Social Learning about Climate Adaptation: Global and Local Perspectives

The paper examines how social learning—the process of agents and organizations reframing issues to deal with common problems—operates within climate adaptation governance. It analyzes three mechanisms: bridging/boundary organizations, shadow systems, and conflicting goals. At the international level, the authors find that boundary organizations like the IPCC and UNEP successfully linked science and policy, and that the IPCC acted as a 'shadow system' to develop adaptation knowledge away from the highly politicized UNFCCC negotiations. However, the authors note that this international progress did not automatically translate to the local level. A case study of the Stockholm region reveals a lack of local boundary organizations and shadow systems, with adaptation efforts largely dependent on national signals. The study concludes that local adaptation is hindered by a perceived conflict between long-term goals and short-term economic priorities, suggesting a need for more diverse social learning arenas that can address these conflicting interests.

• International boundary organizations such as the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) were essential in linking scientific research with political action to frame climate change as a global challenge.
• In the international regime, the IPCC functioned as a 'shadow system'—an informal or less politically charged space—that allowed for the synthesis of adaptation and vulnerability knowledge while formal UNFCCC negotiations were stalled by political conflicts and a focus on mitigation.
• Early international climate policy was characterized by a 'malign problem' where conflicting political interests and a lack of trust between the global North and South hindered social learning about adaptation.
• The framing of adaptation at the international level evolved from being viewed as a way to avoid costly mitigation to being integrated with vulnerability and sustainable development, particularly after the IPCC's 2001 assessment.
• A case study of the Stockholm region indicates that international scientific discourse on adaptation did not automatically influence local practice; local actors remained largely unaware of adaptation needs until a 2007 Swedish government-commissioned assessment.
• Local practitioners in the Stockholm region expressed a strong need for a regional policy arena and coordination by the County Administrative Board to bridge the gap between local actors and regional/national governance.
• Unlike the international context, the Stockholm region lacked 'shadow systems'—informal networks—that could drive adaptation efforts independently of national policy priorities, despite municipalities having formal planning powers.
• At the local level in Stockholm, a primary barrier to adaptation is the conflict between long-term climate goals and short-term economic and political priorities.

APA

Nilsson, A. E., & Swartling, Å. G. (2009). Social Learning about Climate Adaptation: Global and Local Perspectives. Stockholm Environment Institute. https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/Policy-institutions/social_learning_wp_091112.pdf

Chicago

Nilsson, Annika E., and Åsa Gerger Swartling. Social Learning about Climate Adaptation: Global and Local Perspectives. Stockholm Environment Institute, 2009. https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/Policy-institutions/social_learning_wp_091112.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Nilsson |first1=Annika E. |last2=Swartling |first2=Åsa Gerger |title=Social Learning about Climate Adaptation: Global and Local Perspectives |publisher=Stockholm Environment Institute |date=2009 |url=https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/Policy-institutions/social_learning_wp_091112.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{nilsson2009social, author = {Nilsson, Annika E. and Swartling, Åsa Gerger}, title = {{Social Learning about Climate Adaptation: Global and Local Perspectives}}, institution = {Stockholm Environment Institute}, year = {2009}, url = {https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/Policy-institutions/social_learning_wp_091112.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }