Launch of the Global Center on Adaptation
17 October 2018
On 16 October 2018, the formal launch of the Global Center on Adaptation took place in The Hague, the Netherlands. Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon said that “the role of Global Center on Adaptation will be significant because we need all societies to learn from one another”.
The Global Center on Adaptation, previously known as the Global Center on Excellence in Climate Adaptation, is co-hosting a Global Commission on Adaptation with the World Resources Institute. The Commission will be overseen by 8th Secretary General of the United Nations Ban Ki-Moon, co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Bill Gates, and Work Bank CEO Kristalina Georgieva.
The launch revealed the names of 20 leading global commissioners and 10 convening countries part of the Global Commission on Adaptation. Dutch commissioner and Minister of Infrastructure and Water Management Cora van Nieuwenhuizen stated that the Commission will elevate the political visibility of adaptation and focus on solutions, catalysing a global adaptation movement and accelerating action.
IHE Delft, the coordinator of AfriAlliance, is a founding partner of the Center and has seconded Professor Guy Alaerts as part-time staff for secretariat of the Center. The role of IHE Delft will be to contribute to knowledge and capacity development for framing and implementing the adaptation policies and strategies.
The Global Center on Adaptation will focus on addressing five challenges it has identified as slowing down the implementation of effective adaptation actions:
- Scaling up ecosystem-based adaption
- Integrating climate adaptation into financial decision-making
- Measuring effective adaptation
- Creating climate resilient cities
- Leveraging deltas to address climate change
Visit the website of the Global Center on Adaptation for more information.