UAE Framework for Global Climate Resilience

The UAE Framework for Global Climate Resilience uniquely positions climate adaptation — the process of building resilience to global warming’s current and future impacts — as a top priority for all nations.

Adopted in December 2023 at the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP 28) in Dubai, it is the first international declaration of its kind with climate adaptation as the primary focus.

What is the UAE Framework for Global Climate Resilience?

The framework is the culmination of two years of workshops and consultations with hundreds of government officials, scientists, and advocates. It expands on the Global Goal on Adaptation (GGA), which was established in the Paris Agreement in 2015. The UAE Framework will improve our ability to measure progress on the GGA and maintain accountability. More broadly, the framework’s adoption signals the need for accelerating global action on, and support for, adaptation — which until now has not received the same level of funding or attention as other aspects of the Paris Agreement.

While the framework does not establish a headline target akin to the Paris Agreement’s global warming threshold of staying within 1.5° C above preindustrial temperatures, it does place focus squarely on the “collective well-being of all people, the protection of livelihoods and economies, and the preservation and regeneration of nature, for current and future generations, in the context of the temperature goal.” In other words, the well-being of people and the planet serves as the framework’s guiding star. It also prioritizes key sectors for increased climate resilience, including food and agriculture, water, cities and infrastructure, ecosystems and nature, health, livelihoods, and cultural heritage, sending an important message to practitioners in these sectors that urgent action on climate adaptation will be necessary for humanity to survive.

In addition, the framework details a series of targets linked to different stages of the country-level policy cycle required to achieve these adaptation goals. It lays out clear and concrete steps that start with government-led assessments of each nation’s unique climate risks and vulnerabilities, which will inform the creation of a national adaptation plan, followed by implementation and ongoing evaluation of progress in reducing climate vulnerability.

Next Steps for the UAE Framework for Global Climate Resilience

• Measuring progress toward the Global Goal on Adaptation: The framework establishes a two-year UAE–Belém work program – so named for the host cities of COP28 and COP30 – to develop more specific and standardized indicators for measuring progress toward the targets it outlines. It will be essential for the new Dubai action plan to build upon already existing agendas like the Sustainable Development Goals, the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction, and other multilateral agreements that have relevant indicators. This process will need to incorporate the expertise of scientists, researchers, and practitioners across the globe to ensure that we are measuring what matters and not just what is easiest to measure.

• Financing critical adaptation needs: While the UAE Framework for Global Climate Resilience marks a crucial step forward, the international community must also find innovative and creative ways to mobilize financial resources, especially for developing economies, to realize the promise of the Global Goal on Adaptation. These investments must be both larger and more flexible than current financing if low-income nations are to meet the level of ambition on climate adaptation outlined in the new framework.

UN Foundation Experts