CBA19 will be hosted in Recife, Brazil the week of 12 May 2025 – just months before COP30 in the same country. The conference will feature stories of climate action and community-based innovation from across Latin America and the rest of the world.

For the first time in its 19-year history, the International Conference on Community-Based Adaptation to Climate Change will be held in a Latin American country.

The 19th International Conference on Community-Based Adaptation to Climate Change (CBA19) will take place during the week commencing 12 May 2025 in Recife, Brazil. So participants can now save the date for the only adaptation conference that prioritises voices and solutions from the frontline communities most impacted by climate change.

IIED will co-host CBA19 with the state government of Pernambuco and the Institute for Climate and Society (ICS). We are delighted to be gathering in a new part of the world for the 2025 conference and will soon begin the process of putting together the agenda.

CBA19 will be a bit different – participants can expect more interactivity, with field trips integrated into the agenda and engaging sessions in English, Portuguese and Spanish. But as always, the CBA agenda will be shaped by its participants. We are also looking to include a range of hybrid options to maximise global engagement.

IIED executive director Tom Mitchell said: “We’ve chosen to host the meeting in Recife, and to do it in May before COP30 in Belem, to treat it as a key stepping stone – both in Brazil and in South America, and internationally – for taking the voices, solutions and local engagement of community groups and community representatives to have their voice heard in the COP process.”

Make sure to mark your calendar for the week commencing 12 May 2025. Registrations for the conference will open in the new year, and we’ll be providing updates on the conference agenda, tickets and proceedings via email.

Call for Session Proposals

 The CBA19 programming committee is seeking proposals for sessions under each CBA19 conference theme:

• LLA (locally-led approaches to climate adaptation) in action (how to move from principles to practice, at scale, highlighting best practice and emerging innovations and challenges)
• Urban adaptation (achieving just and equitable adaptation that meets the needs of all urban dwellers, including issues around informality, infrastructure and health), and
• Nature/adaptation (highlighting the interconnections between nature and climate and the importance of local and Indigenous knowledge and practices in achieving just and equitable adaptation).

Session proposals should also address the overarching conference question: how can we achieve just and equitable adaptation.

To submit a session proposal, please fill in the required details below. 

The CBA19 programming committee, which is composed of representatives from a range of relevant organisations, will review all proposals and determine which to include in the agenda. 

Sessions will be assessed against their fit with the overarching CBA19 question and the three themes. We are particularly interested in sessions that bring together diverse voices, share experiences and build on the increasing body of evidence around LLA. All CBA sessions prioritise inclusion and participation. We encourage the use of interactive formats that engage participants in engaging dialogue and discussion. 

 The deadline to submit a proposal is Monday 17 February 2025.

To read the complete call for sessions on the official CBA19 website, click here.

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Photo by Datingjungle on Unsplash.