The impact of climate change has no geographical boundaries. It affects everyone, all over the world, and is particularly hard on those whose livelihoods depend directly on the natural environment. Climate change is one cause of poverty, hunger and natural disasters.
Climate change and the environment
Climate change around the world is creating new challenges for those involved in international development, since poor countries and population groups are much harder hit than prosperous ones. Climate change hampers development and jeopardises the progress that has already been achieved. For this reason, climate change mitigation and management are increasingly important elements of development cooperation. The SDC's Global Programme Climate Change, in particular, takes account of this trend.
Links
Documents
Global Programme Climate Change and Environment: Programme Framework 2021–24
Programa global Cambio Climático y Medio Ambiente: Marco programático 2021-2024
Programma globale Cambiamento climatico e Ambiente: Quadro programmatico 2021-2024
Flyer Climate Change: A SDC Global Programme (PDF, 8 Pages, 1.0 MB, English)
Biofuels, opportunity or threat to the poor? (PDF, 10 Pages, 178.3 kB, English)
Current projects
Backstopping support for SDC’s Cluster Green thematic Knowledge Networks A+FS, CDE and RésEAU
01.01.2025
- 31.12.2028
As a globally active knowledge-based organisation, SDC is critically dependent on effective and efficient knowledge management. SDC’s thematic networks sit at the heart of this endeavour, rendering an essential service across the organisation and its partners by connecting network members, collecting and processing information, and retaining and distributing knowledge. State-of-the art backstopping services are essential to this activity, as is close cooperation between SDC’s thematic networks.
Voluntary Contribution to the Adaptation Fund (AF)
01.01.2025
- 31.12.2028
The Adaptation Fund (AF) has a proven track record for implementing innovative adaptation projects, including in SDC priority countries. It supports most vulnerable communities to increase their resilience and adaptation capacities in the face of the rapidly rising impacts of climate change including extreme weather events and slow onset processes. It is one of the four climate funds that reports to the Conference of the Parties to the Paris Agreement.
Save the Children, Building Inclusive Resilience and Durable Solutions for forcibly displaced populations and vulnerable groups in Yobe State
01.12.2024
- 30.11.2027
Finding durable solutions for up to five hundred thousand current and formerly displaced persons (IDPs) in Yobe State, Northeast Nigeria, is a critical step towards lasting peace and development in the region. This project, which is part of a multi-pronged SDC support to local authorities, will contribute to facilitate local integration and return of IDPs by enhancing agricultural productivity, providing livelihood and employment opportunities, strengthening community disaster risk reduction, and access to justice.
Multi-Hazard Early Warning and Early Action in the Andes
15.11.2024
- 31.12.2027
This project aims to increasing resilience to disasters through multi-hazard early warning systems and government-led early actions. It will build on experiences in selected watersheds in Peru, Bolivia and Ecuador, while promoting exchange through a regional and global Community of Practice including Swiss expertise at the forefront of technological alarm systems. The initiative shall serve to influence policies and financing mechanisms necessary to successfully implement anticipatory actions.
Clean Air Project in the Indo-Gangetic Plain (CAP IGP) - Phase 2
01.11.2024
- 31.10.2028
The Indo-Gangetic Plain is the most affected region by air pollution globally with severe health, economic and climatic impacts. With Swiss expertise, this project addresses transboundary air pollution with a financial contribution to the World Bank’s regional Air Quality Management program to provide cleaner air to 680 million people, by developing states and regional plans and supporting coordinated sectoral measures by decision-makers in Bangladesh, India and Nepal.
Clean Air China (CAC) Consolidation Phase
15.10.2024
- 15.02.2026
Air pollution poses a significant challenge to public health, environmental sustainability and the climate particularly in Asian countries such as China. Knowing the sources of pollution is essential to formulate adequate policies. The Swiss Paul Scherrer Institute (PSI) together with its Chinese partners from the Institute of Earth Environment (IEE) will transfer an innovative air pollution source identification model developed under phase 1 and capacitate the cities to run the model independently.
Somali Resilience Programme (SomReP)
01.10.2024
- 31.12.2025
SomReP aims to foster sustainable livelihoods and increase the resilience of (agro-) pastoralist communities to climate shocks across Somalia. By supporting vulnerable communities to better cope with ecological disasters SomRep makes an important contribution to mitigate key drivers of fragility in Somalia and thereby promotes Switzerland’s interest to strengthen stability and economic develop ment in the Horn of Africa region.
Strengthening the Climate Adaptation Capacities in Georgia
01.10.2024
- 31.03.2027
Since 2017, Switzerland has contributed to national and international efforts to adapt to the increasing impacts of climate change in Georgia. It will continue to support the further development of the legal and policy framework for natural hazard mapping and zoning in 2024-2027, with an additional focus on strengthening the inclusion of women's voices, needs and capacities in disaster risk reduction. The project will also rely on the Swiss expertise on avalanche and landslide forecasting.
Andean Regional Initiative on Adaptation to Climate Change (ARIACC)
01.09.2024
- 31.08.2027
ARIACC aims to increase the resilience of Andean Family Agriculture to climate change by improving the implementation of relevant policies, building capacity, leveraging investments, scaling innovative practices and promoting regional and global knowledge exchange. Close multisectoral collaboration will ensure the sustainability and scaling of the initiative. The project builds on longstanding SDC experience in the region and consolidates successful achievements of Phase 1 while sharing them globally.
Tajikistan UNDRR - Strengthening Resilience to Disasters and Climate Change in Tajikistan (SRDCT)
01.09.2024
- 28.02.2026
Tajikistan is highly vulnerable to natural hazards and climate impacts, thus strengthening resilience needed as fundament for sustainable development. The intervention will contribute to (i) sustainable and effective mechanisms and instruments to improve risk governance through the national DRR platform, (ii) improved risk knowledge through robust loss data collection and recording, and (iii) preparedness measures through support to multi-hazard Early Warning Systems and risk information.
Voluntary Contribution to the Santiago Network
01.09.2024
- 31.08.2028
The Santiago Network brings together developing countries' demand for technical assistance in the area of climate losses and damages with specialized providers of such assistance. In so doing, it supports these countries in preventing and minimizing such devastation and dealing with it once occurred. The network reports to the Conference of the Parties to the Paris Agreement. Its secretariat is hosted by UNDRR and UNOPS and located in Geneva, affording it significance from a host-state perspective.
Promoting efficient, affordable and clean cooling for everyone (PEACCE)
01.08.2024
- 31.07.2028
The Promoting Efficient, Affordable and Clean Cooling for Everyone (PEACCE) project contributes to mobilising global support and political will for scaling up sustainable cooling solutions in sub-Saharan Africa by supporting the Sustainable Cooling programme of the Sustainable Energy for All organisation. With its support, Switzerland aims to leverage its experience in passive cooling and nature-based cooling solutions both within sub-Saharan Africa and globally.