The need for adaptive strategic planning: Sustainable management of risks associated with climate change

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore the feasibility of developing an adaptive strategy to address the impact of climate change in the context of flooding.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper analyses flood risk and highlights the need for an adaptive strategic plan for flood risk management under the impact of climate change. It introduces a framework for the development of an adaptive strategic plan. The paper identifies organizational issues (at the local government scale) associated with having an adaptive strategic plan and developing a methodology to address these issues. It also identifies the need for a strategic decision support system (SDSS) and conceptualizing the system in order to support adaptive planning principle.

Findings

This study identifies lack of adaptability as a gap in traditional strategic planning for addressing flood risk associated with climate change. An adaptive strategic plan has adequate flexibility, promptness and responsiveness to adapt itself to new realities as they emerge and can sustain itself and remain relevant in a changing environment. The study introduces a SDSS that is necessary to support the adaptive element of an adaptive strategic plan.

Originality/value

This study distinguishes between a strategy for adaptation and an adaptive strategy. Most research on the topic of adaptation to climate change have been focused on developing strategies that offer adaptive solutions to pressing problems such as flooding. For instance, they may recommend more investment on non‐structural methods for flood mitigation, as they are more adaptive than alternative structural methods and therefore more sustainable under climate change. An issue that has attracted less attention is the fact that the strategic plans themselves (or in a sense the decision‐making framework) need to be equally adaptive. Some of public institutions do not have adequate flexibility and promptness to change and rectify high‐level strategic plans. The study identifies the lack of an SDSS, which allows new scientific findings to be converted to new policies in a short period of time, as a reason for absence of promptness, responsiveness and flexibility in such organizations. This study makes an attempt to address this issue by suggesting a frame work that will enable a government institution to become more responsive to change.

Citation

Mirfenderesk, H. and Corkill, D. (2009), "The need for adaptive strategic planning: Sustainable management of risks associated with climate change", International Journal of Climate Change Strategies and Management, Vol. 1 No. 2, pp. 146-159. https://doi.org/10.1108/17568690910955612