ALIN set to participate at the 9th International Conference on CBA9

By Bob Aston

The 9th International Conference on Community-Based Adaptation (CBA9) will take place at Safari Park Hotel in Nairobi, Kenya from 24-30 April, 2015. The Government of Kenya is set to host the conference which has been organized by the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED), Bangladesh Centre for Advanced Studies (BCAS) and African Centre for Technology Studies (ACTS). This year’s conference theme is ‘Measuring and enhancing effective adaptation’.

The conference will focus on measurement and enhancing effectiveness in adaptation. It will aim to highlight the fact that there are different ways of measuring the success of community-based adaptation. Participants will be reporting on the latest research and project work from across different sectors and countries, and presentations are likely to show that effective evaluation considers the perspective of both the donor and the recipients of adaptation funding.

Among the participating organizations will be Arid Lands Information Network (ALIN). ALIN has been participating in a lot of international climate change forums. The International Non-governmental organization (NGO) operating in Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania has been working with other partners to improve access to good quality information and knowledge on climate change adaptation practices using publications like Joto Afrika, a series of printed briefings and online resources that communicates information about climate change adaptation in sub-Saharan Africa and web 2.0 tools.

Farmers weeding in one of the sites where ALIN is demonstrating CSA

ALIN in partnership with Act Change Transform (Act!), with financial support from Department for International Development (DFID) and Swedish International Development Cooperation (SIDA) is also currently implementing a climate smart agriculture project in Baringo, Laikipia and Kajiado counties with the aim of strengthening communities’ resilience to impacts of climate change while conserving natural resources.

The organization has also been producing documentaries on climate change adaptation as well as publishing and disseminating articles on climate change adaptation. During the CBA9 field trips, ALIN will host some of the participants at the Nguruman Maarifa Centre in Entasopia, Kajiado County and at a site there where it is demonstrating Climate Smart Agriculture (CSA).

IIED and partners such as BCAS created the CBA conferences to highlight that effective adaptation to climate change takes place at community level. A bottom-up approach to adaptation enables local knowledge and practices to be shared among communities, academics and project managers so that those most exposed to the impacts of climate change are better able to adapt.

Past CBA conferences have focused on scaling up best practices, ensuring a scientific basis to action, communicating and mainstreaming CBA and ensuring adaptation funding reaches community level.

The conference will run for three-and-a-half days. It will include plenary sessions, high-level speaker panels, and parallel sessions with group discussions. There will also be sessions featuring short films as well as interactive workshops. The formal conference programme will begin on the morning of 27 April. The opening plenary will feature a distinguished panel of speakers from Africa, Asia and Europe.

The CBA9 schedule will begin with a number of field visits which will allow delegates to see local adaptation projects in action. The event will provide participants with an opportunity to share the latest developments in community-based adaptation (CBA) with an international audience.

Source: International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) website