On the 19 and 20 March 2024, the Walker Institute, WSP and CCRM consortium successfully delivered a consultation and capacity building workshop on “Climate storylines and adaptation in Lao PDR” in the beautiful town of Vang Vieng, in the Vientiane province of Lao PDR.
The workshop represented a key event for the broader consortium programme of work, dedicated to support the development of local adaptation plans as part of the Lao PDR National Adaptation Planning (NAP) process. This workshop was designed to allow the critical direct exchange of information, methodologies and perspectives between the team, the national team drafting the NAP and the local stakeholders.
This two-day participatory workshop involved local government representatives from six provinces from the north, centre and south of Lao, as well as national policymakers. Through a series of presentations delivered by the consortium, the participants could learn and ask questions about the results of provincial downscaled climate projections and preliminary provincial climate risk assessments carried out by the consortium. A set of interactive focus group discussions followed, led by the Walker Institute and expertly facilitated by the in-country team, through which consultation on key climatic risks and sector specific adaptation options for each of the provinces were explored in detail. The design and delivery of the workshop activities, and material developed for it, were designed to supporting local and national capacity strengthening on the latest climate and adaptation science.
The workshop resulted in a deeper mutual understanding of processes and methods between the consortium and the national climate adaptation team, strengthening our ability to effectively support the NAP development. The precious latest local information on climate risk and preferred adaptation options resulting from the focus groups is helping to refine the climate risk and adaptation analysis carried out by the consortium.