Seychelles e-newsletter #1
Stakeholder Workshop in Seychelles
March 30-31st, 2022
To learn more about local stakeholder’s perception of research needs regarding Seychelles’ vulnerability to sea-level rise and adaptation options, we held a stakeholder workshop in Seychelles on March 30th and 31st. A key aim of the workshop was to develop joint research questions and priorities for the assessment of coastal vulnerabilities based on stakeholders’ knowledge and needs. A further objective was to present modelling options for coastal flooding and to provide some background on sea-level rise in Seychelles and general adaptation options. The two-day workshop was mainly attended by representatives of governmental bodies and civil society. The exchange among the stakeholders and the researchers was perceived as fruitful and insightful.
A detailed report on the workshop’s contents and lessons learned can be found here.
The presentation slides of the adjust team are available here.
A second on-site workshop is scheduled for 2024 which will then focus on presenting modelling results and discussing possible adaptation pathways.
If you are interested in the work that we are doing then please get in touch (baatz@philsem.uni-kiel.de)!
Welcome to the first newsletter of Kiel University’s adjust research project! In the following section we will introduce you to the research group and give you an overview of our recent and upcoming events.
This is the first in a series of newsletters, through which we will provide regular updates on our work to all interested parties and stakeholders. We hope that you will find it informative and we encourage you to get in touch if you have any questions about our work or insights that you would like to contribute.
If you want to stay up to date, sign up for the newsletter here (external link).
Introduction to Project adjust
The adjust research group was set up in 2020 and is based at Kiel University in Germany. It explores how existing funding for climate adaptation could be allocated more fairly by examining the funding allocation procedures and criteria used at both the international and the sub-national levels. As part of this research, we are doing a case study on Seychelles to better understand the country’s vulnerability to sea-level rise and the current access to and allocation of climate finance. Attached to this email is an outline of the objectives and methods of the vulnerability research.
The group is trans-disciplinary, which means that we aim to include non-academic stakeholders in our research. Thus, in addition to the core members of the group, we try to actively involve interested groups from government and civil society in the Seychelles to collaboratively shape our research aims and outcomes.
The group consists of:
Christian Baatz – Project leader
Doro Fehling – PhD student conducting the case study on the vulnerability to sea-level rise
Clara Gurresø – PhD student examining the current criteria and procedures used to allocate adaptation finance
Alex Schulan & Nils Wendler – PhD students examining the normative aspects of allocation criteria
Jule Olbricht – Research group coordinator
Nassos Vafeidis – Professor at Kiel University supervising the study on sea-level rise
Carola Klöck – Professor at Science Po in Paris supervising the investigation of criteria and procedures
Local Partner: Sustainability for Seychelles – we are working with S4S to help us connect with local stakeholders and ensure that the project is relevant to local needs and priorities. Feel free to reach out to our focal point Michele Martin as needed.
Recent Activities
International Conference on Climate Adaptation Finance
In September 2021, we hosted an international conference on “Climate Change Adaptation Finance: Normative and Empirical Perspectives”. Over the course of two days, experts on climate finance, adaptation and climate ethics presented their research and shared insights from their work (for more information visit Conference 2021).
Kick-off Meeting with Seychellois Stakeholders
In May 2021, we held our first Seychelles stakeholder meeting with representatives from the Ministry of Agriculture, Climate Change and Environment, University of Seychelles, the Seychelles Land Transport Agency, the Seychelles Planning Authority, the Seychelles Agriculture Department and the NGO Sustainability for Seychelles. The purpose was to make a first contact between stakeholders and researchers, explore ideas about knowledge needs and discuss the exchange of data required or modelling. The workshop report is also attached to this e-mail.
Data Collection for Modelling and Researching Climate Finance Actors
Over the past months we have been collecting data needed for the flood and vulnerability modelling. Preliminary flood modelling is currently under progress. For the study on allocation criteria and procedures, we are currently researching the different actors in Seychelles working on climate finance and narrowing down the focus of the study.
