Strengthening the Climate Security (CS) Outcomes of Adaptation Plans: Moving from Concept to Practice

This presentation examines how climate security can be systematically integrated into national adaptation planning to enhance both human and national security outcomes. Drawing on a review of 67 National Adaptation Plans (NAPs) submitted to the UNFCCC, the study identifies significant gaps in how countries conceptualize and operationalize security dimensions—particularly peace, migration, and defense—within adaptation processes. Case studies in Sri Lanka and Fiji reveal that climate change erodes individuals’ sense of future security, creating "security deficits" that highlight the disconnect between local vulnerabilities and national adaptation priorities. Through focus group discussions and structured consultations, the research underscores the need to link adaptation and security agendas by aligning national and human security objectives with community-level adaptation needs. The presentation concludes with policy recommendations to strengthen adaptation planning through human security lenses, thereby improving resilience, social stability, and the overall effectiveness of climate adaptation actions.

This presentation examines how climate security can be systematically integrated into national adaptation planning to enhance both human and national security outcomes. Drawing on a review of 67 National Adaptation Plans (NAPs) submitted to the UNFCCC, the study identifies significant gaps in how countries conceptualize and operationalize security dimensions—particularly peace, migration, and defense—within adaptation processes. Case studies in Sri Lanka and Fiji reveal that climate change erodes individuals’ sense of future security, creating "security deficits" that highlight the disconnect between local vulnerabilities and national adaptation priorities. Through focus group discussions and structured consultations, the research underscores the need to link adaptation and security agendas by aligning national and human security objectives with community-level adaptation needs. The presentation concludes with policy recommendations to strengthen adaptation planning through human security lenses, thereby improving resilience, social stability, and the overall effectiveness of climate adaptation actions.