The ‘Rocky Horror show’ does not have to be a description of your local beach in future. Adapting to climate change can be almost as simple as just a jump to the left; and then a step to the right.

Scientists at NCCARF and at agencies overseas have spent decades researching climate change adaptation. They have extracted the essence of the process and distilled it into a series of steps.

For example, the UK Climate Impacts Programme (UKCIP) helps organisations, sectors and governments adapt to the changing climate. Its Adaptation Wizard is a five-step process to develop and implement a climate change adaptation strategy. The process is designed to:

• raise your awareness of climate change and adaptation;
• access helpful information, tools and resources;
• assess your vulnerability to climate change;
• make the case for adaptation in your organisation;
• develop a climate-resilient strategy; and
• develop and implement a climate change adaptation strategy.

The process begins by assembling a team, securing management support, agreeing on scope and scale, deciding what you want to achieve and working out how to overcome potential barriers to action.

Climate change adaptation is very much a joint effort. You’ll need to set aside plenty of time for reading, meetings and workshops.

According to UKCIP, ‘Completing the tasks can take weeks or even months. Implementing your adaptation measures and monitoring their effectiveness is an on-going process – the time frame could run into years, depending on the scale of your project.’

If only you had a time warp.

How useful is a stepped approach to climate change adaptation? Are there elements of adaptation that can never be captured in a flowchart like UKCIPs?

Tell us about your experiences working through a stepped plan for environmental protection.

What movie title best describes your coastal adaptation?

More information: UKCIP Adaptation Wizard