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Resilience is an important concept in planning/policy. The diversity of theoretical conceptualisations, lack of a clear definition, and ambiguity in application to cities have made urban resilience a difficult concept to pin-down. This paper explores the dimensions of urban resilience to conceptualise and operationalise resilience, connecting theory and practice using two Australian cases. The findings call for a reconsideration of the existing dimensions (infrastructural, ecological, social and community, economic, and institutional) and highlight urban political resilience, a new dimension essential for a transformative adaptation approach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate change increases hazards for coastal cities where a large proportion of the world's population lives. Adaptation to its impacts ought to be a key focus for planning and policymaking in highly vulnerable countries like Australia. This responsibility, however, has been largely left to local councils with mixed results. This leaves substantial parts of the population at risk where adaptation plans are lacking. Even worse, since the impacts of climate change do not respect jurisdictional boundaries, there is a spill-over risk where good adaptation planning by one council may be undermined by the lack of action in an adjacent council. These risks can be reduced if state and federal governments provide more consistent support and guidance. This paper takes an integrated approach in comparing the relevant legislation, policies, plans, and strategies related to coastal management across the national and state/territory jurisdictions in Australia. The findings indicate that there are major differences, with some states (South Australia, Victoria, Western Australia, and Queensland) having more detailed policies and plans for addressing sea level rise and coastal flooding. The findings have implications beyond Australia, particularly for those countries with more devolved or federal systems of government, and provide key lessons for adaptation to climate change. Key policy insights In the absence of national guidance and leadership, climate adaptation responses will remain uneven across jurisdictions placing more of the population at risk and undermining what adaptation plans there are. National, state, and territory policies or plans are more effective if they are consistent over time, but they are undermined by reversals when governments change between political parties that have widely varying views on climate change. Effective long-term adaptation policymaking and planning therefore require a bipartisan commitment and consistent political will across the major political parties to prioritize the problem and commit significant public resources to a response. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate change poses significant challenges to coastal cities. Local governments around the world are using various strategies to address sea level rise and coastal flooding. Most of these responses are reactive, developed in an ad hoc manner following a specific event, but there is an increasing recognition of the need for more comprehensive and proactive approaches. Research into the topic reflects practice, with numerous studies of particular locations or strategies providing information in a piecemeal manner lacking in comprehensive evaluations. This paper addresses this gap through a systematic literature review that identifies coastal flooding and sea level rise adaptation practices and evaluates their comparative advantages and disadvantages. The findings identify a major knowledge gap in comparative costs and benefits of alternative adaptation strategies and indicate that coastal climate adaptation needs to be tailored to local characteristics and use a combination of different structural and non-structural measures to be effective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite the increasing risks associated with climate-related hazards, urban development in many coastal cities continues to take place on low-lying, high-risk land. Resilience is a key concept in adaptation, however, in the context of cities it is a complex phenomenon influenced by a diverse range of factors. This paper explores how the key elements of urban resilience (agents, institutions, and systems) interact to determine the types of approaches cities take to build resilience in two Australian cities. It uses case study data including semi-structured interviews with a diverse group of stakeholders ranging from local and state government authorities, non-government organisations, consulting firms, and researchers to the insurance industry. Findings indicate that the attitude of agents shapes the institutions and systems thus determining types of adaptation strategies in response to climate change. When the community's desire to live close to water couples with a lack of understanding or underestimation of the impacts, adaptation efforts are undermined. These findings call for a focus on the key role of agents for a transformational approach to building resilience that is based on shared learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate change will increase the intensity, duration and/or frequency of some climate-related hazards. Responsibility for adapting to such impacts of climate change in Australia has, in the main, fallen on local governments which have paid varying degrees of attention to the issue. This paper takes an integrated approach to compare the climate adaptation and disaster resilience policies and plans of local governments of two low-lying coastal cities in Australia to understand whether (and how) local governments can make a difference. The findings indicate that local governments can significantly contribute to building resilience and adapting to climate-related hazards, however a number of factors such as the attitudes of local governments on climate change, environmental activism, and the recent experiences of climate-related disasters are instrumental for shaping a better local response. Local action also needs to be supported by a more integrated approach by all levels of government. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]