Integrating Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies into SDG Frameworks for Resilient Global Development

Abstract

This paper seeks to discuss the effects of incorporating climate change mitigation and adaptation plans in the context of Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) frameworks in promoting resilient global development. It aims to find major synergies and tradeoffs between climate action and chosen SDGs, considering the joint effectiveness of mitigation-adaptation plans, and considering their implications for resilience and policy coherence. It was decided to use a mixed-method, systems-based approach, which involved the combination of qualitative literature and policy analysis and quantitative methods of modeling. Peer-reviewed studies, international policy frameworks, and SDG monitoring reports were used as the sources of secondary data. The findings were presented in a conceptual Climate SDG integration framework, as well as interaction network mapping, cross-impact, and composite indexes, which consist of an Integrated Climate Performance Score (ICPS) (0.84) and a multidimensional Resilience Index (RI) 13 of socio-economic, environmental, and institutional dimensions. Combinations of mitigation and adaptation plans had a higher ICPS (0.78) compared to either mitigation (0.62) or adaptation (0.62). The results of resilience were also significantly higher when using integrated frameworks, as the composite RI of the fragmented policies (0.48) was compared to that of integrated approaches (climate and SDG, 0.78), which was also stronger by 30%. The highest gain was observed in institutional resilience, which went up by 0.44 to 0.75. The scores of policy coherence were also higher in integrated frameworks (0.76) than in sector-specific policies (0.51), and positively and significantly correlated with resilience outcomes (r = 0.73). The results validate the fact that integrated climate-SDG planning is an important approach to supplementing resiliency, policy coherence, and sustainable development results, and that coordinated mitigation-adaptation plans integrated into SDG frameworks are necessary.