Adaptation represents a new area planning for local and sectoral decision makers across Ireland and the United Kingdom and although understanding and awareness of climate change and adaptation amongst decision-making communities is increasing, the implementation of adaptation remains in its infancy.
Adopting a stakeholder-led approach, the Irish Environmental Protection Agency funded project Transboundary Adaptation Learning Exchange (TalX) aims to establish an innovative, collaborative and learning network to develop transferable skills and enabling solutions for adaptation while exploring best practice in terms of the structures and processes which empower national, sectoral and local decision makers to address the objectives of national and international climate adaptation policy.
Five case study jurisdictions (Republic of Ireland, Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales and England) will participate in the network, all of which are subject to a similar range of climate impacts but are at different stages of maturity in adaptation planning and implementation.
This innovative learning network will be employed to ‘sense test’ international best practice, learn from experiences of adaptation planning and upskill adaptation decision-making across borders. In collaboration with project stakeholders, recommendations will be developed for the continuous improvement of national, local and sectoral adaptation policy. Importantly, careful attention will be paid to ensure that the learning network will be designed to create an enabling and supporting environment for all participants in which to share learnings rather than generate competition between participating countries on adaptation progress.
TalX builds on existing capacity for adaptation planning across the UK and Ireland and activities of Climate Ireland (MaREI, UCC), Adaptation Scotland (SNIFFER) and ClimateNI (NIEL).
Click on the link above to view lead researcher Denise McCullagh give an overview of the aims of the TalX project and development of an adaptation CMM
