New Frontiers in Research Fund (NFRF) – 2023 International Joint Initiative for Research in Climate Change Adaptation and Mitigation

Funder’s website

The funder’s website can be found HERE.

Funding Value and Duration

Max of $1,500,000 from the NFRF per project, for 3 years; max budget per project varies depending on which other consortium partners are involved.

Overview

The 2023 International Joint Initiative for Research in Climate Change Adaptation and Mitigation call aims to further the design and implementation of co-produced adaptation and mitigation strategies for vulnerable groups―those groups currently most impacted by the effects of climate change owing to both physical vulnerability (heightened exposure to events related to climate change and/or poor infrastructure) and socioeconomic vulnerability (limited resources to prepare for or respond to the impacts of climate change, including knowledge, technology or financial resources, or owing to conflict, security and fragility).

Developing strategies to improve resilience to climate change requires an interdisciplinary approach involving expertise across disciplines―including the natural sciences, engineering, health sciences, social sciences and humanities―and across sectors, including academia, government, not-for-profit organizations, community organizations and private industry. Co-development of research and solutions in partnership with the affected groups, enabling collaborative experiential learning and capacity development, is essential for long-term success.

Adaptive measures and mitigation strategies require physical infrastructure and nature-based solutions, as well as social, health and cultural interventions that are aligned with the community’s values. The effective planning and implementation of strategies also depend on enabling conditions, as identified by the Sixth Assessment IPCC reports: effective governance; adequate financing; buy-in from the community; and knowledge, which includes institutional capacity; science, technology and innovation; climate services; big data; and co-production (including Indigenous/local knowledge and boundary organizations). When these enabling conditions are absent, insufficient (in the case of funding), ineffective (in the case of governance) or resisted (in the case of imposed strategies), effective change is impeded.

Project teams must be interdisciplinary, incorporating expertise from across disciplines as appropriate to develop mitigation and adaptation strategies, and including expertise in the social sciences and/or humanities to address enabling factors, such as effective governance, community capacity and geopolitical and economic security.

The Sixth Assessment IPCC reports contain more than 130 key risks that could become severe, taking into consideration climate hazards, exposure and vulnerability. The reports grouped these key risks into eight representative key risks. The multiple connections among the representative key risks highlight the potential for the amplification of the impacts of climate change. The interconnectedness also emphasizes the importance of considering the broader context to prevent maladaptation―the exacerbation of other risks or risks in other regions caused by implementation of an adaptation and/or mitigation strategy in one location. To encourage research in comprehensive strategies, projects must directly address at least two of the representative key risks.

The eight representative key risks from the Sixth Assessment IPCC reports are the following:

1. Risks to low-lying coastal socio-ecological systemsRisks to natural coastal protection and habitats; lives, livelihoods, culture, heritage and well-being; and critical physical infrastructure in low-lying coastal areas, associated with a wide range of hazards, including sea level changes, ocean warming and acidification, weather extremes, sea ice loss and permafrost thaw.
2. Risks to terrestrial and ocean ecosystemsTransformation of terrestrial and ocean or coastal ecosystems through mechanisms including habitat loss or invading/invasive species, leading to significant changes in structure and/or functioning, and/or loss of biodiversity, and impacting the livelihoods and food security of the individuals, groups and communities that rely on them.
3. Risks associated with critical physical infrastructure, networks and servicesRisks due to extreme events leading to the breakdown of physical infrastructure and networks providing critical goods and services, including infrastructure systems for energy, water, transportation, telecommunications, health care and emergency response, with impacts on the individuals, groups and populations that rely on them.
4. Risks to living standardsRisks of economic impacts at global and national scales, including impacts on poverty, well-being and livelihoods, and considering the exacerbating effects of impacts on socio-economic inequality among and within countries and how this affects the ability to respond to or address the impacts of climate change.
5. Risks to human healthRisks of widespread, substantial worsening of health conditions, including undernutrition and malnutrition; food safety risks; mortality due to heat; morbidity and mortality due to vector-borne diseases, food-borne and waterborne diseases; and impacts on mental health.
6. Risks to food securityRisks of food insecurity linked to global warming, drought, flooding, precipitation variability and weather extremes owing to impacts on food systems (involving elements such as reduced food production and diversity [crops, livestock and fisheries], safety, processing, supply chains, affordability, preparation and consumption).
7. Risks to water securityRisks from water-related hazards (floods and droughts), water scarcity and water quality deterioration (with impacts on sanitation and hygiene, food production, economic activities, ecosystems, and Indigenous and traditional cultures and ways of life).
8. Risks to peace and to human mobilityRisks to peace within and among societies, driven in part by climate change-induced increases in the number of people living in extreme poverty, in armed conflict, and in risks to human mobility, particularly involuntary migration and displacement or involuntary immobility.