Mirey Atallah
Head of the Adaptation and Resilience Branch, UN Environment Programme (UNEP)
Humanity needs to drastically reduce greenhouse gas emissions, but to what extent can societies adapt and build resilience to the changes that are already coming?
May was the 12th warmest month on record. In its midst, Pope Francis warned we are on a “road to death.” Previously, the UN Secretary-General warned we’re on the highway to climate hell, reflecting the catastrophe of climate change.
Global climate resilience action
Humanity must reduce greenhouse gas emissions. However, even if all emissions were to halt overnight, the impacts of climate change are already here: extreme heat, drought, floods, cyclones and wildfires.
Roads to climate resilience are paved with nature as one of the most effective responses. Stories from communities across the world show us how: Rajasthan, India endured a devastating drought in 1986. Regenerated forests helped raise groundwater levels by several metres. In The Gambia, one of the largest development projects in the country’s history is restoring a degraded area — about the size of Paris — to improve water supplies.
A lagoon in Albania acts as a natural buffer against coastal flooding and erosion. In Mexico, nature is reintroduced into cities to reduce flood risk. These examples rely on what some would call ‘ordinary’ nature. For a resilient society, all nature and all species are precious — not only those that are threatened or charismatic.
Cost of climate adaptation
Having more nature to fend off natural disasters is also a good investment. The economic cost from weather and climate events in 2023 was estimated at USD 301 billion and, by 2050, the overall cost for the global economy is in the trillions. Avoiding some of the worst impacts of climate-induced weather events can alleviate some of those costs.
Allocating 50% of all climate finance to support adaptation, up from around 5% today, makes economic sense. That would mean closing the USD 194-366 billion annual funding gap for adaptation needs.
At the same time, ecosystem-based adaptation can only achieve so much. Without reducing global emissions, we risk triggering a chain reaction of ecosystems collapsing, no matter how much money is poured in to stop it.
Governments are expected to indicate their commitments to reducing emissions by February 2025. If these are not ambitious, or not implemented, countries might become entirely submerged.
