Paving the Way for Climate-Resilient Infrastructure - UN CC:Learn

Chapter 5: What a Country Should Think About and Then Do to Address Climate Change and Infrastructure Risks5TechnicalPresentation 1:What a Country Should Think Aboutand Then Do to Address ClimateChange and Infrastructure RisksRobert KayKey MessagesInfrastructure includes both hardware (construction) and software (goods and services thatinfrastructure provides, as well as human inputs into infrastructure).Countries should think about the multiple, inter-connected dimensions of climate change;infrastructure elements and systems, including cascading elements; adaptive potential ofinfrastructure elements and systems based on life cycle phases.Taking a people-centred view of infrastructure is important; think about ‘entry points’ for adaptationwithin systems.Focus questions provide a useful tool for shaping the conceptual thinking and action on practicalissues facing nations with respect to climate change and infrastructure.In taking action, countries should assess sensitivity, vulnerability and risk (the UNDP PolicyFramework can provide guidance); analyse adaptation options (based on infrastructure life cyclestages) using participatory process and criteria, and considering barriers and opportunities; anddevelop implementation pathways (considering among other resourcing, building networks andadaptive implementation processes).Countries should take control and be the focus for adaptive action. This first requires thought abouthow to conceptualize climate change and adaptation issues, followed by the development of a planthat will meet national development objectives.Designing an adaptive process is crucial. Climate change is a multigenerational issue, so countriesneed to develop shared adaptation options that develop and change over time, as new science andlessons learned from adaptation experiences become available.In order to fast-track effective adaptation for infrastructure, countries need to effectively engageboth professional communities within countries and infrastructure users. Countries can learn fromusers about internalizing existing climate variability into infrastructure planning/maintenance andabout opportunities for addressing challenges that climate change will bring in the future.Dr. Robert Kay, Director andPrincipal Consultant, Coastal ZoneManagement Pty. Ltd.54Paving the Way for Climate-Resilient Infrastructure: Conference Proceedings