Designing Climate-Smart Water Adaptation Strategies for Sustainable Urban Development - A Study of Cochahamba, Bolivia and Kota, India

The project’s aim is to assess the vulnerability and adaptive capacity in these two cities and formulate sustainable planning strategies that address the major impacts of climate changes. Planning for water resources (storm- potable- and wastewater) is the focus since even today water resource management is not optimal and the future situation, in light of  is predicted to become even more critical in the future.

A toolbox for performing participatory integrated vulnerability assessments that focuses on climate change impacts and adaptation planning by local communities and authorities was developed through previous projects in South Africa and seven Baltic Sea Region countries. In this study, the toolbox will be customized and tested in Cochabamba and Kota. They represent expanding urban areas (but not megacities) that today deal with overextended water situations and anticipated harmful climate change impacts.

The project outcome will contribute to improved urban water management for sustainable climate change adaptation in developing countries through an improved methodology of vulnerability assessments, contribution to capacity building and social learning, and specific empirical understanding of the two case study contexts.