July 2024 Newsletter Recap: Climate Resilience

Did you miss the Climatelinks July newsletter? We’ve got you covered. Please find a recap of the July ‘Climate Resilience’ theme below. You won’t want to miss this short list of top resources and blogs from the month. Subscribe to our newsletter today. Do you want to contribute to the Climatelinks community? Send us a resource, blog, or event.

Climate resilience can be generally defined as the capacity of a system to maintain function in the face of stresses imposed by climate change and to adapt the system to be better prepared for future climate impacts. One of the high-level goals in USAID’s 2022-2030 Climate Strategy is to improve the climate resilience of 500 million people.

Fresh Blog Posts

How USAID Supports and Scales Climate Resilience

USAID’s 2022-2030 Climate Strategy aims to support and scale the climate resilience of people, places, ecosystems, and livelihoods vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. The Agency is expanding access to climate information in decision making, increasing the climate resilience of key development sectors and services, and mainstreaming adaptation in plans and programs. It also employs nature-based solutions and engages the private sector in support of sustainable adaptation, including by mobilizing adaptation finance. 

Grassroots Project Jumpstarts Conservation Efforts in Mexican Countryside

Water scarcity and a hotter, drier climate were degrading the quality of life of residents in the small town of El Carrizal, Queretaro, Mexico. To address this, the town received a Peace Corps Small Project Assistance grant funded by USAID/Mexico to employ eco-techniques and technologies to advance environmentally conscious best practices and build climate resilience. The project constructed three rainwater collection cisterns, installed 10 solar hot water heaters, built two dry composting toilets, and created educational ecotourism signs. 

USAID’s Climate Strategy in Action: Cultivating Climate Resilience through Sustainable Ube Farming

In Palawan, Philippines, smallholder farmers face challenges to their livelihoods from the harsh realities of a changing climate. USAID’s Safe Water Activity is working to improve water security in water-stressed communities and support sustainable livelihood sources like ube farming. These efforts help both communities and the ecosystem become more resilient to climate change.  

Bridging the Gap with Parametric Insurance: A Path to Resilience in Developing Countries

With climate-related shocks and stresses increasing globally, economic losses due to natural hazards could skyrocket without efforts to invest in adaptation and build climate resilience. One potential solution is parametric insurance, which pays policyholders a predetermined amount based on the occurrence of a specific “trigger” event, like flooding or extreme heat. This allows the claims process to move faster and makes it less costly to manage.

Connecting Indonesia’s First Large-Scale Floating Solar Plant to the Power Grid

The floating solar plant on the Citarum River in Indonesia is the largest floating solar plant in Southeast Asia and the third largest in the world. The USAID Sustainable Energy for Indonesia’s Advancing Resilience project helped integrate the plant into the country’s grid, allowing it to power 50,000 homes with clean energy. It is expected to reduce 3.1 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent through 2035, which is comparable to preventing 3.4 billion pounds of coal from being burned. 

Empowering Communities: Climate Resilience Through Locally Led Adaptation

In the face of the climate crisis, local people and communities have emerged as frontline responders, both experiencing and addressing climate impacts. Locally Led Adaptation is an approach that supports local people, institutions, and networks to lead decisions on how, when, and where to adapt to the impacts of climate change. The USAID Climate Adaptation Support Activity has developed two new resources to help USAID and its partners further Locally Led Adaptation in practice.

New Resources

2024 GCC Standard Indicator Handbook

The 2024 Climate Change Standard Indicator Handbook has the latest USAID and Department of State standard indicators for climate change and development. It includes definition sheets that outline each indicator’s linkage to a long-term outcome or impact and includes the proper unit of measure.

An Introduction to Assessing Climate Resilience in Smallholder Supply Chains

This resource, designed for medium- to high-level decision makers in food and beverage companies, offers a working definition of climate resilience, an actionable process guide, and sample indicator framework for diagnosing climate resilience in smallholder crop-focused supply chains. Ultimately, this guidance can help companies translate climate risk intelligence into practical, operational strategies to build supply chain resilience.

Climate Adaptation Learning Activity Fiscal Year 2024 Semi-Annual Report

The Climate Adaptation Knowledge and Learning Activity (CALA) works to improve the quality and effectiveness of climate adaptation efforts implemented by partners of USAID’s Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance. It does this by supporting the dissemination of learning and evidence related to climate adaptation programming. This Year 2 Semi-Annual Report provides a synopsis of progress made by the CALA Associate Award between October 1, 2023 and March 31, 2024, and offers a description of activities planned for the upcoming reporting period (April 1, 2024 – September 30, 2024).

Climate Risk Management Spotlight

Regional, Sector, and Country Risk Profiles and Greenhouse Gas Emissions Fact Sheets

Climate risk profiles (CRPs) summarize the key climate stressors and risks most relevant to a Mission’s objectives. These profiles can help promote climate resilience, which is imperative in addressing the multifaceted challenges posed by climate change. Check out the recently added Resilience and Food Security CRPs from USAID’s Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance. 

Call for Content

Share your events and resources or write a blog related to an upcoming monthly theme! Check out our upcoming themes to see if your climate work aligns:

• September and October: Just Energy Transition
• November: COP29
• 2024 Cross-cutting Themes: Systems Change and Locally Led Development

If your USAID-related climate change work relates to these themes, Climatelinks would love to feature your work and share your resources. Send us a resource or blog.