ICOMOS climate change adaptation toolkit

Abstract

Adaptation aims to minimise the adverse consequences of climate change and maximise the opportunities it presents. Adaptation actions can include behavioural, institutional, and technological adjustments. The selection and implementation of adaptation measures will require the integration of significance assessments for all types of heritage with an understanding of climate change risks and a commitment to low carbon, sustainable and inclusive solutions. Adaptation activities are likely to require additional resourcing, however, knowledge, understanding and the provision of sectoral leadership are possibly more crucial in the early stage of the process. It is important to understand the adaptive capacity of a place, community or system, in terms of potential, resources and other needs in order to make successful decisions and interventions. Actions to actively adapt to climate change need to be combined with strategies to increase resilience. Resilience is the ability of a community or a system to cope with disasters, trends or disturbances and to ‘build back better’. Increasing resilience in advance of expected climate change impacts can potentially reduce the need for adaptation in the future. In this Toolkit the word ‘Mitigation’ refers exclusively to preventing, reducing or capturing greenhouse gases. The sooner we can curb emissions via mitigation, the more manageable the challenge of Climate Change will be – and the more likely local and site-based adaptation efforts are to succeed. Mitigation and adaptation are therefore closely linked, and are often referred to together as ‘Climate Action’.