Meeting Notes Summary - Dec. 15, 2009

WORLD RESOURCES INSTITUTE
The Best Laid Plans . . .
10:45 am

Notes by William Hallmark

Climate change mitigation plans need to incorporate human needs as well, at local, national, and global levels.

Examples of national plans include:

• China – detailed at the provincial level, broader at the national level.

• Australia - five year old national effort to adapt, including identifying
options, priorities, and costs and a (research-based) attempt to predict
what is likely to occur. Predict a wide variation in consequences that make
it impractical to plan at the national level. It is a major challenge to
predict how money is and will be best spent.

Systemic catch 22: False planning starts hamper progress. When locals develop a plan based upon presumed funding, they develop excellent plans. When no funding follows, politicians involved become gun shy and unwilling to encourage future constituent efforts until the funding is fully committed. But funders do not want to commit money until the plans are in place.