SEPTEMBER 2018 -The winners of the “Absorbing Climate Impacts” contest have been selected. Out of 72 proposals that have been submitted from all over the world, ten were shortlisted by a jury of seven international experts in the field of climate risk insurance and social protection. The judges assessed the proposals according to feasibility, impact, novelty and presentation quality.

The Judges’ Choice Winner was a proposal by the ClimateRe Association, a Swiss consultancy specialised in the development of innovative risk management approaches in vulnerable communities. Their proposal envisages to enhance climate resilience of smallholder rice farmers in Nepal by coupling crop insurance to value chain development and climate change adaptation. The Judges‘ Choice Winner will receive seed funding for the implementation of the proposal (worth 40,000 euros) and mentoring, training and technical assistance (worth 12,000 euros). In addition, the team will have the opportunity to present their proposal at the Leadership Group meeting of the UN Climate Resilience Initiative A2R that will take place in December 2018 during COP24 in Katowice, Poland.

In addition to the judges, the general public was allowed to vote for their favorite proposals. The winner of the Popular Choice vote is a proposal by the Mahila Housing Sewa Trust, an association that aims to empower women in poor communities in India to upgrade their habitat. Their proposal seeks to tap women’s habit of saving to manage climate-induced risks through an innovative chit fund cum microinsurance scheme. The Popular Vote Winner will be given the opportunity to present their proposal at the 2nd InsuResilience Global Partnership Forum that will take place on 10th December during COP24.

The contest was launched by the UN Climate Resilience Initiative A2R and the InsuResilience Global Partnership in collaboration with the MIT Climate CoLab. It sought new, innovative ideas and solutions that link climate risk insurance with other forms of social protection to enhance the ability of vulnerable communities to better absorb climate change impacts.

APRIL 2018 - The UN Climate Resilience Initiative has been chosen as one of 12 UN initiatives to contribute to the Talanoa Dialogue on Sunday 6 May at the UNFCCC SB48 meetings in Bonn. Structured around sharing of ideas, skills and experience through storytelling, the dialogue addresses three key questions relating to climate action: 1) Where are we? 2) Where do we want to go? 3) How do we get there?

Talanoa is a traditional word used in Fiji to reflect a process of inclusive, participatory and transparent dialogue. The purpose of Talanoa is to share stories, build empathy and to make wise decisions for the collective good.

APRIL 2018 - A2R facilitated a meeting on the establishment of a potential learning platform on climate risk insurance for Africa at the 2nd Global Adaptation Network Forum in Abu Dhabi on 19-20 March. Hosted by UN Environment and Zayed University, the Forum addressed some of the most pressing challenges for climate change adaptation, including ensuring adaptation action reaches the most vulnerable. Attended by the Fiji high-level Climate Champion, the Forum was the first event to contribute to the Talanoa Dialogue and featured a regional Technical Expert Meeting on Adaptation under the UNFCCC Adaptation Committee.

The meeting convened by A2R and the Africa Adaptation Initiative considered the establishment of a potential learning platform on climate risk insurance for Africa. It brought together representatives from Malawi, Senegal, Africa Risk Capacity (ARC), African Development Bank, Munich Climate Insurance Initiative, UNFCCC and IIASA. Participants discussed the lessons learned from implementing ARC on the African continent and in Malawi and Senegal and identified some of the political, technical, operational and financial challenges faced. Participants agreed that there was a need for targeted, Africa-specific information sharing on climate risk insurance and that much remained to be done to sensitize relevant stakeholders including governments, beneficiaries, civil society and the private sector. A further discussion based on the outcomes of the meeting will be convened at the margins of the UNFCCC SB48 meetings in Bonn, hosted by Munich Climate Insurance Initiative.