IUB Delegates Represent COLOCAL Project at the Adaptation Futures 2025 Conference in New Zealand

Delegates from Independent University, Bangladesh (IUB) took part in the Adaptation Futures 2025 Conference, held in Christchurch, New Zealand, from October 13 to 16, 2025. The participation was under the Norad-funded COLOCAL (Co-creating Knowledge for Locally Led Climate Change Adaptation) project, which focuses on advancing locally led adaptation through collaborative research and partnerships across the Global South and North.

Representing IUB were Dr. K. Ayaz Rabbani, Associate Professor and Project Coordinator of COLOCAL, and Fahmid Mohtasin, Research Officer for the project. They joined COLOCAL collaborators from the Norwegian University of Life Sciences (NMBU), including Professor Matthew Cashmore, Project Lead of COLOCAL, and Professor Siri Eriksen, for a panel discussion titled “Making Locally Led Adaptation a Reality: Advances from Research on and with Indigenous and Local Peoples.”

The panel, held on October 15 from 11:30 AM to 12:45 PM, brought together researchers working on the frontlines of climate adaptation with indigenous and local communities. Discussions centered on the practical challenges and opportunities of implementing locally led adaptation and the importance of co-producing knowledge that reflects community realities.

The session also featured online contributions from Ishrat Jahan, a COLOCAL Fellow from the 2022 cohort at IUB, Graca Jonas, a PhD student at Eduardo Mondlane University (Mozambique), and Edwige Marty, a PhD student at NMBU (Norway). Their participation enriched the dialogue with insights from different regional contexts, emphasizing COLOCAL’s truly collaborative and cross-regional approach.

The Adaptation Futures 2025 Conference is one of the world’s leading events on climate adaptation and brings together global experts, practitioners, and policymakers to share innovative research and practical experiences. IUB’s involvement reflects its ongoing commitment to advancing climate adaptation research and contributing to global discussions on resilience, local leadership, and sustainable development.

For more information about the COLOCAL project, visit: https://www.luccc.org/projects/colocal