By Derek Morgan
The Climate Change Training Program for Rural Human Settlements Program aims to provide support to officials and planning practitioners to respond to climate change risks and vulnerabilities across the country. This will be achieved by developing a training program that will give officials the necessary skills and tools to mainstream climate change into rural planning processes.
This training program is intended to ensure that development planners are skilled as follows:
- Have the understanding that is required and necessary for the implementation of the climate change adaptation sector plan for rural human settlements;
- Acquire and interpret climate data from relevant sources and authorities;
- Assess climate change risk and vulnerability in order to identify factors contributing to vulnerability in a system;
- Identify a range of adaptation options to adjust or improve project or development planning and management;
- Evaluate and prioritise options using particular selection criteria;
- Develop elements of a monitoring and evaluation framework for adaptation;
- Identify institutional capacities (role players) needed to deal with adaptation options so selected; and
- Identify key steps to integrate climate change adaptation options into project business and spatial plans
In addition, the key learning outcomes from the program are as follows:
- Ability to identify and appreciate inter-linkages between climate change and development or project planning;
- Knowledge of sources of relevant climate information and the use thereof;
- Ability to think systematically about the steps that aim at defining concrete adaptation options at local and project levels; and
- Mainstreaming climate change adaptation plans into development project plans.
The core components of the training program are currently being workshopped with officials for feedback. They include:
- Website: http://climatechangetraining.org/
- Study Guide: https://climatechangetraining.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/27/2017/02/Climate-Change-Adaptation-Study-Guide-v4b-Screen.pdf
- Videos: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLGUb_c-mZDUXFqhL3pJlH72ZnRCjo8SOM
- Resources:
- Workshop Facilitation Plans
- Report and Presentation Templates
- Stakeholder Engagement Handouts
For more information please contact:
Zongezile Bango: 012 312 9628/ 071 488 4461 / Zongezile.Bango@drdlr.gov.za
Magezi Mhlanga: 012 312 8668 / 071 8531227 / magezi.mhlanga@drdlr.gov.za