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Asia-Pacific Network for Global Change Research

Asia-Pacific Network for Global Change Research

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Participatory methodologies enable communities to assess climate-induced loss and damage

Opportunities to strengthen resilience can be limited, as the adverse impacts of climate change become more severe. In these cases, it is recognized that there are limits to adaptation and that communities are facing loss and damage as a result of climate change. The perspectives of communities most vulnerable to climate change impacts—in particular those of marginalized sub-sections of communities whose voices and perspectives may be inadequately represented—should be reflected in processes that assess loss and damage and that facilitate relief, support and compensation for those affected. Unfortunately, community dynamics can often hold back women and marginalized community members from participating in or benefiting from assessment processes, resulting in under-reporting of their losses. Participatory processes such as the collective development of maps and calendars can be effective tools for communities and marginalized sub-sections to gather, understand, analyze and act on information about the climate impacts that they are experiencing. These processes can form the basis for accurate assessment of the economic losses and damages suffered. Research initiatives must also avoid the risk of leaving community members with disturbing new questions about the challenges they face, without also leaving them the means to understand the issues and take action. Through the course of this research, a number of participatory tools were adapted to the context of climate-induced loss and damage, trialled, reviewed and improved. This has resulted in the identification of methodologies that can be used for the specific purpose of community-led assessment of climate-induced loss and damage. The methodologies have been published in a Handbook for Community-Led Assessment of Climate-Induced Loss and Damage by ActionAid International, the Asia Disaster Risk Reduction Network (ADRRN) and Climate Action Network South Asia (CANSA) with the support of the Asia-Pacific Network for Global Change Research (APN). The participatory tools in this 7-step guide can be used by communities to assess the losses and damages they have experienced and to understand the trends and future changes that climate change may bring. They can use the participatory analysis to initiate strategic planning to reduce vulnerability to future potential losses, and request support from authorities.