India: The International Conference on Scaling Up Good Adaptation Practices took place from August 24-25 in New Delhi. The Global Programme on Climate Change (GPCC) of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) is supporting an initiative on ‘Scaling up good adaptation practices’ in India in partnership with the World Resource Institute (WRI) and Watershed Organisation Trust (WOTR).
At the conference, the World Resources Institute, supported by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, launched a new report called ‘Scaling Success’. The report throws light on how communities can adapt to changing climate by rapidly scaling-up adaptation projects. It also calls for policymakers to give more importance to climate change adaptation by moving away from small projects to those that benefit more people and explain policy in an understandable way. “Adaptation projects have been patchy in their success, and few have achieved a scale that can be truly transformational,” said Nambi Appadurai, lead author on the report. “It is time to think bigger. This report shows that focusing on local context, knowledge management, partnerships, and networks can offer the breakthrough needed for communities to adapt to a changing climate.”
The report examines how agricultural communities are adapting to the challenges posed by climate change through the lens of India’s rain fed agriculture regions. Rain fed agriculture currently occupies 58 percent of India’s cultivated land and accounts for 40 percent of its total food production. However, these regions face potential production losses of more than $200 billion in rice, wheat and maize, in 2050 due to the effects of climate change. Unless strict actions are taken, farmers will see sharp decreases in revenue and yields.
The use of new technologies and tools can affect the scaling of adaptation activities. Several technological advances in the field of agriculture have led farmers to adopt tools that produce greater yields under climate change. “In the discussion with Mr. Pio Wennubst, Assistant Director General, Head of the Directorate Global Cooperation, Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), Federal Department of Foreign Affairs, Switzerland, emphasis was laid on the increasing use of satellite data for mapping and analysis. He stressed on the importance of integration of mobile-based services with other technologies, which results in greater connectivity and efficient work.
The conference also witnessed discussions on concepts like Vulnerability, Adaptation and Resilience. The insights about challenges and approaches for tracking adaptation activities in the context of scaling were shared. The session panellists focussed on examining the possibilities of leveraging knowledge networks and platforms to support scaling.
Source: Our correspondent
