WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT ADAPTATION

The Glacier Trust enables climate change adaptation in Nepal. We believe adaptation to be a crucial and complementary partner of mitigation in the effort to address and limit the impacts of climate change; and positively transform society.

However, adaptation is dangerously underrepresented in mainstream conversations about climate change, something we have highlighted in our two ‘We Need To Talk About Adaptation’ reports (see below).

Although not primarily a campaigning organisation, we aim to continue to increase awareness of adaptation in all its forms, stress the importance of talking about it and talking about it well - our ‘Framing Adaptation’ report (see below) examines the adaptation narratives that are taking root.

In 2021, The Glacier Trust released its first book - Great Adaptations, a look at the good, the bad and the ugly of climate change adaptation around the world.


Report - Framing Adaptation

Emphasising the importance of adaptation to ecology and humanity requires an intensification of coverage across all platforms, and a framing that shows just how urgent adaptation is across multiple domains.

Framing Adaptation was written by TGT volunteer, Carys Richards, a graduate in Sustainable Development and features a foreword by Dr. Antje Brown (University of St. Andrews). This report builds on our two ‘We Need To Talk About Adaptation’ reports (see below), to uncover how the five of the UK’s largest environmental organisations are contributing to the adaptation narratives that are gaining traction in the media.

This report summarises University of St Andrews BSc dissertation research findings and is published by The Glacier Trust with permission from the School of Geography and Sustainable Development at the University of St Andrews.

Download Framing Adaptation [PDF]


REPORT - We Need To Talk About Adaptation 2020

Only 0.82% of articles written by the UK’s leading environmental organisations focus on climate change adaptation

In this second ‘We Need To Talk About Adaptation’ report we present findings from desk research into the prevalence, or not, of stories covering climate change adaptation. Over a 16 month period (August 2018 - December 2019), we reviewed news and blog articles from five of the UK’s largest environmental organisations.

Of the 857 articles studies, slightly over half (434) covered climate change, a proportional increase in the attention given to climate compared to our 2017/18 study. However, only 29 articles gave adaptation or losses and damage a mention, with only 7 focusing specifically on adaptation.

The report includes a foreword by Prof. Rupert Read (Extinction Rebellion) and an introduction by TGT Co-Director, Dr. Morgan Phillips.

Results for each organisation studied are presented in the report. We offer short analyses of each organisation’s engagement with adaptation.

For more information, please contact:
enquiries@theglaciertrust.org


REport - We Need to talk about Adaptation 2019

Only 0.76% of articles written by the UK’s leading environmental organisations focus on climate change adaptation

Our first We Need To Talk About Adaptation report was published in February 2019. It featured a foreword by Asher Minns (Executive Director, Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research).