Two parallel priority-setting workshops for the Hindu Kush Himalayan subregion and the Indian Ocean island countries were held on 20-22 October 2016, in Colombo, Sri Lanka.
As part of the
implementation of the Lima Adaptation Knowledge Initiative (LAKI) in
Asia, and after the priority-setting workshop for the Gulf Cooperation Council
(GCC) subregion held in Abu Dhabi in June 2015 (see below), UNFCCC/NWP and UN Environment
organized two priority-setting workshops for the Hindu Kush Himalayan
subregion and the Indian Ocean islands countries.
The purpose of a priority-setting
workshop is to better understand and categorize adaptation knowledge gaps
in a given subregion, agree on a list of strategic priority knowledge gaps, facilitate the design of (collaborative)
response actions, and generate a list of possible response actions and associated institutions
for addressing these gaps in each subregion. To learn more about the LAKI approach, click here.
The two parallel priority-setting
workshops were organized back to back with the Asia Pacific Adaptation Network
forum. The priority-setting workshop for the Hindu Kush Himalayan subregion was organized with the support of the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD), while the workshop for the Indian Ocean island countries was supported by the International Water Management Institute (IWMI). Each workshop gathered 10-15 expert participants,
including both multistakeholder group members and support group members.
The priority-setting workshops led to the identification of
priority knowledge gaps for each subregion.
In the case of the Hindu Kush Himalaya subregion,
16 knowledge gaps were identified:
|
No.
|
Theme
|
Priority knowledge gap
|
|
1.
|
Agriculture
|
Limited access to adequate locally
usable knowledge and information on weather and seasonal forecasting to
assist farm production operations
|
|
2.
|
Water
|
Weak dissemination of evidence and successful water management
practices, adaptation technologies, and water allocation and management during
periods of scarcity and abundance
|
|
3.
|
Water
|
Lack of access to awareness-raising products and early warning systems
for multiple hazards (drought, landslide, debris flow, flooding, glacier lake
outburst flood in the Himalayas and downstream communities)
|
|
4.
|
Agriculture
|
Inadequate information and knowledge on adaptation options and technologies
suitable to address context-specific climate extremes, impacts and risks for
agriculture and the net effect of climate change at the local level
|
|
5.
|
Health
|
Limited access to weather and seasonal forecasting data for public
health preparedness (heatwaves, cold waves, thunderstorms and epidemics)
|
|
6.
|
Agriculture
|
Limited access to traditional knowledge and indigenous knowledge on
agricultural adaptation
|
|
7.
|
Water
|
Poor translations of climate
data and models into understandable formats
|
|
8.
|
Health
|
Lack of awareness of/sensitization among the public and the media about
climate change health impacts and adaptation/response measures
|
|
9.
|
Agriculture
|
Limited understanding of traditional knowledge and indigenous knowledge
on agricultural adaptation
|
|
10.
|
Water
|
Knowledge on how climate change is impacting water
source/usage/availability/quality (including sanitation/water treatment/water
inputs for energy/springs and natural wells, groundwater, spring water and
glaciers)
|
|
11.
|
Forest and biodiversity
|
Knowledge gap on methodologies and tools to quantify the impact of
climate change on ecosystem services
|
|
12.
|
Health
|
Lack of understanding/evidence of potential health co-benefits of
climate change adaptation and mitigation measures in various sectors
|
|
13.
|
Forest and Biodiversity
|
Lack of adequate knowledge on the effects of climate change on
biodiversity
|
|
14.
|
Forest and Biodiversity
|
Need for repackaging the
baseline data on the effects of climate change on forests and biodiversity
for different target groups
|
|
15.
|
Forest and Biodiversity
|
Insufficient information on
local indigenous knowledge on forest management
|
|
16.
|
Water
|
Insufficient climate change communication on the impacts on water
systems/water availability to determine climate change impacts and inform
decision-making in designing water resource plans and implementation
|
To view ICIMOD’s summary of the event, please click here.
The full workshop report is available here.
Regarding the Indian Ocean Island countries, two lists of gaps were identified so as to better take into account the geographical diversity of the subregion. A list of 10 gaps was thus agreed upon for the larger island countries (i.e. Madagascar and Sri Lanka) while a list of 10 gaps was identified for the smaller island countries (i.e. Comoros, Maldives and Seychelles):
|
|
Larger countries ( Madagascar, Sri Lanka)
|
No.
|
Theme
|
Priority knowledge gap
|
1.
|
Agriculture /Fisheries
|
Insufficient information on water conserving irrigation practices and other water management techniques
|
2.
|
Agriculture /Fisheries
|
Insufficient information on crop and agricultural diversification
|
3.
|
Agriculture /Fisheries
|
Insufficient information on climate-smart crop varieties
|
4.
|
Water
|
Insufficient information on climatic parameters at the sub-basin/catchment/subnational level
|
5.
|
Water
|
Insufficient information on water storage capacity and status (e.g.
reservoirs and tanks)
|
6.
|
Agriculture /Fisheries
|
Insufficient information on cropping calendars that precisely integrate
the impacts of climate change
|
7.
|
Health
|
Insufficient knowledge of indirect impacts of climate change on health
(water/vector/rodent-borne diseases, food insecurity and malnutrition),
including in relation to the deteriorated socioeconomic conditions induced by
climate change
|
8.
|
Agriculture /Fisheries
|
Insufficient information on the impacts of climate change on livestock,
and possible adaptation response measures (e.g. breed and feed)
|
9.
|
Agriculture /f
|
Insufficient information on increasing physical water productivity (kg
of crop/m3 of water or ‘crop per drop’ approach)
|
10
|
Coastal areas
|
Insufficient information on the impacts of storm surges and other extreme events on coastal areas, including erosion and impacts on infrastructure, and drinking water supply
|
|
Smaller countries ( Comoros, Maldives, Seychelles)
|
No.
|
Theme
|
Priority knowledge gap
|
1.
|
Coastal areas
|
Insufficient information on the impacts of storm surges and other
extreme events on coastal areas, including erosion, and impacts on
infrastructure, and drinking water supply
|
2.
|
Agriculture /Fisheries
|
Insufficient knowledge on how climate change affects coastal/marine fish migration
|
3.
|
Coastal areas
|
Insufficient information on the impacts of sea level rise on coastal
areas, including erosion and impacts on infrastructure, and drinking water
supply
|
4.
|
Coastal areas
|
Insufficient information on the impacts of climate change on coral
reefs, including coral bleaching
|
5.
|
Water
|
Insufficient information on climatic parameters at the sub basin/catchment/sub national level
|
6.
|
Energy
|
Insufficient information on the impacts of climate change on energy demand
|
7.
|
Human settlements
|
Insufficient information on climate-resilient wastewater infrastructure
and waste management techniques
|
8.
|
Energy
|
Insufficient information on measures to respond to changes in energy
demand
|
9.
|
Agriculture /Fisheries
|
For policymakers, insufficient information on appropriate post-harvest
techniques for key food and cash crops
|
10.
|
Agriculture /Fisheries
|
Insufficient information on climate change impacts on crop prices and
markets
|
The full workshop report is available here.
A number of expressions of interest in closing the knowledge gaps have also been expressed for both subregions and will be followed up after the workshop.
Summary and key outcomes of the workshop for the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) subregion:
As part of the implementation of the Lima Adaptation Knowledge Initiative (LAKI) for the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) subregion, the Abu Dhabi Global Environmental Data Initiative (AGEDI) collaborated with UNEP and UNFCCC secretariat in organizing the priority-setting workshop held on 15-17 June 2015 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
Expert participants (multidisciplinary stakeholder group or MSG in short) discussed and agreed to the pool of 10 priority adaptation knowledge gaps for the GCC subregion through a multi-criteria analysis approach. The MSG also provided a preliminary identification of potential response actions (in terms of concrete deliverables and target beneficiaries) to address this pool of priority knowledge gaps and also provided pointers as to the best placed organizations to undertake such responses.
The list of priority knowledge gaps identified for the GCC subregion is:
No. |
Priority adaptation knowledge gap
|
1. |
Limited availability and access to observed data on quantity and quality of conventional (groundwater reserves, surface water, shared transboundary flows, recharge levels) and non-conventional (treated wastewater, desalinated water) water resources |
2. |
Limited availability and lack of access to scenario data at various spatial scales for projected climatic variables, including temperature, precipitation, wind, evapotranspiration, drought, flash floods, sea level, extreme events, etc. |
3. |
Fragmented baseline data (biological, ecological and climate) and lack of standardized methodologies for consolidating information on terrestrial ecosystems at the GCC level |
4. |
Incomprehensive data and information as well as lack of integrated approaches related to climate change impacts on coastal and marine ecosystems’ goods and services |
5. |
Inadequate knowledge and awareness on coastal defence and protection services provided by coastal and marine ecosystems and their response to a changing climate |
6. |
Insufficient technical capacity for monitoring, assessing and projecting impacts of climate change in the marine ecosystems |
7. |
Limited knowledge of climate smart agricultural practices |
8. |
Lack of information and knowledge on the direct and indirect impacts of climate change on human health |
9. |
Limited knowledge on developing adaptive measures and projects |
10. |
Lack of knowledge of the costs of climate change impacts and adaptation investment opportunities for sustainable development in the marine and terrestrial ecosystems |
To access the full workshop's report, please click here.