Adaptation policies must be built around the local communities facing climate change

Municipal governments are at the forefront of climate adaptation, developing plans and responding when disasters strike.

But even though local governments are limited to their municipal boundaries, events like floods, wildfires, extreme heat and drought are not, often affecting numerous communities at once.

Adapting to a changing climate requires greater co-operation and co-ordination across different orders of government.

While Canada has made palpable progress in terms of climate adaptation, a fundamental governance problem remains.

Local governments maintain around 60 per cent of the critical infrastructure most exposed to flooding, wildfires, heat, erosion and freeze-thaw cycles.

These include roads, bridges, water systems and wastewater systems.

Yet many of those municipalities lack the financial, human and technological resources to adapt to a changing climate.

In its 2026 progress report on climate adaptation , the Canadian government said it has dedicated more than $2.1 billion to its National Adaptation Strategy since 2022.

It also cited 141 climate resilience initiatives supported by the Green Municipal Fund in 128 communities.

However, successfully adapting to climate change means accounting for the geographic scale of climate risks rather than waiting for each municipality to fend for itself.

As Canadian officials prepare to attend the COP31 climate conference in early November , they must consider how policies can be developed to support municipalities as they respond to climate change.

Canada is adapting, but unevenly I study territorial circular economy transition in Québec where governance, infrastructure decisions and organizational models shape what can actually be implemented locally.

Territorial climate action is an approach that, first, reflects the specific characteristics of cities, regions and rural areas and, second, allows for co-ordinated climate policy between all levels of government.

The area concerned could be a watershed in the case of flooding, or a metropolitan area, where neighbouring municipalities must consider how their public health, electricity and transport systems could be impacted by climate events.