Underfinanced and Underprepared: The Climate Adaptation Gap

In this video I chat about the recent UNEP (United Nations Environmental Program) report titled “Underfinanced. Underprepared. Inadequate investment and planning on climate adaptation
leaves world exposed”

“In 2023, temperature records toppled, while storms, floods, droughts and heatwaves caused devastation. UNEP’s Adaptation Gap Report 2023: Underfinanced. Underprepared – Inadequate investment and planning on climate adaptation leaves world exposed finds that progress on climate adaptation is slowing when it should be accelerating to catch up with these rising climate change impacts. “

“The report – which looks at progress in planning, financing and implementing adaptation actions – finds that the adaptation finance needs of developing countries are 10-18 times as big as international public finance flows. This is over 50 per cent higher than the previous range estimate.

The modelled costs of adaptation in developing countries are estimated at US$215 billion per year this decade. The adaptation finance needed to implement domestic adaptation priorities is estimated at US$387 billion per year.

Despite these needs, public multilateral and bilateral adaptation finance flows to developing countries declined by 15 per cent to US$21 billion in 2021. As a result of the growing adaptation finance needs and faltering flows, the current adaptation finance gap is now estimated at US$194-366 billion per year. At the same time, adaptation planning and implementation appear to be plateauing. This failure to adapt has massive implications for losses and damages, particularly for the most vulnerable.

This report identifies seven ways to increase financing, including through domestic expenditure and international and private sector finance. Additional avenues include remittances, increasing and tailoring finance to Small and Medium Enterprises and a reform of the global financial architecture. The new Loss and Damage fund will also need to move towards more innovative financing mechanisms to reach the necessary scale of investment.”

“Executive summary
Despite the clear signs of accelerating climate risks
and impacts worldwide, the adaptation finance gap is widening and now stands at between US$194 billion and US$366 billion per year. Adaptation finance needs are 10–18 times as great as current international public adaptation finance flows – at least 50 per cent higher than previously estimated.
This is the main conclusion of a comprehensive assessment of the literature and new analyses to provide updated estimates of the costs and needs of adaptation in developing countries, as well as the international finance flows required to address these needs. The report also provides updates on adaptation planning and implementation and concludes that global progress on adaptation is slowing rather than showing the urgently needed acceleration. In view of ever-increasing weather extremes such as a multi-year drought in East Africa, flooding in China and Europe, and extreme heat and wildfires in the United States of America and Canada, among others, narrowing the
adaptation finance gap is of particular importance because of the high benefits that investments in adaptation can offer in terms of reducing climate risks and improving equity and climate justice. Left unchecked however, increasing climate risks will inevitably lead to more climate-related losses
and damages. Therefore, the Adaptation Gap Report 2023 (AGR 2023) also focuses on loss and damage to support Parties in the negotiations following the decision at the twenty-seventh session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP 27) in Sharm El-Sheikh to establish a loss and damage fund and funding arrangements for vulnerable
developing countries.”

[PaulHBeckwith]

In this video I chat about the recent UNEP (United Nations Environmental Program) report titled “Underfinanced. Underprepared. Inadequate investment and planning on climate adaptation
leaves world exposed”

“In 2023, temperature records toppled, while storms, floods, droughts and heatwaves caused devastation. UNEP’s Adaptation Gap Report 2023: Underfinanced. Underprepared – Inadequate investment and planning on climate adaptation leaves world exposed finds that progress on climate adaptation is slowing when it should be accelerating to catch up with these rising climate change impacts. “

“The report – which looks at progress in planning, financing and implementing adaptation actions – finds that the adaptation finance needs of developing countries are 10-18 times as big as international public finance flows. This is over 50 per cent higher than the previous range estimate.

The modelled costs of adaptation in developing countries are estimated at US$215 billion per year this decade. The adaptation finance needed to implement domestic adaptation priorities is estimated at US$387 billion per year.

Despite these needs, public multilateral and bilateral adaptation finance flows to developing countries declined by 15 per cent to US$21 billion in 2021. As a result of the growing adaptation finance needs and faltering flows, the current adaptation finance gap is now estimated at US$194-366 billion per year. At the same time, adaptation planning and implementation appear to be plateauing. This failure to adapt has massive implications for losses and damages, particularly for the most vulnerable.

This report identifies seven ways to increase financing, including through domestic expenditure and international and private sector finance. Additional avenues include remittances, increasing and tailoring finance to Small and Medium Enterprises and a reform of the global financial architecture. The new Loss and Damage fund will also need to move towards more innovative financing mechanisms to reach the necessary scale of investment.”

“Executive summary
Despite the clear signs of accelerating climate risks
and impacts worldwide, the adaptation finance gap is widening and now stands at between US$194 billion and US$366 billion per year. Adaptation finance needs are 10–18 times as great as current international public adaptation finance flows – at least 50 per cent higher than previously estimated.
This is the main conclusion of a comprehensive assessment of the literature and new analyses to provide updated estimates of the costs and needs of adaptation in developing countries, as well as the international finance flows required to address these needs. The report also provides updates on adaptation planning and implementation and concludes that global progress on adaptation is slowing rather than showing the urgently needed acceleration. In view of ever-increasing weather extremes such as a multi-year drought in East Africa, flooding in China and Europe, and extreme heat and wildfires in the United States of America and Canada, among others, narrowing the
adaptation finance gap is of particular importance because of the high benefits that investments in adaptation can offer in terms of reducing climate risks and improving equity and climate justice. Left unchecked however, increasing climate risks will inevitably lead to more climate-related losses
and damages. Therefore, the Adaptation Gap Report 2023 (AGR 2023) also focuses on loss and damage to support Parties in the negotiations following the decision at the twenty-seventh session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP 27) in Sharm El-Sheikh to establish a loss and damage fund and funding arrangements for vulnerable
developing countries.”

[solarwind]

Paul, through your videos I’ve learned a lot. I also learned of this person called James Hansen. Currently on page 69 of his book “storms of my grand children“ thanks to you.

The science is easier for me to learn than the tactful, communication skills needed for getting people and policymakers to make the right decisions. Working on that.

Thank you for your great service to myself and others,

[mirandelf]

I notice that the report’s definition of Adaptation also includes exploiting new opportunities opened up by climate change. This could open the door to countries claiming to be spending lots on adaptation when all they are doing is drilling for oil in previously inaccessible places in the Arctic.

[solarwind]

Paul, I hope you have the best of luck in the tough times ahead.
Thank you

[christill]

You’ll never get any of this with private capital. It requires system change, mass nationalisation and so on.

[EmeraldView]

72 on March 4th in WNY.

A fluke day as you might have had in the past? Nope. Part of an excessively warm winter. Record breaking. And likely to be broken again and again in coming years.

[rdallas]

No amount of money will fix any of it.
Money and the love of it IS THE CAUSE

[freeheeler]

Meanwhile, late winter fires are burning across the North American Great Plains from Canada to Texas. I’ve lived on those plains in Texas and Montana. This is not normal. Late winter is usually cold and wet.

[TennesseeJed]

But how will the oligarchy have three or four yachts, three houses on each continent and a fleet of jet airliners?

[TheDoomWizard]

Meanwhile, just one man (BEZOS) is worth $188 billion.

[Andre-jggq]

I'm so happy I'm no longer stuck in the doom and gloom loop. Get out there and live folks, we're all gonna die so live while your alive instead of bo hooing about something beyond our control.

[tommynickels]

Paul, you need to do a video on thr Texas fire. March and already the 2nd largest fire in US history.

[volkerengels]

*""Not Enough Money""* 100 ROFL for that one..
""Not enough money""
""Co2 is good for plants""
""Green electric saves us""
"It's getting cooler again"

So - I don't want to necessarily have to say which is the *worst lie* above. It is difficult....

Recently I saw two guys talking about _saving souls in these extreme conditions..._
I don't think it was entirely clear to one Guy that his soul-project doesn't make much sense when you have almost 2 years.

[emceegreen]

Adaptation is resources spent on chasing the damage. Not solving the problem. We are are going to try to adapt until we can’t. Climate mitigation (carbon reduction and removal) is money well spent. That finance gap is estimated to be 3 to $5 trillion per year to actually “solve the problem”.

[ecocentrichomestead]

Wrt "underfinanced" I get upset.
Unless someone pays me money, I'm not going to prepare/adapt to face the consequences of climate change. Seriously? You'd rather die or lose everything you have because you couldn't get paid to do things differently?

[NickDonnetelli]

Paul & others on message board. I just found an article w/February 2024 average temperature: 1.79C above pre-industrial!

[nsbdnow]

Well, doesn't this "slower than needed" kind of balance out "faster than expected"?

[beddmc]

I wonder if and if so how many states within the US do not have adaptation plans. And which states

[bradleywinter]

This is the end of the second stage of Pip's Expectations.

[chrisf]

When do people start to think ...
did progress and civilisation allowed unfit animals to thrive ...
Who am I to think this way ...