The 1st Asia-Pacific Climate Change Adaptation Forum 2010 was held in Bangkok on 21-22 October 2010 to discuss ways of mainstreaming adaptation into development planning in the Asia-Pacific region.

The Forum was attended by over 500 policymakers, scientists, representatives of Asia-Pacific governments and representatives from bilateral and multilateral donors gathered at the Forum.

Two key needs identified were:

For practical knowledge about ways to incorporate adaptation into programs, plans and projects; and For good procedures to enhance collaboration among various stakeholders including international and national actors.

The 2nd Asia-Pacific Climate Change Adaptation Forum was held in Bangkok on 12-13 March 2012.

The focus was on “Adaptation in Action,” signifying a shift from deliberations to decisions, plans to policies, and from policies to practices linking knowledge to adaptation actions; the governance of adaptation decision-making; and insights from practices through learning from experiences on the ground. Over 800 policymakers, scientists, representatives of Asia-Pacific governments and representatives from bilateral and multilateral donors gathered at the Forum.

The key learnings from the second Forum were:

Existing practices provide an important foundation for adaptation, but they are not always sufficient for dealing with uncertain and changing future risks; There is no governance blue-print for adaptation, but rather a need for greater attention to longer-term policies and the adaptive transformation of governance systems themselves; How decisions are made about adaptation projects and plans influences the extent to which they are accepted and ultimately their long-term sustainability; and Support for adaptation – in terms of capacity building and financing – is still needed in many countries.

The 3rd Asia-Pacific Climate Change Adaptation Forum was held in Incheon, Republic of Korea on 18-20 March 2013.

The Forum was hosted by the Korean Environment Institute/Korea Adaptation Center for Climate Change and brought together more than 550 policymakers, scientists, donors, international organizations, regional intergovernmental bodies, youth, media, youth, researchers, NGOs and other representatives from the Asian and Pacific countries and beyond.

Key learnings from the Forum included:

Current adaptation strategies have merits, but also many limitations; There are still many critical groups that need to be more directly and meaningfully engaged in adaptation conversations; Different sectors and systems face specific challenges, but there are many opportunities to learn from one another’s experiences and strategies; Effective knowledge management fosters multi-way exchange of diverse kinds of knowledge, increasing rates of learning and building capacity to adapt; and Development can reduce vulnerability to climate change, but it must be sustainable

The Fourth Asia-Pacific Climate Change Adaptation Forum was held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on October 1-3, 2014.

It brought together more than 500 policymakers, scientists, donors, youth, and representatives from over 50 countries. The Forum was organised by the Asia Pacific Adaptation Network (APAN) along with several other partners. The Office of the Science Advisor to the Prime Minister of Malaysia hosted the event, with technical support from the Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia’s Southeast Asia Disaster Prevention Research Initiative (SEADPRI-UKM). The Forum placed special emphasis on adaptation actors, and how they can collaborate to form partnerships and networks that enable access to adaptation solutions. 

Key learnings from the Forum included:

Adaptation needs to be transformed from an environmental issue into a development issue. Pursuing climate resilient development requires scientific knowledge and practical experience. Society and business need to be fully engaged in the process of adaptation; their interests and insights are critical to evidence-based planning and successful implementation. Mainstreaming adaptation into key policies and decision making processes of government remains crucial. 

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