Practical lessons on disability inclusion from the Scottish Government’s Climate Just Communities project in Zambia.
Climate change disproportionately affects people with disabilities, who face heightened vulnerability due to systemic barriers to accessing information, services, planning and decision-making spaces. Despite several global commitments, disability inclusion in climate adaptation often remains limited and tokenistic.
Partners across the development sector are invited to join a learning event exploring how the Climate Just Communities (CJC) project in Zambia used community-driven, rights-based approaches to reduce barriers and strengthen inclusive participation in climate justice programming, particularly for women, youth, and people with disabilities.
Funded by the Scottish Government, the Climate Just Communities (CJC) programme ran from August 2023 to March 2026 and aimed to build inclusive climate resilience in climate-vulnerable communities in Malawi, Rwanda and Zambia. In its final year, the CJC Zambia project commissioned a learning paper (available online here) to capture lessons on effective inclusion approaches, with a particular focus on people with disabilities.
- The webinar will share findings from the learning paper, alongside case studies and an interactive panel discussion with the Scottish Government and project delivery partners to explore:
- Common barriers and bottlenecks to inclusive, climate-resilient livelihoods, especially those faced by people with disabilities.
- Examples of effective approaches to embedding disability inclusion across climate adaptation initiatives.
- Key lessons learned, including how the programme adapted in response to emerging evidence.
- Practical recommendations for donors, policymakers and implementers.