Jonathan Ensor – författare

Community-based adaptation is a new concept whose meaning is still to be fully understood. Most agree that communities should be supported to respond to the challenges they face, and some see this as the goal of community-based adaptation. By contrast, Uncertain Futures proposes that community-based adaptation must also address inevitable future uncertainty by supporting the ongoing ability to change. In this view, attention is focused on adaptive capacity, through which communities are able to make changes to their lives and livelihoods in response to emerging environmental change. Uncertain Futures argues that as greenhouse gas emissions continue to accumulate, a ‘business as usual’ approach to development practice is increasingly inadequate and the importance of securing adaptive capacity becomes more urgent. Uncertain Futures examines this challenge, and invites readers to rethink development policy and practice in terms of how adaptive capacity can be best supported. This book should be read by the staff of donor agencies, policy makers, NGO practitioners, academics and students of development studies and the environment.

As climate becomes less predictable and extreme weather events become more frequent, there is an urgent need for support that will help communities to prepare and adapt to changing conditions. This support is needed at the local level as well as the national, and must be framed by appropriate policy that secures real benefits for those most at risk. ''Community-based adaptation'' (CBA) has been extensively piloted by the NGO community to analyse and understand the impacts of climate change. It is vital that development practice on the ground, as well as the knowledge and capacity of those most affected, keeps pace with lessons that have emerged from more than a decade of action and research. This book''s findings reflect on experiences of CBA in practice to frame lessons for adaptation planning in developing countries and deepen understanding of CBA among researchers, students and practitioners with an interest in climate change adaptation.

The recognition that the persistence of poverty is closely linked to the denial of human rights has propelled rights-based approaches into the policy and practice of many development NGOs, UN bodies and aid agencies. This book presents the practical experiences of development practitioners who have tried to apply a rights-based approach in their work. Its aim is to increase understanding of the approach by drawing on bottom-up insights, and to identify what difference a rights-based approach makes in practice. What is the 'value added' of a rights-based approach? What difficulties and tensions arise? The case-studies span development, humanitarian relief and conflict resolution. The book concludes that there is potential not only for human rights to reinvent development, but for development to reinvent human rights.

Poor people bear the brunt of climate change since they live in those regions most affected by fluctuating temperatures, sea level rise, flooding and drought. Far from behaving as victims, however, they use the assets and resources at their disposal to adapt and survive. How can agencies assist local communities adapting to change? By what mechanisms can communities make the most of emerging information? Can effective community-based approaches be scaled up? Understanding Adaptation to Climate Change demonstrates that although communities’ adaptation strategies may be varied and depend on local context, social networks play a pivotal role in accessing appropriate climate knowledge and resources and communicating useful approaches to other communities. The key activities of reducing vulnerability, fostering resilience and developing the capacity to experiment and learn are combined as appropriate. This book is essential reading for NGO practitioners, students and government and NGO policy makers who wish to gain an understanding of what adaptation means in theory and practice.

This book argues that as greenhouse gas emissions continue to accumulate, a ‘business as usual’ approach to development practice is increasingly inadequate and securing adaptive capacity becomes more urgent. This book should be read by donor agencies, policy makers, NGO practitioners, and academics of development studies and the environment.