LAC study tour: Urban Climate Resilience - sector note 4

This publication is part of a series of five notes reviewing the trends and challenges associated with urban development in Latin American cities (LAC) in five key sector.

All of these notes identify the specific challenges that the cities have encountered in managing urban development and the impact of climate change. African cities can draw valuable insights from Latin American cities, which have successfully implemented innovative solutions to tackle the challenges of urban development while keeping environmental and fiscal sustainability standards.

This note provides an overview of the global-local dynamic in climate change response in Latin America, distinguishing between mitigation as a global effort and adaptation as a local priority. It emphasizes the importance of sustainable urban development, considering the challenges presented by rapid urbanization and the need to integrate urban planning with climate adaptation. This involves urban footprint analysis, CO2 emissions mapping, and resilience assessment, with considerations for the political economy of adaptation.

It highlights the key initiatives and experiences led in Latin American cities through a serie of case studies. The objective is to explore the trends and challenges associated with urbanization in Latin American cities and identify the specific challenges that Latin American cities have encountered in managing the impact of climate change and natural disasters such as floods, landslides, and drought. The note highlights various innovative strategies employed in Latin American cities.

Then, the note explores the challenges in assigning monetary value to adaptation (“pricing adaptation”) and resilience efforts, recognizing the intrinsic difficulty of quantifying essential but often intangible aspects of climate change response.

In conclusion, this paper highlights the inherently public nature of investments in adaptation and resilience, emphasizing collective responsibility, while also exploring the private sector’s role as real estate developers in contributing to sustainable urban development and resilience efforts.