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The Global Resilience Partnership (GRP) reports on its 2021 activities, highlighting the launch of the Innovating for Climate Resilience Fund, the establishment of the Resilience Hub at COP26, and the creation of South to South Resilience Academies. The partnership focused on scaling coastal resilience through the Ocean Risk and Resilience Action Alliance (ORRAA), supporting innovative finance in fragile regions like Sudan and Uganda, and promoting locally-led adaptation through catalytic grants and the Resilience Knowledge Coalition.

Timor-Leste has utilized its National Adaptation Plan (NAP) process to mainstream Ecosystem-based Adaptation (EbA), treating it as one of 14 guiding principles to link environmental protection with climate action. The NAP, ratified in September 2020 and submitted to the UNFCCC in March 2021, identifies 107 adaptation action items across seven priority sectors and programs over a 10-year horizon (2020–2030). A key feature of the implementation is the use of Tarabandu, a traditional customary rule system, to engage local communities in EbA measures. The process emphasizes cross-sectoral coordination, gender-responsive analysis, and alignment with international frameworks like the Paris Agreement and the Sendai Framework. The government aims to establish a national monitoring, evaluation, reporting, and learning (MERL) framework by 2022 to track progress in the biodiversity and ecosystems sector.

Timor-Leste's National Adaptation Plan (NAP), ratified in September 2020 and submitted to the UNFCCC in March 2021, establishes Ecosystem-based Adaptation (EbA) as one of 14 guiding principles to link environmental protection with climate action. The process, led by the National Directorate for Climate Change (NDCC), utilizes a systems approach across seven priority sectors and five ecological zones. A key feature of the implementation is the use of Tarabandu, a traditional customary rule system, to engage local communities in EbA measures. The NAP aligns with the Strategic Development Plan 2011–2030 and international frameworks like the Paris Agreement and the Sendai Framework. Future steps include the development of a monitoring, evaluation, reporting, and learning (MERL) framework and a comprehensive financing plan by 2022.

The report details CDKN's efforts to bridge the gap between climate knowledge and action through regional programmes in Africa, Asia, and South America. Key initiatives include improving climate information on Wikipedia, tailoring IPCC reports for regional audiences, and mainstreaming gender into climate policy in countries like Peru, Ecuador, and Ethiopia. The network also focused on urban resilience in India and Nepal, and community-led responses to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The Kibera Public Space Project, led by the Kounkuey Design Initiative (KDI), transforms dumpsites and wastelands into a network of multifunctional public spaces to build flood resilience in Nairobi's largest informal settlement. By integrating drainage, gabions, and early-warning systems, the project protects vulnerable households from increasing rainfall risks exacerbated by climate change. The initiative emphasizes community co-design and has successfully advocated for the integration of Kibera into formal city planning through a Special Planning Area approved in 2020.

This policy brief examines the social resilience of 15 communities in the Global South during the COVID-19 pandemic. It finds that resilience is multifaceted, involving assets, flexibility, social organization, learning, behavioral factors, and agency. The study highlights the critical role of community-based organizations, particularly women's and youth groups, in mobilizing resources and maintaining social cohesion. It recommends that policymakers target multiple social domains of resilience rather than focusing on a single policy angle, treating community organizations as key partners and investing in social capital to enhance collective action.

The report examines urban flooding in five cities across Ghana, South Africa, and Kenya, highlighting the vulnerability of informal settlements to climate-exacerbated rainfall and poor urban planning. It compares the maturity of South African cities in integrating EbA into policy against the more response-oriented, 'grey' infrastructure bias in Kenyan cities. Key findings emphasize that collaborative, whole-of-society governance and the integration of green and grey infrastructure are most effective for long-term resilience.

The Pacific Islands Climate Storybook 2021 outlines a methodology for 'Climate Services Dialogs'—three-day workshops designed to bridge the gap between scientific climate data and local experiential knowledge. The process involves sharing climate knowledge, diagnosing existing services using the 'READY-SET-GO' framework, and developing 'Climate Stories' to communicate best practices. The report includes several case studies from the region, such as the impact of the 1997–98 El Niño on water resources in American Sāmoa, coastal flooding in Papua New Guinea and the Marshall Islands, and the link between drought and disease outbreaks in the Marshall Islands. It emphasizes the need for co-production of knowledge, community engagement, and the integration of traditional knowledge with scientific forecasts to enhance regional resilience.

The COP26 Resilience Hub served as a convening platform for the UNFCCC’s Race to Resilience, bringing together state and non-state actors to prioritise adaptation and resilience. The report identifies five core messages: the necessity of scaling Locally Led Adaptation (LLA), the urgent need for increased and diversified adaptation finance (preferring grants over loans), the requirement to bridge knowledge and implementation gaps, the role of Nature-based Solutions (NbS) across urban, coastal, and rural contexts, and the essential inclusion of marginalised groups—including women, youth, and Indigenous peoples—in decision-making. It also highlights the emergence of 'Loss and Damage' as a critical focus and notes a significant gap between current adaptation finance flows and actual needs.

The COP26 Resilience Hub Synthesis Report outlines five core messages for advancing global climate resilience: the necessity of Locally Led Adaptation (LLA), the urgent need for diversified and increased adaptation finance (preferring grants over loans), the bridging of knowledge and implementation gaps, the role of Nature-based Solutions (NbS) across urban, coastal, and rural settings, and the requirement to center marginalized groups—including women, youth, and Indigenous peoples—in decision-making. The report details thematic insights across ten areas, including finance, water, food, energy, and health, while emphasizing the need to scale these efforts toward COP27.

The document outlines the framework for the GCF's Enhanced Direct Access (EDA) pilot phase, a 200 million USD initiative designed to increase funding access for national, regional, and subnational public and private entities. It details the requirements for EDA projects, which must establish or support financing vehicles to fund local sub-projects. The guide specifies a two-component project structure: one for capacity building and technical assistance, and another for the financing mechanism itself. It emphasizes the necessity of local ownership, gender integration, and the creation of sustainable, long-term financing vehicles. Key governance requirements include the establishment of separate supervision and decision-making bodies, with the latter responsible for selecting sub-projects through transparent processes. The document also lists the necessary annexes and the role of National Designated Authorities in the process.

The 2019 Production Gap Report, produced by SEI and partners, identifies a significant gap between government fossil fuel production plans and the levels required to limit global warming to 1.5°C or 2°C. The report aims to shift climate discourse toward targeting both production and consumption, influencing policymakers in countries such as Norway and the United States.

The document examines the role of local and community-based adaptation (CBA) in addressing climate risks, emphasizing that while local actions are often the most cost-effective and socially acceptable, they are frequently hindered by top-down planning and insufficient financing. It proposes a shift toward locally led processes that integrate indigenous knowledge, devolved financing, and multi-stakeholder governance to achieve sustainable and equitable resilience.

The National Adaptation Plan Framework for Botswana provides a high-level strategic guide for integrating climate change adaptation into national and subnational development planning. It outlines a multi-sectoral approach emphasizing horizontal and vertical integration, ecosystem-based adaptation, and community-centered planning. The framework proposes a governance structure led by a National Climate Change Unit (NCCU) and a National Committee on Climate Change (NCCC), while prioritizing the needs of youth, women, and vulnerable groups. It also details strategies for mobilizing domestic and international climate finance and aligning the NAP with existing policies like Vision 2036 and NDP 11.

Nigeria’s National Adaptation Plan (NAP) Framework establishes a coordinated, sectoral approach to building climate resilience. It outlines an institutional structure led by the Department of Climate Change, emphasizing gender-responsiveness, youth engagement, and the integration of indigenous knowledge. The framework aims to align adaptation efforts with national development plans like the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan and international commitments under the UNFCCC's Cancun Adaptation Framework, while identifying pathways for domestic and international climate finance.

The document outlines lessons from a dialogue between grassroots organizations and donors on advancing locally led climate adaptation in Africa. It emphasizes the need to shift from top-down to circular decision-making, build mutual trust through transparency, and move away from short-term, projectized funding models. The briefing argues for the integration of development-sector knowledge into climate finance and the reduction of accreditation barriers for local actors. It further advocates for a shift in the 'hierarchy of knowledge' to better value indigenous and local expertise, and calls for more flexible funding that supports long-term agency and administrative costs rather than just direct climate benefits.

Washington Sea Grant developed a localized sea level rise assessment for Washington State to bridge the 'action gap' between the perceived importance of climate impacts and the availability of planning tools. The project introduced a probabilistic framework for communicating uncertainty and integrated vertical land movement data to create site-specific relative sea-level projections. These data were delivered via an interactive map and a Tableau-based tool. Implementation efforts included pilot projects in Tacoma and Island County, where the data informed the redesign of Owen Beach, the visioning of a linear park, and the creation of a community-based coastal resilience planning guide for shoreline homeowners.

The Malawi National Adaptation Plan (NAP) Framework establishes the vision, mandates, and institutional arrangements for the country's adaptation process. It outlines a multi-pronged approach involving horizontal and vertical integration, community participation, and private sector engagement. The framework identifies five key mandates focusing on community resilience, natural resource utilization, soil and land management, biodiversity conservation, and policy advocacy. It aligns with national goals like the Malawi Growth and Development Strategy III and international targets such as the UN Sustainable Development Goals. The document details next steps, including climate risk and vulnerability assessments, the integration of adaptation priorities into ministry spending plans, and the mobilization of private sector finance, with the goal of producing the first full NAP by 2020.

The Vanuatu Community-based Climate Resilience Project is a proposed 8-year initiative requesting USD 27 million from the Green Climate Fund to benefit 54,000 people (20% of the population). The project focuses on closing 'adaptation deficits' by implementing tailored adaptation packages for rural coastal, rural inland, and urban/peri-urban communities. It aims to strengthen local governance through Community Climate Change and Disaster Committees (CDCCCs) and align national climate planning with local needs. The project emphasizes gender-responsive and child-centered approaches to address structural vulnerabilities, particularly for women and children, while integrating climate resilience into provincial budgeting and planning.

The Manggahan Low Rise Building Project in Pasig City, Philippines, serves as a model for locally led climate resilience. Following the devastation of Typhoon Ondoy in 2009, residents of informal settlements along the Manggahan Floodway formed the Alliance of Peoples Organizations Along Manggahan Floodway (APOAMF) to oppose government plans for forced relocation up to 60 miles away. Through the 2010 "People Plan," residents collaborated with architects and government officials to design a flood- and typhoon-resistant apartment complex on an embankment. The project aims for 15 buildings with 900 units, with 480 families already moved into rent-to-own apartments. The case highlights the importance of co-creating adaptation solutions with marginalized urban populations to build city-wide resilience and avoid climate-induced migration.