ANNOUNCEMENTS
Although climate change is a global crisis that plagues humanity alike, its consequences and impacts are felt disproportionately by certain fractions of the world. There is substantial evidence to support that the effects of climate change are felt most strongly by the poorest and most marginalized sections of the society who contribute very little to the global emissions and are likely to create new vulnerabilities for such populations. In order to protect such vulnerable groups from the unprecedented risks and impacts of climate change, it is imperative to look at climate governance and policy interventions through the lens of fairness and justice. With increasing policy focus on adaptation and efforts aimed at reducing vulnerabilities, enhancing adaptive capacity and improving resilience, it is fundamental to understand the complex and dynamic links between the ideas of fairness and climate change and how these have been incorporated into the cross-sectoral, multi-level and inter-regional facets of adaptation planning and governance. In an attempt to do so, the study explores the evolving narratives of fairness in adaptation and how they are contested in policy discourses. Review of recent policy debates and literature indicate that current deliberations are often concerned with the distributive and procedural aspects of justice. The study reveals that while debates on climate justice are becoming increasingly prevalent within the international regime, more attention needs to be given to their practicality and operationalization into policy reforms and action plans. Therefore, although the current regime recognizes the need for distributive justice among developed and developing nations and has managed to develop mechanisms for assistance and cooperation, it struggles to address the procedural aspects of justice in its processes and outcomes across multiple levels of governance and decision making.
Keywords: Climate change; adaptation; vulnerability; fairness; justice.
