Reports and AnalysEs

Adaptation Finance

From Bonds to Blended Finance: How a Diverse Range of Financial Instruments Are Financing Climate Adaptation and Resilience

This study highlights how different types of financial instruments, including blended finance, bonds, concessional and market-based loans, debt swaps, disaster risk financing, and more, have mobilized capital for climate adaptation.

2025 Adaptation Gap Report: Running on Empty

This report finds that the adaptation financing needs for developing countries is 12-14 times as much as current flows, putting lives, livelihoods, and entire economies at risk. While far from enough, there is visible progress on closing the planning and implementation gap. However, both the public and private sector must step up to increase adaptation finance.

Roadmap to Financing Adaptation and Resilience in Developing Countries >>

This paper lays out barriers and recommendations related to adaptation finance and highlights the five priorities set out by the Circle of Ministers convened by Brazil’s Ministry of Finance: concessional finance and the climate funds, multilateral development banks (MDBs), capacity building and country platforms, the private sector, and regulatory frameworks.

Issues and Options: Centering Adaptation Finance at COP 30

The need for greater adaptation finance is clear, but the political will to come forward with the necessary funding is less evident. Many Parties are seeking to productively support the scaling of critical financial resources for adaptation. But there are other options that could be explored to center adaptation finance and avoid reopening previous agreements.

Strengthening the Investment Case for Climate Adaptation: A Triple Dividend Approach

This report found that every $1 invested in climate adaptation projects, can yield over $10.50 in benefits, with an average annual return of 20–27%.

Interim Report - Returns on Resilience and Adaptation: Driving Growth, Stability and Competitiveness

This interim report lays the groundwork for positioning resilience as a core pillar of economic and financial decision-making.

Learn more from Systemiq >>

Adaptation Gap Report 2024

This report finds that progress in adaptation financing is not fast enough to close the gap between needs and flows. Based on these findings, it calls on nations to step up by adopting a new collective goal for climate finance.

Learn more from UNEP >>

Top-down Climate Finance Needs

This publication finds that annual adaptation finance in emerging markets and developing economies (EMDEs) alone will need to reach USD $212 billion by 2030, and USD $239 billion between 2031 and 2050.

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The Resilience Effect: 10 Super Levers to Catalyse Finance in Climate-Vulnerable Countries

This report, by the V20 and Bridgetown Project, identifies ten interconnected levers within the global financial system that could collectively unlock the provision of an additional $210 billion of affordable climate finance annually to V20 countries.

Climate Finance Vulnerability Index

The Climate Finance Vulnerability Index (CliF-VI) takes a data-informed approach ti present a detailed representation of a country’s climate and financial vulnerability. This data is designed to provide a comprehensive understanding of climate vulnerability for nation states and improve the targeting and provision of climate change adaptation financing.

Adaptation finance and the private sector: opportunities and challenges for developing countries

This study aims to assess the role, opportunities, and limitations of the private sector in helping bridge the adaptation gap in developing countries.

A summary of this report can be viewed here.

Reframing Misleading Narratives Around Adaptation Finance

Narratives that have become part of mainstream thinking can be either enablers or barriers to effective solutions for global problems like climate change. These misleading narratives can encourage key actors to address issues that do not exist, or to address issues that do exist in an inappropriate manner. This brief proposes five reframed narratives, with the aim of moving mainstream thinking in a direction that supports the provision and mobilization of accessible and adequate adaptation finance.

Adaptation Finance Flows to Africa – State and Future Trends

This joint analysis from the Climate Policy Initiative and the Global Center on Adaptation, provides a clear, data-driven view of where we stand — and a compass for where we must go next.

Adaptation Investment

Resilient Economies Index – Africa

While Africa remains the world’s most climate-vulnerable continent, this report shows that an average of 87.1% of economic activity across the continent is already resilient to climate risks (2025-2050), underscoring a powerful, often overlooked reality: adaptation is taking root at scale.

Returns on Resilience: Investing in Adaptation to Drive Prosperity, Growth and Competitiveness

As the world changes, it is important that communities, companies, and countries are able to adapt and thrive. This report analyzes the latest research on resilience to identify cost-effective, scalable, and proven actions to strengthen resilience to extreme weather and slow-onset changes like temperature rises and desertification, while improving health and livelihoods.

Learn more from Systemiq >>

Sizing the Inevitable Investment Opportunity: Climate Adaptation

Climate adaptation is an inevitable need and investment opportunity. This study identifies climate adaptation solutions most relevant to private sector investors. Specifically, this study examines emerging and more established solutions to develop early-stage estimates of the potential investment opportunity, both current and future.

Learn more from GIC >>

Adaptation Policy and Development

Environmental impacts, worker communities & women-led solutions

This report highlights how women are not just disproportionately impacted by climate change — they also have the knowledge, experience, and know-how that, when supported, are essential in helping communities respond and adapt to its impacts.

Advancing on the Global Goal on Adaptation Through Agriculture and Food System Transformation

This report explores effective holistic measures across food systems that can help build climate resilience while providing mitigation as well as biodiversity benefits, enabling progress towards global goals for climate, nature, and sustainable development.

Learn more from World Wildlife Fund >>

Adaptation Planning for Business – Navigating Uncertainty to Build Long-Term Resilience

This guide provides practical, action-oriented guidance to address the critical need for businesses to move beyond identifying climate risks and effectively plan for them.

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Header Image: Dennis Schroeder/US Department of Energy Solar Decathlon