SETTING THE FOUNDATION: HOW LOCAL CLIMATE CHANGE ADAPTATION INITIATIVES CAN PAVE THE WAY FOR A REGULATORY REGIME THAT WORKS

Thomas M. Gremillion

Abstract

Climate change is here and with it a growing awareness of the need to adapt to impacts that are already occurring. At the same time, efforts to establish an international regulatory program to reduce or mitigate greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions have all but collapsed. This article argues that climate change adaptation at the local level, particularly in urban areas, represents a logical step forward. In addition to managing risk, adaptation can stimulate a needed shift in emphasis towards a more pluralist or polycentric approach to climate regulation, laying the groundwork for future national and global regulatory regimes. Examining some of the strategies that local governments in the United States are undertaking to adapt to climate change, the article identifies overlaps, as well as potential conflicts, between adaptation planning at the local level and broader environmental management objectives, including GHG mitigation. The United States could greatly benefit from national level action to expand and strengthen local climate adaptation initiatives, and the article concludes with a proposal for a national climate change adaptation fund.