Switzerland: Adaptation to climate change - Goals, challenges and fields of action
First part of the Federal Council’s strategy Adopted on 2 March 2012
The Federal Council’s adaptation strategy creates the framework at federal level for a coordinated course of action in adjusting to climate change. The adaptation strategy is divided into two parts. This document is the first part of the strategy.
This first part describes the goals, challenges and fields of action in adapting to climate change. This includes gathering better data on climate change impacts, improved assessment of required resources for climate adaptation and how costs will be met, and better coordination of actions on a national scale.
Besides looking at these challenges, the first part of the strategy considers how Switzerland can adapt in a range of areas, such as water and natural hazard management. Fields of action for adapting in these sectors are defined, adaptation goals formulated and possible ways of achieving these goals outlined. The interfaces between ways of adapting to climate change in the different sectors are also described.
The first part of the adaptation strategy is not a catalogue of measures. Adaptation measures will be developed in a next step by the departments responsible and presented and coordinated in a joint plan of action – the second part the strategy.