Findings of the IPCC 6th Assessment Report: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability - Implications for urban programming and action

Background

We live in an increasingly urban world with more than 55% of the global population living in urban areas and this number expected to rise to around 66% in the coming decade. Cities already account for nearly 70% of global greenhouse gas emissions. Yet, as confirmed at COP26, it is within cities where we must take action to meet the global goal of carbon neutrality by the end of the century.

The recently released IPCC Working Group II report,Climate Change 2022: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability - a contribution to the Sixth Assessment Report, makes clear Climate Resilient Development is already challenging and options will become even more limited as temperatures continue to rise (Press Release here). The report presents findings on the assessment of impacts of climate change on urban systems, cities and communities, looking at ecosystems, biodiversity, and human communities at global and regional levels. It also reviews vulnerabilities and the capacities and limits to adapt to climate change, with a particular lens on impacts, risks, and adaptation in cities, where more than half the world’s population lives.

UN-Habitat in partnership with UNDP are conducting a joint webinar through both Agencies’ internal Communities of Practice covering the core thrust behind the new report diving into the report’s implications at the urban level. We are pleased to welcome Debra Roberts - Co-Chair of IPCC 6th AR Working Group II, as well as other contributing authors to the IPCC report and expert speakers focusing on the nexus between sustainable climate and development action at the urban level.

This webinar will disseminate the findings of the IPCC Working Group II report further within UNDP and UN-Habitat, will highlight implications of the report for their respective programming, project development and implementation, and should strengthen the foundation for joint programming of the agencies. A broader introduction will be followed by presentations by IPCC authors on vulnerability and resilience building focussing on informal settlements, ecosystems and tools and methodologies.

Target Audience

The Virtual Exchange will bring together UNDP and UN-Habitat colleagues worldwide who are actively involved in providing urban and climate support and/or who would benefit from further knowledge in this area. Countries that are in the process of design or implementation of urban climate action can benefit from peer-to-peer learning.

Agenda

• Welcoming words, Haoliang Xu, UNDP
• Background and Main Findings of the IPCC Report: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability, Debra Roberts, Co-Chair WGII IPCC
• IPCC Report: Urban Resilience and Informal Settlements, David Dodman, IIED
• First Q&A     
• Interactive Survey           
• IPCC Report: Adaptation and Nature-based Solutions, Luna Khirfan, University of Waterloo
• IPCC Report: Tools and Methodologies, Lisa Schipper, University of Oxford
• Second Q&A      
• IPCC Report and Implications on UN-Habitat, Bernhard Barth, UN-Habitat
• IPCC Report and Implications on UNDP, (TBC), UNDP
• Third Q&A      
• Wrapping up, James Vener, UNDP/UN-Habitat

Recording