AF2025: Asia at the Frontlines - Turning Climate Crisis into Collective Action

From record-breaking floods in India to sweltering heatwaves across Southeast Asia, Asia has been making headlines for its growing climate challenges. Earlier this year, the World Meteorological Organization reported that the continent is warming almost twice as fast as the global average. And according to the annual Climate Risk Index, Asia has lost about US $2 trillion (£1.5 trillion) to floods, droughts, and heatwaves over the past three decades.

But it is not all bleak. Across the region, communities are quietly finding ways to live with change through new farming techniques, smarter city designs, and community-led solutions. That spirit of resilience in general and in Asia took centre stage at the Adaptation Futures Conference (AF2025) held in Ōtautahi Christchurch from October 13 to 16.

Photo from one of the sessions at the AF2025. Image sources/amc

Asia in the Spotlight

The United Nations’ largest climate adaptation event brought together nearly 2,000 scholars, scientists, and Indigenous leaders from around the world. AMC was At AF2025, and found sessions focused on Asia were packed, showing just how much global interest there is in the region’s stories of both risk and renewal.

“Climate change is not a future risk, but a current experience,” said Professor Neil Adger, Professor of Human Geography at the University of Exeter and one of Reuters’ Top 20 Most Influential Climate Scientists. “Communities and governments across Asia are already acting. Lessons from Indian, Nepali, Bhutanese, and Bangladeshi researchers are part of a common global story of climate injustice, resilience through collective action, and redesigning agriculture and cities so that marginalised populations do not bear the greatest burden.”

Professor Adger (in photo) also noted that while Asian countries are designing some of the world’s best adaptation solutions, a significant gap in action still remains, both within the region and globally.

Dr Chandni Singh, Lead at the School of Environment and Sustainability, Indian Institute for Human Settlements (IIHS) and Lead Author of the Asia chapter in the IPCC’s Sixth Assessment Report, agreed.

“Asia is at the frontlines of climate change, not only in terms of the risks, but also in the solutions being tested and scaled,” she told the Asia Media Centre. “India and China are the fastest-growing EV markets in the world, while Bangladesh has pioneered a 100-year Delta Plan to adapt to flooding and cyclones. The imperative to adapt is extremely high, but so is the adaptation gap.”

She believes that bridging this gap begins with learning from each other. “Asia is wonderfully diverse, from behemoths like China and India to adaptation leaders like Japan and Bangladesh. We need more peer learning, policy cooperation through blocs like ASEAN, and knowledge sharing that builds local capacity.”

With Asia going through one of the fastest urban transitions in history, Dr Singh (in photo) said climate action and development must go hand in hand. “We know what works, from Ahmedabad’s heat action plans to China’s sponge cities, but these are still incremental. The challenge is scaling up climate action that delivers development at the same time.”

Blending Technology and Tradition

Dr Lisa Schipper, Professor of Development Geography at the University of Bonn, highlighted the role of both technology and traditional wisdom in building climate-resilient futures. “We now have better tools and understanding of the causes, from water pollution to air quality. The time is right to think holistically about fair and just development,” she said.

Dr Schipper (in photo) shared examples from across Asia where traditional knowledge continues to inspire modern solutions.

“In parts of Asia, homes are built on stilts to stay safe from floods. In Sri Lanka, houses have a gap between the roof and walls to allow natural ventilation. Communities have long adapted to environmental change, and their knowledge holds lessons for us all.”

Partnerships That Make a Difference

That community-based approach is also driving international collaborations. One example is CLARE, co-led by the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) and Canada’s International Development Research Centre (IDRC). CLARE connects science and policy through long-term partnerships that help communities turn research into real-world action.

At AF2025, CLARE sessions on Climate Adaptation and Resilience featured stories from Zambia, Nepal, India, and the Philippines.

The global CLARE network currently consists of 35 projects, with over 170 partner organisations in 38 countries. 73% of partners are based in the Global South; about one third of those are in Asia. Image sources from CLARE's LinkedIn profile/AMC

In the Philippines, for example, its RURBANISE project works with 11 communities across Metro Manila, Bicol, Iloilo, Cebu, and Davao to help informal settlements tackle climate risks. The CLIMATE REEFS initiative protects coastal communities that depend on coral reefs, while SIRA strengthens local government capacity for inclusive climate action. CLARE’s new fellowship programme is also supporting researchers and practitioners to lead climate dialogues from the ground up.

From Floating Farms to Future Cities

Asia’s presence at AF2025 was strong and inspiring. Some of the most engaging sessions explored topics such as climate migration, resilient agriculture, aquaculture in Southeast Asia, and Floating Farming in Bangladesh.

As part of its ongoing focus on AF2025, the Asia Media Centre will feature a series of stories from some of these sessions.

"There is a feeling of urgency and alarm," Prof Adger. Photo from AF2025 sourced/amc

Tying Awareness to Action

These stories, as Professor Adger reminded, help connect awareness with urgency. “There is a feeling of urgency and there is an energy that drives us to find solutions, but we need to do absolutely everything to decarbonise. Those working on the consequences know the risks are already real. We must do our fair bit to adapt.”

Winston Chow, IPCC Co-Chair, Working Group II, and Professor of Urban Climate at Singapore Management University, also led conversations on adapting to extreme heat in cities. “City planning is where the action is,” he said. “The fastest-growing cities in most places are secondary cities, not major cities, so with that growth comes more emissions but also more opportunities to reduce them, as well as to minimise impacts and vulnerabilities. Those are the challenges reflected in several of the sessions here at Adaptation Futures.”

Beyond Asia, the conference also featured discussions on Indigenous communities, the Pacific, and other regions facing the everyday realities of climate change.

The challenge now is to carry forward the lessons from AF2025. Image sourced/amc

From Local Lessons to Shared Hope

As AF2025 came to a close, one message stood out clearly: adaptation is no longer just about surviving the next flood or drought. It is about rethinking how we live and work together on a changing planet.

Across Asia, scientists, policymakers, and communities are proving that solutions do not always come from global summits or large-scale projects. They can begin in a fishing village in the Philippines, a rice field in Bangladesh, or a city street in India.

Asia stands as both a warning and a source of hope. The challenge now is to carry forward the lessons from AF2025 and turn them into lasting change, making adaptation not a reaction but a shared path toward a more resilient future.

-Asia Media Centre