USAID Country Climate Adaptation Profiles
Capstone
Student: Jack (John) Morrow
Advisor: Dr. Carolyn Kissane
Abstract
Addressing climate change has become a central component of USAID’s international development efforts. USAID is actively working with over 50 countries on climate change-specific projects building climate adaptation capabilities. These efforts project to grow in number and scope throughout this century as more non-profit, private, and government actors get involved. With this in mind, it is in USAID’s best interests to understand what climate adaptation activities are occurring in the locations of its respective missions to optimize its efforts. That idea was the impetus for this project. For USAID to best understand how it can have an impact, it should know what other work is being done, where, when, and by whom. In each country addressing climate change, there are numerous layers to climate efforts including domestic legislation, major NGOs, private actors, and foreign governments/banks all participating in overlapping climate adaptation programming. These climate profiles seek to make the adaptation landscape clearer and give USAID missions a living document that outlines:
1. Country specific climate threats
2. Institutions and policies addressing climate adaptation within a country 3. Ongoing and upcoming climate adaptation programming
4. Gaps in programming and opportunities for USAID interventions 5. Resources and links to find additional information or contacts
The countries we profiled were: Zambia, Uganda, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Madagascar, and the Kyrgyz Republic. The profiles on Zambia, Uganda, and Madagascar have been reviewed and edited extensively by their respective USAID mission teams and are now actively being utilized by those teams. The other profiles serve as hubs for anyone at USAID working in climate adaptation looking to identify possible collaborations with other institutions, find a useful link, avoid potential overlap, or stay up to date on which sectors are and are not being addressed.
