climate change mitigation and adaptation and introduce this instititutional concept to mayors throughout the region.

Our desired outcomes:

Year 1: Studied and developed policy proposals on Global climate change adaptation cost allocation rules.

Year 2: A mayoral level pan-Pacific (or global) meeting in Melbourne or regional city such as Ho Chi Minh City convened, to consider role of cities and possible Global City Compact on 5 June 2009.

Supporting projects

Global Rules Framework Project
This proposed project aims to get cities involved in international collaborations for adaptation. It focuses on identifying reasons why cities would want to collaborate for adaptation. For instance it may be in a city’s best interest to assist another city with funding for adaptation if there are benefits to it related to trade, R&D, learning about response management, diasporic (cultural heritage to conserve world status in another city), downwind from a city causing acid rain or smoke. The project would look at issues of partnership, transfer mechanisms, locations and take up. We want to develop a global framework of rules for adaptation (legal and moral) for cities to cooperate. The project is being scoped and various partners approached to be involved. For more information contact Professor Peter Hayes.