This special issue focuses on recent approaches to climate change adaptation which are community-based and participatory. It highlights innovative participatory methods to help communities analyse the causes and effects of climate change, integrate scientific and community knowledge, and plan appropriate adaptation measures. Although CBA is a relatively new field, lessons and challenges are beginning to emerge, including the need to bring together disaster risk reduction, livelihoods, and climate change adaptation work, issues around the type and quality of participation in CBA, and the need for policies and institutions that support it.

Published twice a year, Participatory Learning and Action is the world’s leading informal journal on participatory approaches and methods. It draws on the expertise of guest editors to provide
up-to-the minute accounts of the development and use of participatory methods in specific fields. It provides a forum for those engaged in participatory work, community workers, activists and researchers, to share experiences, conceptual reflections and methodological innovations with others, providing a genuine voice from the field. It is a vital resource for those working to enhance the participation of ordinary people in local, regional, national, and international decision-making, in both South and North.