Adaptation made to measure

Faced with new and rapidly expanding adaptation portfolios in most international cooperation institutions, many project managers are voicing their need for support, particularly when it comes to designing and monitoring projects which are either adaptation-related or explicit adaptation projects. The criticism that current development cooperation has simply been ‘re-labelled’ as being adaptation can only be countered if there is clear evidence of the contribution adaptation measures make to reducing vulnerability to the impacts of climate change. This requires an understanding of what results can realistically be achieved and how they can be demonstrated. Indeed, as well as playing a key role at international climate policy level, the additionality aspect of climate adaptation also poses practical questions at project level. What constitutes an adaptation project and what does not? Which specific factors must be accounted for when defining cause-effect correlations and indicators? How does this affect results-based monitoring? This guidebook seeks to provide answers to these questions and practical tips on how to apply them to projects with the help of illustrative case studies and an accompanying excel tool."