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Planning for Climate Change in African Cities 

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Planning for Climate Change in African Cities
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Coursera 
Overview

Duration

22 hours

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Total fee

Free

Mode of learning

Online

Difficulty level

Intermediate

Official Website

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Credential

Certificate

Planning for Climate Change in African Cities
 at 
Coursera 
Highlights

  • Shareable Certificate Earn a Certificate upon completion
  • 100% online Start instantly and learn at your own schedule.
  • Flexible deadlines Reset deadlines in accordance to your schedule.
  • Intermediate Level
  • Approx. 22 hours to complete
  • English Subtitles: French, Portuguese (European), Russian, English, Spanish
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Planning for Climate Change in African Cities
 at 
Coursera 
Course details

Skills you will learn
More about this course
  • Climate change poses a threat to economic growth and long-term prosperity of many countries around the world. Africa is not an exception, considering the actual and potential impacts of climate change and climate variability that will threaten its vulnerable sectors and human populations. African countries are projected to experience changing rainfall patterns, rising sea levels, and higher temperatures that will affect food security, agricultural production, water availability, and public health, among others. These climate change impacts and climate variability can further produce social and political problems, such as rural-urban migration and water resource disputes.
  • Furthermore, the low levels of development in many African countries, as well as limited institutional, infrastructural, and technical capacities to respond successfully to climate change impacts and climate variability, can exacerbate the situation. In terms of contribution to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, although African countries are the lightest polluters, it has also become apparent that alternative energy sources can offset the increasing energy demand and dependence on biomass. Addressing climate change offers possibilities for low-carbon development. Moreover, there are promising mechanisms that can address both climate change actions and development goals simultaneously.
  • At the city level, strengthening resilience, or the ability to respond to and absorb the effects of a hazardous event in a timely and efficient manner and to sustain this ability in the future, and adaptation; the process of adjusting to actual or expected climate change stimuli or their effects, should be at the forefront of planning. Local governments have an important role to play through the provision of adequate infrastructure, regulation of land use, and other public services that are crucial for urban resilience. Mobilizing local governments, in collaboration with national governments, non-governmental organizations, and international organizations, among others, is also critical for an integrated multi-sectoral approach to climate change.
  • The Course on Planning for Climate Change in African Cities provides the foundation for understanding cities? exposure and sensitivity to climate change, and how cities can manage these impacts in the face of growing uncertainty. It does so by introducing the basic concepts of urban resilience and adaptation, by using illustrative case studies in different African cities. Furthermore, this module provides lectures on the different approaches for climate change planning, whether ad hoc, strategic or mainstreaming; introduces the different steps in the planning cycle ? from initial assessment to monitoring and evaluation; and presents the different decision support and assessment tools for prioritizing climate change actions. This course broadens the discussion on planning for climate change by engaging learners to apply their knowledge and practice their decision-making skills in a simulated exercise.
  • In line with development that minimizes the harm caused by climate change impacts, while maximizing the many human development opportunities presented by a more resilient future, we ask: what are the connections between urban risk and vulnerability? How is climate change and urban resilience conceptualized and applied in practice? Which policies and measures should be introduced to address climate change? Finally, how to choose among different measures that address climate change adaptation, urban resilience, and other development objectives?
  • Course Objectives:
  • At the end of this course, learners should be able to:
  • ? Recognize the effects, impacts, and drivers of climate change in cities
  • ? Understand the drivers of urban risk and vulnerability in the context of climate change
  • ? Distinguish the typologies, approaches, and tensions of climate change adaptation
  • ? Explain the different approaches and steps in climate change planning
  • ? Examine the decision support and assessment tools for climate change
  • ? Develop a climate change plan based on participants? city contexts
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Planning for Climate Change in African Cities
 at 
Coursera 
Curriculum

Welcome to the Course

Video Introduction

Course Description and Objectives

Grading System

Get to know your lecturers!

Glossary of Terms

Climate Change Science

Climate Change Sources

Climate Change Effects and Impacts

Urbanization and Climate Change

Urban Drivers of Greenhouse Gases

Climate Change Effects and Impacts on Cities

Climate Change Policies

Recommended Readings for Week 1

Test Your Understanding of Week 1!

Defining and Assessing Urban Risk and Vulnerability

Introduction to Defining Risk and Vulnerability

Approaches to Climate Change Vulnerability

What is social vulnerability?

Practical Examples of Calculating Social Vulnerability

Risk and Vulnerability in African Cities

Reading Materials for "Approaches to Climate Change Vulnerability"

Reading Materials for video on "What is social vulnerability?"

Reading Materials for "Practical examples of Calculating Social Vulnerability"

Reading Materials for Video 5"Risk and Vulnerability in African Cities"

Introduction to Calculating Social Vulnerability Quiz

Test Your Understanding of Week 2!

Calculating Social Vulnerability

Climate Change Adaption and Resilience

Introduction to Climate Change Adaption and Resilience

How do cities adapt to climate change? Reactive adaptation

How do cities adapt to climate change? Anticipatory adaptation

Climate Adaptation: different contexts and approaches

Conceptual tensions of urban resilience

Urban climate resilience: from conceptual tensions to practice

Governance to reduce urban risk

Key actors in reducing urban risk

Climate and resilience programs in African cities

Reading Materials for "Differences in adaptation responses" sub-section

Reading Materials for "Conceptual tensions in urban resilience" sub-section

Reading Materials for "Conceptual tensions in urban resilience" sub-section

Test Your Understanding of Week 3

Planning for Climate Change

Introduction to Planning Approaches for Climate Change

Adhoc, strategic and mainstreaming approaches

Main Steps of Planning for Climate Change

Planning for climate change in Kampala, Uganda

Climate Change Mitigation in Kampala City

Urban Adaption in Action: Experiences from Kampala

Barriers to Implementation of Climate Change Actions

Guiding Principles for City Climate Action Planning

Recommended Readings for Week 4

Test your understanding of Week 4!

Decision Making Analysis for Climate Change

Introduction to Decision Support and Assessment Tools for Climate Change

Cost Effectiveness Analysis for Adaptation

The economic case for low carbon development

Climate change planning in Kigali, Rwanda

Multiple criteria analysis

Which decision support tool to use?

Examples of MCA application

Recommended Readings for Week 5

Test your understanding of Week 5!

Initial list to feasibility assessment

Choice of criteria and impact assessment

From Weighting Criteria to Final Results

Instructions for the Individual Assignment

Acknowledgements

Planning for Climate Change in African Cities
 at 
Coursera 
Admission Process

    Important Dates

    May 25, 2024
    Course Commencement Date

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