15.11.2017

A2R and InsuResilience launch contest on “Absorbing climate impacts”

In collaboration with the MIT Climate CoLab, the UN Climate Resilience Initiative A2R and the InsuResilience Global Partnership are launching a contest on absorbing climate impacts. The contest seeks new, innovative ideas and solutions to help vulnerable communities better absorb climate-related impacts.

Developing countries, and particularly the poorest and most vulnerable communities, are disproportionately affected by climate change. Exposure to shocks, such as floods and storms, and stresses such as droughts or changing rainfall patterns, can also affect those who are not poor but remain vulnerable. With the frequency of such events set to rise with climate change, communities’ capacity to absorb climate shocks and stresses represents a key component of climate resilience.

Climate risk insurance and social protection measures can help reduce affected populations’ vulnerability to shocks and stresses. Well-designed climate risk insurance schemes, when applied as part of broader risk management strategies, can act as a buffer for people shortly after an event occurs and protect people from falling (back) into poverty. Social protection, such as cash transfers and retraining, together with a wide range of other programmes aiming to reduce poverty and vulnerability, is increasingly recognised as a tool to help communities to adapt to climate impacts.

Against this backdrop, this contest calls for innovative ideas that link climate risk insurance with other forms of social protection to further enhance communities’ ability to absorb the impacts of climate change.

The contest is open for applications from 20 November 2017 to 11 February 2018. The winning team will be awarded seed funding for piloting the proposal, receive mentoring, training and technical assistance and will get the chance to present the idea at the next InsuResilience Global Partnership Forum in 2018. We look forward to your ideas – please help us spread the word!

More information on: https://climatecolab.org/contests/2017/absorbing-climate-impacts