Challenges of Adaptation to Climate Change in Urban Environments

Abstract

In the coming decades, cities around the world will suffer impacts due to rising global temperatures. However, unlike climate change mitigation, urban adaptation to climate change remains an insignificant issue in our context. This article reviews the broader literature on climate change adaptation with a view to understanding the challenges and dimensions involved in the adaptation of cities to climate change. We identify six main challenges to adaptation. We characterize the existing adaptation strategies and provide examples of documented interventions in cities. Finally, we discuss the need to systematically evaluate and investigate the adaptation of cities to climate change.