Asia and the Pacific is the most disaster-prone region in the world and water is the primary medium through which the impacts of climate change are felt. Resilient water management is central to achieving climate adaptation, managing and better preparing for natural and public health threats, and addressing water scarcity issues. This guidance note provides specific actions and tools for scaling up and mainstreaming water resilience in the region through operations of the Asian Development Bank. The guidance note is based on six pillars: (i) demand for resilient water investments; (ii) a community approach; (iii) strengthened staff capacity; (iv) knowledge, innovation, and partnerships; (v) finance for water resilience; and (vi) digitalization.
An in-depth review of sustainable concepts in water resources management under climate change Climate change continues to intensify existing pressures in water resources management, such as rapid population growth, land use changes, pollution, damming of rivers, and many others. Securing a reliable water supply—critical for achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)—requires understanding of the relation between finite water resources, climate variability/change, and various elements of sustainability. Water, Climate Change, and Sustainability is a timely and in-depth examination of the concept of sustainability as it relates to water resources management in the context of climate change risks. Featuring contributions by global authors, this edited volume is organized into three sections: Sustainability Concepts; Sustainability Approaches, Tools, and Techniques; and Sustainability in Practice. Detailed chapters describe the linkage between water and sustainable development, highlight the development and use of new measuring and reporting methods, and discuss the implementation of sustainability concepts in various water use sectors. Topics include localizing and mainstreaming global water sustainability initiatives, resilient water infrastructure for poverty reduction, urban water security for sustainable cities, climate actions and challenges for sustainable ecosystem services, and more. This important resource: Reviews contemporary scientific research and practical applications in the areas of water, climate change and sustainability in different regions of the world Discusses future directions of research and practices in relation to expected patterns of climate changes Covers a wide range of concepts, theories, and perspectives of sustainable development of water resources Features case studies of field and modelling techniques for analyzing water resources and evaluating vulnerability, security, and associated risks Discusses practical applications of water resources in contexts such as food security, global health, clean energy, and climate action Water, Climate Change, and Sustainability is an invaluable resource for policy makers water managers, researchers, and other professionals in the field, and an ideal text for graduate students in hydrogeology, climate change, geophysics, geochemistry, geography, water resources, and environmental science.
Setting out ADB’s ambitious climate targets, this publication lays out action how ADB plans to catalyze climate finance and incentivize innovation to help shepherd Asia and the Pacific towards a low-carbon, climate-resilient future. Underscoring why hard-fought development gains are at risk, the publication shows how ADB plans to invest $100 billion of its own funds and work with the public and private sector to maximize its climate impact. With the region on the frontline of the growing climate crisis, ADB aims to help decarbonize transport and energy, employ climate-smart planning to boost resilience, and work with partners to develop climate-critical outcomes.
Urban Disasters and Resilience in Asia presents the latest information on the intensity and frequency of disasters. Specifically, the fact that, in urban areas, more than 50% of the world's population is living on just 2% of the land surface, with most of these cities located in Asia and developing countries that have high vulnerability and intensification. The book offers an in-depth and multidisciplinary approach to reducing the impact of disasters by examining specific evidence from events in these areas that can be used to develop best practices and increase urban resilience worldwide. As urban resilience is largely a function of resilient and resourceful citizens, building cities which are more resilient internally and externally can lead to more productive economic returns. In an era of rapid urbanization and increasing disaster risks and vulnerabilities in Asian cities, Urban Disasters and Resilience in Asia is an invaluable tool for policy makers, researchers, and practitioners working in both public and private sectors. - Explores a broad range of aspects of disaster and urban resiliency, including environmental, economic, architectural, and engineering factors - Bridges the gap between urban resilience and rural areas and community building - Provides evidence-based data that can lead to improved disaster resiliency in urban Asia - Focuses on Asian cities, some of the most densely populated areas on the planet, where disasters are particularly devastating
The Asian Water Development Outlook charts progress in water security in Asia and the Pacific over the past 5 years. This 2016 edition of the report uses the latest available data to assess water security in five key dimensions: household access to piped potable water and improved sanitation, economic water security, providing better urban water services to build more livable cities, restoring healthy rivers and ecosystems, and resilience to water disasters. The region shows a positive trend in strengthening water security since the 2013 edition of the report, when 38 out of 49 countries were assessed as water-insecure. In 2016, that number dropped to 29 out of 48 countries. This study was supported by ADB’s Water Financing Partnership Facility.
In this volume, contributors look at response, recovery and adaptation to climate-induced disasters, in Asia-Pacific - the world's most disaster-prone region. Chapters examine case studies from Cambodia, Fiji, Solomon Islands and Samoa.
The natural river management (NRM) approach is designed to harness the natural functions of river systems so they sustainably provide important services such as water supply and flood and drought management. Drawing heavily on the concepts of ecosystem services, integrated water resources management, and integrated river basin management, NRM aims to harmonize nature-based solutions and nonstructural measures with engineering interventions. This publication explains the value of NRM and provides step-by-step guidance on how the approach can be systematically integrated into water sector investments.
Disasters undermine societal well-being, causing loss of lives and damage to social and economic infrastructures. Disaster resilience is central to achieving the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals, especially in regions where extreme inequality combines with the increasing frequency and intensity of natural disasters. Disaster risk reduction and resilience requires participation of wide array of stakeholders ranging from academicians to policy makers to disaster managers. Disaster Resilient Cities: Adaptation for Sustainable Development offers evidence-based, problem-solving techniques from social, natural, engineering and other disciplinary perspectives. It connects data, research, conceptual work with practical cases on disaster risk management, capturing the multi-sectoral aspects of disaster resilience, adaptation strategy and sustainability. The book links disaster risk management with sustainable development under a common umbrella, showing that effective disaster resilience strategies and practices lead to achieving broader sustainable development goals. - Provides foundational knowledge on integrated disaster risk reduction and management to show how resilience and its associated concept such as adaptive and transformative strategies can foster sustainable development - Brings together disaster risk reduction and resilience scientists, policy-makers and practitioners from different disciplines - Case studies on disaster risk management from natural science, social science, engineering and other relevant disciplinary perspectives
This volume provides an overview of the climate change adaptation objectives set, actions taken, and challenges faced by several countries in the Asia-Pacific region. The majority of the populations in this region struggle to make a living from subsistence agriculture, and livelihoods are highly dependent on natural ecosystem services which are likely to be severely affected by climate change. Cases discussed in this book highlight successes made by governments towards achieving adaptation objectives, and efforts required to overcome challenges. While significant economic advances have been made, the pace of growth has been slow to impact the lives of a majority of the people who live below the poverty line. The chapters highlight adaptation actions for protecting people and their livelihoods in priority sectors, maintaining food and water security, supporting socio-economic stability including poverty reduction, and climate risk management. This book also maximizes readers' insights into the knowledge gaps and limitations of stated adaptation goals, and the bottlenecks that hinder implementation in different regions.
The UN Sustainable Development Goals provide a common global agenda for development. However, the emerging policy issues vary greatly across the world.With 32 contributors, this volume provides a timely, research-based overview for the need for policy interventions to improve the sustainability and development models of the ten selected countries in Asia and the Pacific. The volume is firmly positioned at the cusp between research, policy and practice.
