14/05/2026
And that's a wrap on ! 🧡
Over the past few days, practitioners, researchers, policymakers, community leaders and activists from around the world have come together to share challenges, question assumptions and exchange practical solutions for locally led adaptation.
CBA began by asking:
❓ How are communities adapting to climate change?
Then the questions became:
❓ Why isn’t adaptation scaling?
❓ Who controls adaptation finance?
And now, participants are grappling with even deeper challenges:
❓ Who holds power over adaptation systems?
❓ What historical and colonial injustices must adaptation finance confront first?
Across discussions this week, one message repeatedly emerged: communities are already leading adaptation, and systems now need to catch up.
Every era of CBA, in different ways, has argued that Indigenous Peoples’ knowledge and local lived experience must not just be “consulted”, but genuinely centred in decision-making, finance and implementation 🤝
At the same time, there was also reflection on the gap between ambition and reality.
The Kathmandu Declaration (2014), Nairobi Declaration (2015) and now the Recife Statement (2025) all marked important progress in the language around locally led adaptation and climate justice 📜
💰 But as many participants noted throughout the week: words have often moved faster than money.
Over the years, CBA discussions and relationships have helped influence wider global debates around locally led adaptation, climate finance and resilience.
And this year’s conversations reinforced that CBA’s role goes beyond being a conference, bringing together communities and decision-makers to build bridges and shape the future of adaptation together.
A powerful reflection came from Beth Chitekwe-Biti, executive director of the Slum Dwellers International - SDI. Secretariat:
🗣️ “For SDI, even though we have data, it has not been used for stronger argument for how acute how things are [on the ground]. I’m hoping that evidence is better used from now on for shining a light on the impacts being faced by communities.”
The questions raised this week around power, accountability, justice and finance will continue shaping adaptation debates. Thank you to everyone who contributed, challenged, listened and shared 🫶
✍️ More reflections, resources and insights from coming soon
