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The 5th Issue: 24 January 2025 |
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Happy New Year 2025 from the Asia-Pacific Climate Change Adaptation Information Platform (AP-PLAT)! Since our November 2024 issue, AP-PLAT and its partners have advanced key initiatives, including the 3rd plenary meeting on strategic goals and a session emphasising the importance of climate adaptation platforms.
Other highlights include a Thai-language webinar introducing an AP-PLAT tool, and APN’s efforts to scale climate-smart agriculture practices in the Himalayas. Deliverables include a hands-on training programme on adaptation monitoring and evaluation in Bangkok and enhanced features for the Climate Impact Viewer.
Looking ahead, AP-PLAT will host a capacity development meeting via Zoom to finalise collaborative plans.
For more, visit https://ap-plat.nies.go.jp/index.html. |
1. AP-PLAT’s activities and updates |
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The Asia-Pacific Climate Change Adaptation Information Platform (AP-PLAT) held its 3rd Plenary Meeting on 25 October, 2024. The meeting convened in a hybrid format, gathering climate adaptation experts and stakeholders to discuss potential activities as a comprehensive platform covering capacity-building programmes, collaborative initiatives with regional partners, and advanced information tools to support adaptation planning in response to climate change. The meeting emphasised AP-PLAT’s strategic direction under the Framework for Action 2023–2025 and Three-Year Action Plan 2024–2026.
Participants discussed past and ongoing initiatives, such as climate projection reports developed with Bhutan, UNESCAP and UNDP, as well as workshops in Nepal and Bangladesh on Green Climate Fund (GCF) proposals. Highlighting its role in supporting National Adaptation Plans (NAPs), the Government of Lao PDR shared insights on progress and challenges, underscoring the importance of linking adaptation and disaster risk reduction. Looking ahead, AP-PLAT plans to support GCF proposal development, launch decision-making tools like ClimoCast-Pro, and explore opportunities for targeted NAP implementation support through pilot cases and updates to NAP technical guidelines in 2025.
(The complete article can also be accessed directly on the AP-PLAT’s website)
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The 5th International Climate Change Adaptation Platforms Meeting, hosted by the National Institute for Environmental Studies (NIES) on 24-25 October, 2024, gathered key stakeholders to share experiences and explore collaboration opportunities. Discussions on day one highlighted evidence-based outreach, effective communication through newsletters, social media, podcasts and capacity building, emphasising targeted strategies and the pivotal role of platforms. Day two featured insights from CSIRO, APN, UNESCAP and AIT RRC.AP, showcasing innovative tools for risk assessment, locally-led adaptation planning, and support for National Adaptation Plans (NAPs).
Discussions emphasised the importance of bridging the gap between research and implementation through user-friendly tools, best practices and actionable strategies to address immediate adaptation needs. The meeting reaffirmed the need for collaborative efforts to strengthen regional resilience and advance adaptation in the Asia-Pacific region.
(The complete article can also be accessed directly on the AP-PLAT’s website)
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AIT Extension featured AP-PLAT in a webinar titled “Nature-Based Solutions: Practical Applications and Tangible Outcomes,” an event held in the Thai-language on 19 September, 2024. The webinar explored how NbS can guide research, policy development and practical applications across government and business sectors. AP-PLAT’s ClimoCast tool was highlighted as a resource for generating downscaled climate projections and geographic data to assess risks and vulnerabilities, helping identify potential areas for NbS implementation. ClimoCast provides geographic and climate data, which can be combined with social and economic factors to create a comprehensive and integrated approach to evaluating NbS impacts for adaptation planning.
(The webinar is now available on YouTube with English subtitles for on-demand access)
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2. Activities and updates from our partners |
APN’s project on climate-smart agriculture (CSA) practices in the Himalayan region focused on enhancing climate resilience in high-altitude farming areas of Bhutan, Nepal and Pakistan. Conducted from 2019–2021, the project identified local adaptation strategies, barriers and farmers' willingness to adopt CSA. It involved collaborations with institutions such as COMSATS University Islamabad, the Royal University of Bhutan and the Nepal Agroforestry Foundation, among others, to address climate challenges and ensure sustainable food production. Key achievements included vulnerability assessments, localised CSA manuals and capacity-building workshops. Over 200 farmers and 100 agricultural officers received training on climate adaptation practices, supported by materials in local languages for better community understanding. The project laid the groundwork for long-term resilience by promoting science-based strategies and fostering community engagement in sustainable farming practices tailored to the Himalayan context.
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3. Events and opportunities |
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AP-PLAT will host a regular capacity development meeting on 27 January, 2025 (14:00–16:00 JST), bringing together supporting organisations to finalise the collaborative activity plan for the next fiscal year. This meeting aims to gather opinions, explore potential collaborative activities, and discuss initiatives between AP-PLAT and supporting organisations to achieve AP-PLAT’s goals and strengthen partnerships for climate adaptation. The meeting will be held online via Zoom.
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4. Introduction to AP-PLAT deliverables and achievements |
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The Ministry of the Environment, Japan (MOEJ), Mitsubishi UFJ Research and Consulting Co., Ltd. (MURC) and the Institute for Global Environmental Strategies (IGES) held a hands-on training programme on monitoring and evaluation (M&E) of climate change adaptation on 30 and 31 October, 2024 in Bangkok, Thailand. The training workshop aimed to promote and enhance the "Japan Adaptation Monitoring & Evaluation System (JAMES)," a web-based adaptation monitoring and evaluation tool available on AP-PLAT. The workshop targeted officers from the Department of Climate Change and Environment (DCCE) within Thailand's Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MONRE) and provided a comprehensive two-day programme. Participants attended lectures by IGES covering general information on Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) and examples from Japan, a presentation by the Thai DCCE on the National Adaptation Plan (NAP) and related initiatives in Thailand, a practical exercise using the JAMES tool, as well as participating in discussions focused on effectively implementing the system in Thailand to develop robust Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) frameworks.
The Climate Impact Viewer, a GIS-based tool on AP-PLAT, supports climate-risk-informed decision-making by offering scientifically grounded projections of climate change impacts across sectors like agriculture, health and coastal areas. Developed through the ICA-RUS and S-10 Strategic Research Project with support from MOEJ, it uses process-based impact models to visualise future risks. Essential for shaping National and Local Adaptation Plans (NAPs and LAPs), the tool helps policymakers and stakeholders address climate challenges in the Asia-Pacific region.
For more detailed information and access, visit the official AP-PLAT website and Climate Impact Viewer
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5. Call for your contributions to the AP-PLAT newsletter |
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We invite partner organisations and stakeholders to actively participate in AP-PLAT activities to strengthen our network and expand access to adaptation knowledge. By sharing your updates and initiatives, you can help shape adaptation strategies and inspire meaningful action. Contributing your events, updates or announcements through our newsletter allows you to reach over 30 partner organisations and more than 20 independent subscribers from other climate adaptation platforms, research institutes, the private sector, governmental agencies, and other stakeholders that are actively involved in climate adaptation initiatives.
To share your information with our community, please contact the AP-PLAT secretariat at [ap-plat@iges.or.jp].
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6. Want to become a member? |
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If you are interested in becoming a supporting organization and/or capacity development partner organization, please apply using the following links.
To share your information with our community, please contact the AP-PLAT secretariat at [ap-plat@iges.or.jp].
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Please spread the word! |
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If you know anyone who would be interested in AP-PLAT, please forward this newsletter to them and spread the word about AP-PLAT through your community. You can subscribe from this link.
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