Climate Resilience through Regional Cooperation

Collaborative action can help to address the common challenges posed by climate change. A shared knowledge base builds understanding and the capacity to address these challenges at the transboundary and community levels. Regional platforms provide spaces for informed, innovative and integrated collaboration.

The project fosters collaborative action in response to common problems by enhancing the regional knowledge base, informing joint policy platforms, exchanging experience and lessons learned from pilot interventions, and drawing upon knowledge and experience to formulate joint projects and initiatives that can enhance climate resilience. This is being achieved through:

• Regional collaboration - cross-sectoral collaboration and positioning that advances food and water security and coordinates regional engagement in global processes
• Regional platforms - that foster dialogue and common understanding on ways to address sand and dust storms, biodiversity loss, food systems transformations and the creation of green jobs through renewable energy access across different stakeholder groups
• Regional knowledge hubs - that offer shared knowledge resources on climate change and groundwater to inform joint actions
• Partnerships - countries, local communities and expert organizations contribute to building the capacity and resilience of Arab States

Beneficiaries of the project are ministers, senior staff and mid-level officials from ministries responsible for water, agriculture, energy, environment, planning and finance in Arab countries. Civil society is engaged in multi-stakeholder platforms and regional consultations that support global processes. Women are particularly targeted for engagement in capacity-building activities and as beneficiaries of sustainable energy initiatives that create green jobs. Young people are engaged in regional forums to help foster a forward-looking and innovative approach that supports sustainable development for present and future generations. 

Our approach

The project advances integrated and inclusive sustainable development by enhancing resilience to climate change through regional cooperation. It assists countries and communities in the region to:

• Advance evidence-based policymaking through fostering a shared understanding of common regional challenges affecting land and water resources
   
• Institutionalize inclusive engagement through multi-stakeholder networks that protect biodiversity and promote transformational food systems
   
• Adopt integrated solutions through intergovernmental cooperation and communities of practice that advance water, energy and food security

Our partners

Donor

The Swedish Government through the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency

Partners

• Organizations and institutions including:
  • League of Arab States (ministerial councils and their technical committees) 
  • Arab Organization for Agricultural Development
  • Arab Center for the Studies of Arid Zones and Dry Lands
  • Swedish Meteorological and Hydrological Institute 
  • Barcelona Supercomputing Center
     
• United Nations organizations including:
  • Asian and Pacific Centre for the Development of Disaster Information Management at the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific
  • United Nations Economic Commission for Europe
  • Food and Agriculture Organization
  • United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change 
  • World Meteorological Organization

Our activities

The project implements activities that strengthen evidence-based policymaking on transboundary challenges; institutionalize arrangements for inclusive engagement to address regional challenges; and promote the adoption of integrated policies and action that apply integrated climate-resilient solutions for sustainable development. It aims to:

• Generate shared knowledge and understanding on sand and dust storms, groundwater, biodiversity and food systems value chains through an integrated approach to natural resource management and informed exchange through multi-stakeholder engagement that also increases access to newly generated knowledge through regional knowledge hubs.
   
• Establish multi-stakeholder knowledge networks to address common solutions affecting biodiversity, food systems and energy access in the region that can contribute to informing intergovernmental platforms and plans as well as activating inclusive community-based networks that engage civil society, Government and the private sector.
   
• Promote and pursue integrated policies and action through informed, evidence-based approaches and project pipelines fostered by intergovernmental platforms and multi-stakeholder regional knowledge networks that promote regional policies and joint plans and apply knowledge and experiences for country and community-based action that advances climate resilience for sustainable development.