Locally Led Climate Action in Togo

Topic : Locally Led Climate Action in Togo: Lessons, Experiences and Way forward 

To participate, simply fill this form in less than 10 min and our team will contact you for further details such as meeting link, agenda etc.

Apply Here: https://shorturl.at/dmquG

Application Deadline : September 30, 2023  

Time: 15h00 GMT

Event Timing:  October 08, 2023

Rational of the Topic: 

‘‘The emergence of Locally Led Adaptation (LLA), both conceptually and practically, could lead to on-the-ground transformative adaptation where “local” approaches offer benefits that non-local approaches cannot, where local institutions and people control adaptation funds and resources, where access is easier and they have more control over decision-making. Within this process, the key dimensions are inclusion, diverse and democratized knowledge, and equity and justice, all of which also underpin LLA as an idealistic approach (Schipper et al. 2022). LLA draws attention to the need for better standards of participation and representation of diverse local actors and emphasizes the challenges of addressing a global problem with local repercussions. Importantly, as a transformative action, LLA is a fundamental ingredient for moving towards greater climate resilient development (Pörtner et al. 2022). Individuals and households at the local scale are already creatively adapting to climate change, out of necessity for their lives and livelihoods (Castro and Sen 2022). These actions, along with indigenous-led approaches to addressing climate impacts, could be critical to more effective adaptation, if these actors are leaders in the adaptation process. As large as the promises of LLA are, there are dangers that the concept may facilitate governments to abandon their role in enabling people’s adaptive capacities and instead leave it up to the “local” actors to adapt and fend for themselves. Unless issues of power and justice are at the forefront, LLA risks increasing the onus of adaptation, which already falls on those most affected and those who are least responsible for climate change and have the least resources to address it’’ (Rahman et al., 2023). 

Since the announcement in 2018 of the vision of Togo’s National Climate Change Adaptation Plan (PNACC) by 2030, both government and local actors have multiplied diverse climate adaptation initiatives to help build the resilience of people. Five years after, our team of ‘‘INTERGENERATIONAL AMBASSADORS OF ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY (IAES)/AMBASSADEURS INTERGÉNÉRATIONNELS POUR LA DURABILITÉ ENVIRONNEMENTALE (A.I.D.E.)’’, thought it wise to bring the attention of the climate actors on what, have we learned so far? What experiences have we gained? Is there a way to do it better? What are our pitfalls of implementation of climate action? And most importantly, are we on the right track? Are our adaptation actions contributing to local people’s improvement or resulting in maladaptation? 

To digest these questions, our team invite you to the ‘‘ClimateSaturdayCafẺ’’ on the topic ‘‘Locally Led Climate Action in Togo: Lessons, Experiences and Way forward’’, which will be held online.