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Understanding transboundary governance of
climate adaptation
Enabling and constraining characteristics of the policy arrangements of the
Netherlands and North Rhine-Westphalia for cross border cooperation on
climate adaptation
Kennis voor Klimaat
Marjolein van Eerd, Carel Dieperink en Mark Wiering.
Today’s session
• Introduction
• The application of the Policy Arrangement Approach
• Research results
• Concluding remarks and recommendations
• Discussion
Research background
• Climate change effects cross borders
• Climate adaptation: ‘the adjustment in natural or human systems in
response to actual or expected climatic stimuli or their effects, which
moderates harm or exploits beneficial opportunities’.
• Inherently transboundary in character, yet domestic responsibility
• Especially important in river basins
Introduction research
• Various factors influence transboundary governance
o Regime theory
o Negotiation approach
o Cognitive approach
• Which factors enable or constrain transboundary governance on climate
adaptation in the Rhine river basin?
• Describe and explain transboundary governance on climate adaptation in
the Rhine river basin by identifying enabling and constraining policy
arrangement characteristics between North Rhine-Westphalia and the
Netherlands
• Researchers expectation: congruence between regions results in cross
border cooperation, while discrepancies could be constraining
The Policy Arrangement Approach
• Policy Arrangement Approach as analytical research framework
‘temporary stabilization of the content and organization
of a particular policy domain’
• Four interrelated dimensions are studied
• Emerging Policy Arrangements
Comparison results (1)
Comparison results (2)
Concluding remarks
•Active cooperation, yet mainly in the water management sector
•Various differences that could be constraining
- Stimulating differences?
• Also similarities that stimulate cooperation across borders
•Improving cooperation across borders?
Increasing congruence between border regions via the discourse dimension
Thank you for your attention!
Marjolein van Eerd, [email protected]
North Rhine-Westphalia
• Multiple actors and sectors on multiple levels concerned with climate
adaptation
• Diffusion of financial resources, knowledge generation is high
• More resources allocated to climate mitigation
•Various (integrative) climate change policies
• Mostly in planning phase or focussing on mitigation
•Discourses:human cause, mitigation versus adaptation, shift from a ‘safety
discourse’ to ‘resilience strategy’, balancing of interests
Emerging arrangement of climate adaptation governance
The Netherlands
• Also multiple actors on multiple levels concerned with climate adaptation,
however, mainly in the water sector.
• Unique role for the Delta Programme
• Large amount of financial and knowledge resources.
• First national adaptation strategy  climate adaptation included in water
management: Waterwet, Delta Act
• ‘Water accomodation & Room for the River’  ‘climate proof’  ‘Safe Delta’
Dutch water management: clear, fixed arrangement
Overall climate adaptation: emerging arrangement