IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/spr/masfgc/v26y2021i6d10.1007_s11027-021-09961-6.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Understanding institutional barriers in the climate change adaptation planning process of the city of Beirut: vicious cycles and opportunities

Author

Listed:
  • Leonardo Zea-Reyes

    (Imperial College London
    Cónclave Consultora)

  • Veronica Olivotto

    (Milano School of Policy, Management and Environment, The New School
    Urban Systems Lab, The New School)

  • Sylvia I. Bergh

    (Erasmus University Rotterdam
    The Hague University of Applied Sciences)

Abstract

Cities around the world are confronted with the need to put in place climate adaptation policies to protect citizens and properties from climate change impacts. This article applies components of the framework developed by Moser and Ekström (2010) onto empirical qualitative data to diagnose institutional barriers to climate change adaptation in the Municipality of Beirut, Lebanon. Our approach reveals the presence of two vicious cycles influencing each other. In the first cycle, the root cause barrier is major political interference generating competing priorities and poor individual interest in climate change. A second vicious cycle is derived from feedbacks caused by the first and leading to the absence of a dedicated department where sector specific climate risk information is gathered and shared with other departments, limited knowledge and scientific understanding, as well as a distorted framing or vision, where climate change is considered unrelated to other issues and is to be dealt with at higher levels of government. The article also highlights the need to analyze interlinkages between barriers in order to suggest how to overcome them. The most common way to overcome barriers according to interviewees is through national and international support followed by the creation of a data bank. These opportunities could be explored by national and international policy-makers to break the deadlock in Beirut.

Suggested Citation

  • Leonardo Zea-Reyes & Veronica Olivotto & Sylvia I. Bergh, 2021. "Understanding institutional barriers in the climate change adaptation planning process of the city of Beirut: vicious cycles and opportunities," Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change, Springer, vol. 26(6), pages 1-24, August.
  • Handle: RePEc:spr:masfgc:v:26:y:2021:i:6:d:10.1007_s11027-021-09961-6
    DOI: 10.1007/s11027-021-09961-6
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s11027-021-09961-6
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: Access to the full text of the articles in this series is restricted.

    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1007/s11027-021-09961-6?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Pierre Mukheibir & Natasha Kuruppu & Anna Gero & Jade Herriman, 2013. "Overcoming cross-scale challenges to climate change adaptation for local government: a focus on Australia," Climatic Change, Springer, vol. 121(2), pages 271-283, November.
    2. Michael Mikulewicz, 2020. "The Discursive Politics of Adaptation to Climate Change," Annals of the American Association of Geographers, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 110(6), pages 1807-1830, November.
    3. Antonio Ioris & Carlos Irigaray & Pierre Girard, 2014. "Institutional responses to climate change: opportunities and barriers for adaptation in the Pantanal and the Upper Paraguay River Basin," Climatic Change, Springer, vol. 127(1), pages 139-151, November.
    4. Thomas Measham & Benjamin Preston & Timothy Smith & Cassandra Brooke & Russell Gorddard & Geoff Withycombe & Craig Morrison, 2011. "Adapting to climate change through local municipal planning: barriers and challenges," Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change, Springer, vol. 16(8), pages 889-909, December.
    5. Heleen L.P. Mees & Peter P.J. Driessen & Hens A.C. Runhaar & Jennifer Stamatelos, 2013. "Who governs climate adaptation? Getting green roofs for stormwater retention off the ground," Journal of Environmental Planning and Management, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 56(6), pages 802-825, July.
    6. J. Cherrier & Y. Klein & H. Link & J. Pillich & N. Yonzan, 2016. "Hybrid green infrastructure for reducing demands on urban water and energy systems: a New York City hypothetical case study," Journal of Environmental Studies and Sciences, Springer;Association of Environmental Studies and Sciences, vol. 6(1), pages 77-89, March.
    7. Thomas G Measham & Benjamin L Preston & Cassandra Brooke & Tim F Smith & Craig Morrison & Geoff Withycombe & Russell Gorddard, 2010. "Adapting to Climate Change Through Local Municipal Planning: Barriers and Opportunities," Socio-Economics and the Environment in Discussion (SEED) Working Paper Series 2010-05, CSIRO Sustainable Ecosystems.
    8. Kristine Kern & Harriet Bulkeley, 2009. "Cities, Europeanization and Multi‐level Governance: Governing Climate Change through Transnational Municipal Networks," Journal of Common Market Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 47(2), pages 309-332, March.
    9. Greg Oulahen & Yaheli Klein & Linda Mortsch & Erin O’Connell & Deborah Harford, 2018. "Barriers and Drivers of Planning for Climate Change Adaptation across Three Levels of Government in Canada," Planning Theory & Practice, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 19(3), pages 405-421, May.
    10. Kristine Kern & Harriet Bulkeley, 2009. "Cities, Europeanization and Multi-level Governance: Governing Climate Change through Transnational Municipal Networks," Journal of Common Market Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 47, pages 309-332, March.
    11. Lia Carol Sieghart & Mahlette Betre, 2018. "Climate Change in MENA," World Bank Publications - Reports 29419, The World Bank Group.
    12. Klaus Eisenack & Susanne C. Moser & Esther Hoffmann & Richard J. T. Klein & Christoph Oberlack & Anna Pechan & Maja Rotter & Catrien J. A. M. Termeer, 2014. "Explaining and overcoming barriers to climate change adaptation," Nature Climate Change, Nature, vol. 4(10), pages 867-872, October.
    13. Waha, Katharina & Krummenauer, Linda & Adams, Sophie & Aich, Valentin & Baarsch, Florent & Coumou, Dim & Fader, Marianela & Hoff, Holger & Jobbins, Guy & Marcus, Rachel & Mengel, Matthias & Otto, Ilon, 2017. "Climate change impacts in the Middle East and Northern Africa (MENA) region and their implications for vulnerable population groups," Munich Reprints in Economics 49918, University of Munich, Department of Economics.
    14. Benjamin K. Sovacool & Björn-Ola Linnér & Richard J. T. Klein, 2017. "Climate change adaptation and the Least Developed Countries Fund (LDCF): Qualitative insights from policy implementation in the Asia-Pacific," Climatic Change, Springer, vol. 140(2), pages 209-226, January.
    15. Jennifer S. Bansard & Philipp H. Pattberg & Oscar Widerberg, 2017. "Cities to the rescue? Assessing the performance of transnational municipal networks in global climate governance," International Environmental Agreements: Politics, Law and Economics, Springer, vol. 17(2), pages 229-246, April.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Anthony Charles Milordis & William Hale Butler & Tisha Joseph Holmes, 2023. "What is slowing progress on climate change adaptation? Evaluating barriers to planning for sea level rise in Florida," Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change, Springer, vol. 28(8), pages 1-26, December.
    2. Gloria Macassa & Ana Isabel Ribeiro & Anneli Marttila & Frida Stål & José Pedro Silva & Michelle Rydback & Mamunur Rashid & Henrique Barros, 2022. "Public Health Aspects of Climate Change Adaptation in Three Cities: A Qualitative Study," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(16), pages 1-17, August.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Antje Otto & Kristine Kern & Wolfgang Haupt & Peter Eckersley & Annegret H. Thieken, 2021. "Ranking local climate policy: assessing the mitigation and adaptation activities of 104 German cities," Climatic Change, Springer, vol. 167(1), pages 1-23, July.
    2. Michele Acuto & Benjamin Leffel, 2021. "Understanding the global ecosystem of city networks," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 58(9), pages 1758-1774, July.
    3. Gül Aktürk & Ahmadreza Shirvani Dastgerdi, 2021. "Cultural Landscapes under the Threat of Climate Change: A Systematic Study of Barriers to Resilience," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(17), pages 1-19, September.
    4. Saveria Olga Murielle Boulanger & Martina Massari, 2022. "Advocating Urban Transition: A Qualitative Review of Institutional and Grassroots Initiatives in Shaping Climate-Aware Cities," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(5), pages 1-18, February.
    5. Juita -Elena (Wie) Yusuf & Burton St. John, 2017. "Stuck on options and implementation in Hampton Roads, Virginia: an integrated conceptual framework for linking adaptation capacity, readiness, and barriers," Journal of Environmental Studies and Sciences, Springer;Association of Environmental Studies and Sciences, vol. 7(3), pages 450-460, September.
    6. Angel Prieto, 2019. "Alliances de villes pour le climat - Modélisation par la théorie des jeux," CIRANO Working Papers 2019s-16, CIRANO.
    7. Albana Kona & Paolo Bertoldi & Şiir Kılkış, 2019. "Covenant of Mayors: Local Energy Generation, Methodology, Policies and Good Practice Examples," Energies, MDPI, vol. 12(6), pages 1-29, March.
    8. Wanlu Liu & Lulu Liu & Jiangbo Gao, 2020. "Adapting to climate change: gaps and strategies for Central Asia," Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change, Springer, vol. 25(8), pages 1439-1459, December.
    9. S. H. A. Koop & L. Koetsier & A. Doornhof & O. Reinstra & C. J. Van Leeuwen & S. Brouwer & C. Dieperink & P. P. J. Driessen, 2017. "Assessing the Governance Capacity of Cities to Address Challenges of Water, Waste, and Climate Change," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 31(11), pages 3427-3443, September.
    10. Stephanie L. Barr & Christopher J. Lemieux, 2021. "Assessing organizational readiness to adapt to climate change in a regional protected areas context: lessons learned from Canada," Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change, Springer, vol. 26(8), pages 1-21, December.
    11. Guillaume Simonet & Alexia Leseur, 2019. "Barriers and drivers to adaptation to climate change—a field study of ten French local authorities," Climatic Change, Springer, vol. 155(4), pages 621-637, August.
    12. Marielle Papin, 2019. "Transnational municipal networks: Harbingers of innovation for global adaptation governance?," International Environmental Agreements: Politics, Law and Economics, Springer, vol. 19(4), pages 467-483, October.
    13. Thomas Hickmann, 2021. "Locating Cities and Their Governments in Multi-Level Sustainability Governance," Politics and Governance, Cogitatio Press, vol. 9(1), pages 211-220.
    14. Vanesa Castán Broto & Linda K. Westman, 2020. "Ten years after Copenhagen: Reimagining climate change governance in urban areas," Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Climate Change, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 11(4), July.
    15. Steven Koop & Fabian Monteiro Gomes & Laura Schoot & Carel Dieperink & Peter Driessen & Kees Van Leeuwen, 2018. "Assessing the Capacity to Govern Flood Risk in Cities and the Role of Contextual Factors," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(8), pages 1-21, August.
    16. Marta Olazabal & Sonia De Gregorio Hurtado & Eduardo Olazabal & Filomena Pietrapertosa & Monica Salvia & Davide Geneletti & Valentina D?Alonzo & Efrén Feliú & Senatro Di Leo & Diana Reckien, 2014. "How are Italian and Spanish cities tackling climate change? A local comparative study," Working Papers 2014-03, BC3.
    17. Boehnke, Denise & Jehling, Mathias & Vogt, Joachim, 2023. "What hinders climate adaptation? Approaching barriers in municipal land use planning through participant observation," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 132(C).
    18. Kristine Kern & Janne Irmisch & Colette Odermatt & Wolfgang Haupt & Ingrid Kissling-Näf, 2021. "Cultural Heritage, Sustainable Development, and Climate Policy: Comparing the UNESCO World Heritage Cities of Potsdam and Bern," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(16), pages 1-19, August.
    19. Winfried Osthorst, 2020. "Tensions in Urban Transitions. Conceptualizing Conflicts in Local Climate Policy Arrangements," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(1), pages 1-17, December.
    20. Qiao Hu & Zhenghong Tang & Lei Zhang & Yuanyuan Xu & Xiaolin Wu & Ligang Zhang, 2018. "Evaluating climate change adaptation efforts on the US 50 states’ hazard mitigation plans," Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, Springer;International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, vol. 92(2), pages 783-804, June.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:spr:masfgc:v:26:y:2021:i:6:d:10.1007_s11027-021-09961-6. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.springer.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.