Executive summary

There is an urgent need for countries to improve their resilience to current climate variability and prepare for the consequences of future changes. Without this, climate change threatens to perpetuate poverty and slow – or even prevent – the achievement of development goals. Climate-resilient development aims to ensure that economic growth, poverty reduction and other development objectives can be sustained in a changing climate. This is more fundamental than “climate-proofing” of policies or programmes, instead re-examining the development choices that are shaping vulnerability to climate risks. This means addressing current vulnerabilities in a way that anticipates and adapts to future changes.