A key point of climate information sharing is understanding how climate information is created, shared, and used among cities at various levels of governance and decision-making. Recognizing the importance of knowledge networks (KNs) in fostering adaptation, I4C focuses on studying KNs as complementary multi-level governance structures that facilitate the creation, sharing, and application of climate information and knowledge to support adaptation on the ground. Using this knowledge, I4C is working to address the pressing challenges of the climate crisis by advancing the development and dissemination of decadal climate predictions by tailoring the information to the needs of stakeholders at city level. I4C strives to bridge the gap between climate science and real-world decision-making by understanding how KNs foster collaborative efforts to address the impacts of climate change through adaptation action.
Key points:
- Knowledge Networks (KNs): I4C recognizes KNs as collective entities that transcend organizational, spatial, and disciplinary boundaries to create, share, and use climate knowledge in supporting adaptation action. These networks play a vital role in promoting collaboration, innovation, and adaptive action at various levels of governance. KNs play an important role in climate adaptation policy and action.
- Focus on Cities: cities and local stakeholders are pivotal actors in climate adaptation. I4C’s work with demonstrator cities primarily targets local-level governance and policy. Using knowledge gathered in existing KNs operating in the climate adaptation arena, I4C aims to enhance both cities’ adaptive capacity and resilience.
- A tailored approach: I4C aims to tailor near-term climate predictions to meet the specific needs of KN actors and improve individual actor’s contributions to systemic-level adaptation efforts.
- Interdisciplinary Approach: I4C employs an interdisciplinary mixed-methods approach, combining social simulation methods with traditional social scientific approaches, to address its research questions comprehensively. By leveraging partners’ expertise in qualitative, quantitative, and simulation studies, the project aims to enhance the flow and utilization of climate information within KNs, thereby facilitating more effective adaptive actions and societal transformation.