IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/taf/tcpoxx/v11y2011i4p1071-1085.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Capacities across scales: local to national adaptation policy in four European countries

Author

Listed:
  • Lisa Westerhoff
  • E. Carina H. Keskitalo
  • Sirkku Juhola

Abstract

A framework of adaptive capacity and prerequisites for planned adaptation are used to identify the resources and conditions that have enabled or constrained the development of planned adaptation at national to local levels in Italy, Sweden, Finland and the UK. Drawing on 94 semi-structured interviews with climate change actors at each scale, the study demonstrates that planned adaptation measures occur as a result of several inter-relating factors, including the existence of political will, public support (and relevant media portrayal of climate change), adequate financial resources, the ability to produce or access climate and other information, and the extent of stakeholder involvement in the design and application of adaptation measures. Specific national adaptation measures affect local capacities to implement planned adaptations, but in some cases have been complemented or substituted by internal and external networks that connect local authorities to information and resources. The study demonstrates that opportunities to engage in planned adaptation at local levels may occur given adequate interest and resources; however, both national authorities and non-governmental organizations continue to play an important role in fostering local capacities.

Suggested Citation

  • Lisa Westerhoff & E. Carina H. Keskitalo & Sirkku Juhola, 2011. "Capacities across scales: local to national adaptation policy in four European countries," Climate Policy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 11(4), pages 1071-1085, July.
    • Handle: RePEc:taf:tcpoxx:v:11:y:2011:i:4:p:1071-1085
    DOI: 10.1080/14693062.2011.579258
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10.1080/14693062.2011.579258
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1080/14693062.2011.579258?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. W. Neil Adger & Saleemul Huq & Katrina Brown & Declan Conway & Mike Hulme, 2003. "Adaptation to climate change in the developing world," Progress in Development Studies, , vol. 3(3), pages 179-195, July.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Giovanni Pilato & Susannah M. Sallu & Marta Gaworek-Michalczenia, 2018. "Assessing the Integration of Climate Change and Development Strategies at Local Levels: Insights from Muheza District, Tanzania," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(1), pages 1-25, January.
    2. James Ford & Diana King, 2015. "A framework for examining adaptation readiness," Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change, Springer, vol. 20(4), pages 505-526, April.
    3. Alexandra Sadler & Nicola Ranger & Sam Fankhauser & Fulvia Marotta & Brian O’Callaghan, 2024. "The impact of COVID-19 fiscal spending on climate change adaptation and resilience," Nature Sustainability, Nature, vol. 7(3), pages 270-281, March.
    4. Elissa Waters & Jon Barnett, 2018. "Spatial imaginaries of adaptation governance: A public perspective," Environment and Planning C, , vol. 36(4), pages 708-725, June.
    5. Erik Glaas & Sirkku Juhola, 2013. "New Levels of Climate Adaptation Policy: Analyzing the Institutional Interplay in the Baltic Sea Region," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 5(1), pages 1-20, January.
    6. Borrás, Susana & Haakonsson, Stine & Taudal Poulsen, René & Pallesen, Trine & Hendriksen, Christian & Somavilla, Lucas & Kugelberg, Susanna & Larsen, Henrik & Gerli, Francesco, 2023. "The Transformative Capacity of Public Sector Organizations in Sustainability Transitions: A Conceptualization," Papers in Innovation Studies 2023/2, Lund University, CIRCLE - Centre for Innovation Research.
    7. Juita -Elena (Wie) Yusuf & Burton St. John, 2017. "Stuck on options and implementation in Hampton Roads, Virginia: an integrated conceptual framework for linking adaptation capacity, readiness, and barriers," Journal of Environmental Studies and Sciences, Springer;Association of Environmental Studies and Sciences, vol. 7(3), pages 450-460, September.
    8. Sirkku Juhola & Sylvia Kruse, 2015. "A framework for analysing regional adaptive capacity assessments: challenges for methodology and policy making," Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change, Springer, vol. 20(1), pages 99-120, January.
    9. Marcin DÄ…browski & Dominic Stead & Jinghuan He & Feng Yu, 2021. "Adaptive capacity of the Pearl River Delta cities in the face of the growing flood risk: Institutions, ideas and interests," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 58(13), pages 2683-2702, October.
    10. Luca Salvati & Ilaria Zambon & Giuseppe Pignatti & Andrea Colantoni & Sirio Cividino & Luigi Perini & Giorgio Pontuale & Massimo Cecchini, 2019. "A Time-Series Analysis of Climate Variability in Urban and Agricultural Sites (Rome, Italy)," Agriculture, MDPI, vol. 9(5), pages 1-18, May.
    11. Taedong Lee & Sara Hughes, 2017. "Perceptions of urban climate hazards and their effects on adaptation agendas," Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change, Springer, vol. 22(5), pages 761-776, June.
    12. Sierra C. Woodruff & Patrick Regan, 2019. "Quality of national adaptation plans and opportunities for improvement," Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change, Springer, vol. 24(1), pages 53-71, January.
    13. Christoph Oberlack, 2017. "Diagnosing institutional barriers and opportunities for adaptation to climate change," Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change, Springer, vol. 22(5), pages 805-838, June.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Yongdeng Lei & Jing’ai Wang & Yaojie Yue & Hongjian Zhou & Weixia Yin, 2014. "Rethinking the relationships of vulnerability, resilience, and adaptation from a disaster risk perspective," Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, Springer;International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, vol. 70(1), pages 609-627, January.
    2. Seraina Buob & Gunter Stephan, 2008. "Global Climate Change and the Funding of Adaptation," Diskussionsschriften dp0804, Universitaet Bern, Departement Volkswirtschaft.
    3. Chibwana, Christopher & Fisher, Monica & Shively, Gerald, 2012. "Cropland Allocation Effects of Agricultural Input Subsidies in Malawi," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 40(1), pages 124-133.
    4. Simon, David, 2010. "The Challenges of Global Environmental Change for Urban Africa," WIDER Working Paper Series 051, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    5. Natasha Grist, 2008. "Positioning climate change in sustainable development discourse," Journal of International Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 20(6), pages 783-803.
    6. Piya, Luni & Maharjan, Keshav Lall & Joshi, Niraj Prakash, 2012. "Vulnerability of rural households to climate change and extremes: Analysis of Chepang households in the Mid-Hills of Nepal," 2012 Conference, August 18-24, 2012, Foz do Iguacu, Brazil 126191, International Association of Agricultural Economists.
    7. Richard Lalou & Benjamin Sultan & Bertrand Muller & Alphousseyni Ndonky, 2019. "Does climate opportunity facilitate smallholder farmers’ adaptive capacity in the Sahel?," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 5(1), pages 1-11, December.
    8. Forsyth, Tim & Evans, Natalie, 2013. "What is autonomous adaption? Resource scarcity and smallholder agency in Thailand," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 45412, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    9. Popular Gentle & Rik Thwaites & Digby Race & Kim Alexander, 2014. "Differential impacts of climate change on communities in the middle hills region of Nepal," Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, Springer;International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, vol. 74(2), pages 815-836, November.
    10. Scrieciu, S. Şerban & Barker, Terry & Ackerman, Frank, 2013. "Pushing the boundaries of climate economics: critical issues to consider in climate policy analysis," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 85(C), pages 155-165.
    11. Munir Ahmed & Ghulam Mustafa & Muhammad Iqbal, 2016. "Impact of Farm Households’ Adaptations to Climate Change on Food Security: Evidence from Different Agro-ecologies of Pakistan," The Pakistan Development Review, Pakistan Institute of Development Economics, vol. 55(4), pages 561-588.
    12. Mintewab Bezabih & Remidius Ruhinduka & Mare Sarr, 2016. "Climate change perception and system of rice intensification (SRI) impact on dispersion and downside risk: a moment approximation approach," GRI Working Papers 256, Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment.
    13. Reed, M.S. & Podesta, G. & Fazey, I. & Geeson, N. & Hessel, R. & Hubacek, K. & Letson, D. & Nainggolan, D. & Prell, C. & Rickenbach, M.G. & Ritsema, C. & Schwilch, G. & Stringer, L.C. & Thomas, A.D., 2013. "Combining analytical frameworks to assess livelihood vulnerability to climate change and analyse adaptation options," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 94(C), pages 66-77.
    14. P.B. Eregha & J.S. Babatolu & R.T. Akinnubi, 2014. "Climate Change and Crop Production in Nigeria: An Error Correction Modelling Approach," International Journal of Energy Economics and Policy, Econjournals, vol. 4(2), pages 297-311.
    15. Forsyth, Tim & Evans, Natalie, 2013. "What is Autonomous Adaption? Resource Scarcity and Smallholder Agency in Thailand," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 43(C), pages 56-66.
    16. Guloba, Madina, 2014. "Adaptation to climate variability and change in Uganda: Are there gender differences across households?," WIDER Working Paper Series 107, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    17. Emily Boyd & Sirkku Juhola, 2009. "Stepping up to the climate change: Opportunities in re-conceptualising development futures," Journal of International Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 21(6), pages 792-804.
    18. Derick Akompab & Peng Bi & Susan Williams & Arthur Saniotis & Iain Walker & Martha Augoustinos, 2013. "Engaging stakeholders in an adaptation process: governance and institutional arrangements in heat-health policy development in Adelaide, Australia," Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change, Springer, vol. 18(7), pages 1001-1018, October.
    19. Ashish Aggarwal, 2014. "How sustainable are forestry clean development mechanism projects?—A review of the selected projects from India," Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change, Springer, vol. 19(1), pages 73-91, January.
    20. Fisher, Monica & Chaudhury, Moushumi & McCusker, Brent, 2010. "Do Forests Help Rural Households Adapt to Climate Variability? Evidence from Southern Malawi," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 38(9), pages 1241-1250, September.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:taf:tcpoxx:v:11:y:2011:i:4:p:1071-1085. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Chris Longhurst (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.tandfonline.com/tcpo20 .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.