Demonstrating the Possible
© Paul Nicklen/National Geographic Stock / WWF-Canada
Adapting in a
Resilient Fashion
Susan Evans,
WWF-Canada
Nov 30th 2015
NBEN Adaptation Workshop 2015
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What is Adaptation?
• Adaptation is
–
–
–
an ongoing Process of risk management NOT a Project
the suite of actions taken in response to change
necessary for managing & prospering through ANY change, not just climate change
IPCC Definition:
“the process of adjustment to
actual or expected climate and its
effects, in order to moderate harm
or exploit beneficial opportunities”
A Journey NOT a Destination
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Is All Adaptation Considered Equal?
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Adaptation Strategies
Coping
Reducing
Vulnerability
Building
Resilience
Transformation
Elasticity!
Reactive
Resistant to Change
Short-term
Reactive
May Account for Change
Intermediate/long-term
Proactive
Accounts for Change
Intermediate/long-term
Proactive
Facilitates Change
Long-term
Vulnerability
Stays the Same
Vulnerability
Reduced
Vulnerability
Reduced
New Vulnerabilities
Adaptive Capacity
Strengthened
Facilitate Desirable
Future States
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Building Resilience
• How is it different
• What are the key attributes
• Practical example
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Resilience defined
“The capacity of a system to respond to change
and continue to develop”
Humans and Nature are
Strongly Coupled
Accepts Change
Anticipates
Embraces Learning
Manages Feedbacks
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Building Resilience: essential components
SCIENCE
Developing Science and Tools to:
Understand Baselines,
Anticipate Change, and
Plan for the Future
PEOPLE
Understanding the Actors
Involved in Responding to Change
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Two Types of Resilience
• Specified Resilience
• General Resilience
– The ability of a specific part of a
system to respond to a particular,
known disturbance in order to
maintain valued characteristics of
the system
– The capacity of the system (as a
whole) to absorb disturbances of all
kinds including unknown or
unforeseen ones
SPECIFIED
GENERAL
Resilience of what?
Particular value
Entire system
Resilience to what?
Known disturbance
Unknown disturbance
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Key Attributes of Building Resilience
WHO?
Maintain Diversity
& Redundancy
Manage
Connectivity
Manage
Feedbacks
Encourage
Learning
Broaden
Participation
Promote Polycentric
Governance
• Inclusive Participation
• Strong Leadership
WHAT?
• Diversity, modular
• Social-ecological
• Shared vision
HOW?
Foster Complex Adaptive
Systems Thinking
Biggs et al. 2015.
• Adaptive Planning
• Flexible Institutions
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Practical Examples
• Social-Ecological Inventory
– Identifies actors
– Builds inclusivity
– Foundation for collaboration
• Scenario Mapping/Planning
– Identifies trade-offs
– Builds a shared vision
• Monitoring
– Encourages learning
– Enables adaptive planning
• Diversifying Landscapes
– Builds insurance against risk
• extreme events
• markets
– Values multiple knowledge sources
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Thank you
wwf.ca
Susan Evans, [email protected]
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