Side Event on Adaptation in the Hindu Kush-Himalayan Region: Lessons from an Integrated, Policy-relevant Research Programme

The Himalaya Climate Change Adaptation Programme (HICAP) is a collaborative, policy-relevant project focused on knowledge from and for local communities for on-the-ground impact. Integrating research across the sciences, HICAP is dedicated to identifying adaptation challenges and concrete opportunities in the Hindu Kush-Himalayan region. This side event presents the background of the collaboration, design principles, and main research areas. HICAP is aimed at developing solutions by producing new climatological and hydrological scenarios, assessment of ecosystem services and food insecurity, a large amount of household and community survey data about socioeconomic and ecological changes, macroeconomic and socioeconomic modelling, methodological and theoretical innovation, and ethnographic, gendered knowledge. The role of women and gender aspects are a fundamental crosscutting issue.

Key Questions

• How does adaptation to climate change in mountain contexts differ from that in other regions?
• How can scientific knowledge on climate change be transferred to communities more effectively to help them adapt? What types of science and knowledge are needed?
• How does climate change affect women differently? What can be done to ensure that women are involved in the development and application of knowledge?
• What can be done to ensure that research on adaptation integrates action?

Participants

• Chair: Elisabeth Eide, Professor, University of Bergen, Norway
• Representative from the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs
• Krishna Gyawali, Secretary, Ministry of Environment, Government of Nepal
• David Molden, Director General, International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD)
• Eklabya Sharma, Director Programme Operations and HICAP Project Leader, ICIMOD
• Lawrence Hislop, Head-Polar Program and HICAP Project Leader, UNEP/GRID-Arendal
• Asuncion Lera St. Clair, HICAP Project Leader, CICERO
• Ritu Verma, Division Head, Gender and Governance, ICIMOD
• Representative from a partner institution representing the grassroots in the HKH

For further information contact:

Dr Eklabya Sharma
Neera Shrestha Pradhan
Dr Asuncion Lera St.Clair
Lawrence Hislop