Integrating disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation in the Pacific

Abstract

Integrating community-based disaster risk reduction (DRR) and climate change adaptation (CCA) is identified at the policy and practical level as critical to aid effectiveness. Successful integration reduces both duplication of efforts and confusion at the community level, thus contributing to sustainable development. The challenges of integrating DRR and CCA are widely discussed from the global to the local level among policymakers, practitioners and academics alike. However, to date, little progress has been made in achieving practical solutions. By focusing on the governance aspects of DRR and CCA integration in the Pacific (with a particular focus on Fiji and Samoa), this study highlights potential pathways to overcome the separation of these two dynamic and overlapping fields. In applying the Earth System Governance framework as a novel analytical tool, we reveal that the issues of agency and architecture are especially significant as challenges to effectively integrating DRR and CCA.