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This slide presentation introduces a case study on adaptive strategies aimed at achieving food security in the Sahel. This analysis has two main objectives: to understand the climatic risks that threaten agriculture and to propose alternatives that can be used in other Sahelian countries. The main environmental, socio-economic and institutional issues related to the development of the project and the methods used in its implementation are also presented.

This slide presentation presents a case study on coastal areas vulnerability and climate change in Senegal. This analysis is based on a 7-step methodology including the definition of the study framework, description of the current situation, definition of scenarios, impact analysis, identification and analysis of adaptation strategies and definition of vulnerability.

This slide presentation introduces a case study on natural disasters and climate change in Central America. It presents several scientific data on the regional environment and selects the best methods and tools for going from vulnerability assessments to adaptation strategies. 

This manual collects training material on climate change vulnerability and adaptation. The aim of this training course is to create and/or strengthen the capacities of participants and institutions in developing countries to assess vulnerability and adaptation strategies in order to face up to climate variability and change. By training trainers and users, the impact being sought is to reduce the dependence of developing countries and their institutions on existing expertise and know-how in the developed countries.

This activity report provides a description of a pilot project on climate change adaptation in Ghana. The purpose of this project was to develop locally-appropriate and time-sustainable capacity as necessary to undertake pre-disaster socioeconomic, technical prevention and adaptation options available to reduce the potential adverse impacts of climate change on human health vulnerability.

This manual consists of a background publication that presents tools, methods and definitions to use when carrying out vulnerability and adaptation assessments. These assessments identify current hazards and threats and the strategies, policies and actions needed to cope with them. Addressing current vulnerability will assist in reducing future vulnerability due to worsening impacts.

This document looks at the relationship between biodiversity and cities and analyses how cities can be involved in protecting the world’s species. In fact, although cities occupy just 2 per cent of the Earth’s surface, their inhabitants use 75 per cent of the planet’s natural resources. Cities draw on their surrounding ecosystems for goods and services, and their products and emissions can affect regional and even global ecosystems.

This report summarizes the ecoBUDGET management system in which natural resources and environmental quality are measured and accounted for in a budget. EcoBUDGET was developed for local governments, to help them plan, monitor and report natural resource consumption within the municipal territory. It is a cross-cutting instrument, based on three pillars: environmental master budget; statement of environmental assets and sustainability analysis; and measures management, budget balancing and evaluation.

In this activity report, Heinz Kull, UN-HABITAT’s former disaster management coordinator, looks at how the world’s most powerful and wealthy nation, the USA, handled the disaster of Hurricane Katrina. Strong efforts have been made, particularly by the State of Louisiana authorities, to understand the disaster as a chance to reduce the vulnerability of marginalized groups within the evacuee population.

This document presents a message from the Executive Director on disasters and climate change. The Executive Director highlights that the world has witnessed a series of disasters that have resulted in the dramatic loss of human life and property and the displacement of entire communities. While the response of the international community is, in most cases, prompt, it is fundamental to prevent such devastation in the future. An important advancement lies in sustainable human settlements planning and management.

This activity report shows how UN-HABITAT is combating fast growing urban poverty, rapid urbanisation, unemployment, disasters and the scourge of climate change. It introduces the Sustainable Urban Development Network that helps local governments in developing countries to strengthen climate change prevention measures.

The main purpose of this manual is to assist people who are working in or with local government to develop sustainable energy and climate action plans and implementation programmes. The document addresses the challenges of energy consumption, climate change and development in developing countries. It deals with the role of urban centres and local governments in defining a sustainable development path and a new energy future in their countries. The handbook further explains why it is important for urban centres in developing countries to engage in sustainable energy planning, provides a step-by step process to developing and implementing a sustainable energy plan and offers a range of case studies from developed and developing urban centres covering all the major areas of local government responsibility.

This analytical report covers the decisions and conclusions made for the coalition for sustainable urbanisation. It looks at what it is, what needs to be done and how it can be achieved.

This brochure looks at the role of cities in contributing to and mitigating climate change. Some of the topics covered include: mitigation, global policy and networking.

This analytical report presents the main outcomes of the Expert Group Meeting organised and hosted by UN-HABITAT on Cities in Climate Change in November, 2007 in Nairobi, Kenya. The meeting brought together participants from research institutions, local authorities, the private sector, and colleagues from different UN agencies. The paper summarises the main conclusions and possible future action.  

This analytical report analyzes how climate change impact can undermine a country’s efforts to achieve the goals of sustainable development and worsen poverty in developing and least developed countries. This report is part of the Cities and Climate Change Initiative.

This analytical report discusses the consequences of natural disasters and conflicts. It highlights that one of the key lessons that UN-HABITAT and other agencies have learned is that it is important to incorporate proper long-term planning for sustainable development with the best protection against repeat disasters from the outset – indeed from the moment the humanitarian rescue operation begins. The other important lesson on which UN-HABITAT has plenty of experience to draw is this: taking preventive action and planning ahead to offset the worst. The United Nations has calculated that one dollar invested in disaster reduction today, can save up to seven dollars tomorrow in relief and rehabilitation costs.

This analytical report highlights some of the risks that cities are facing and how they are becoming more and more vulnerable to risk rather than being refuges from them. In fact, rapid urbanisation, the weight of accumulated failures in urban development and ineffectiveness in urban governance have placed growing numbers of people in cities at risk. However disasters and the vulnerability that underlies them are not inevitable. They are an outcome of choices made locally, in the boardrooms of governments and businesses in the city, and also increasingly at international and national levels.

This activity report presents a case study from Philippines. In particular, it looks at the fact that many Filipinos do not really feel secure in their cities when it comes to natural disasters. Each time typhoons hit the country claiming hundreds of lives and cutting a trail of destruction, there are power outages, trees blocking roads, vehicles overturned, and renewed calls on the authorities to ban big advertising billboards. Good urban governance is the key to restore trust and prevent damages. There is a need for a city consultation process so that collectively agreed solutions can be put in place.

This technical document provides an overview of the social investment funds and their projects which have been implemented in Asia, Latin and Central America, Eastern Europe and Africa since the 1980s. Originally used as a tool to mitigate against the affects of structural readjustment policies on the poor, social investment funds have emerged as a successful mechanism to fast-track community-based projects on the ground.