IKI SA Community Thematic Exchange on Biodiversity and Climate Change Adaptation: Local Government Implementation

This thematic exchange is aimed at highlighting the role of local government in developing and implementing biodiversity and climate change adaptation solutions, whilst providing strategic directions for existing and future work and collaborations.

The exchange will be an opportunity to explore recent global and local developments and their influence on local government implementation of biodiversity and climate change adaptation solutions. One of the outcomes of the recent 16th meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP) to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) in Cali, Colombia was that countries agreed to align their climate change and biodiversity policies at a national level and prioritise action in key places for biodiversity and climate change. Unfortunately, COP16 was suspended with several key decisions not finalised including where dedicated funding for the Global Biodiversity Framework should be housed thus securing the establishment of a new fund dedicated exclusively to biodiversity.

GIZ’s Climate Support Programme IV and CitiesAdapt, has collaborated with the Department of Human Settlements and the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment to develop climate risk and vulnerability profiles and adaptation action plans for Priority Human Settlement Area and Housing Development Areas and provide capacity building and roll-out of the GreenBook with key Municipalities. The GreenBook is a freely accessible online planning support system, providing quantitative scientific evidence to assist local governments in comprehending their climate risks. The thematic exchange coincides with the completion of a project of GreenBook (www.greenbook.co.za) training with municipalities. There is a need to strengthen the integration of biodiversity priorities and ecosystem-based approaches in the adaptation planning and action of municipalities in order to achieve the Global Biodiversity Framework Targets.

The guiding questions for the thematic exchange:

• Is it possible to align climate change and biodiversity policies at a local and provincial level and what does this mean for prioritising action at a local level?
• How can local government prioiritise and finance key implementation of biodiversity and climate change adaptation solutions?
• What is needed to strengthen the integration of biodiversity priorities and ecosystem-based approaches in the adaptation planning and action of municipalities?