Assessing & Understanding Adaptation Pathways
We are working closely with the Environment Agency to raise awareness and improve understanding of adaptation pathways; an approach which helps us to make practical, low-risk investments today while retaining flexibility for an uncertain future.
Adaptation pathways allow us to plan for climate change by developing a flexible roadmap for a range of different climate scenarios. We know that the UK climate is changing, but we don’t know with absolute certainty when changes will occur, or how rapidly.
Engagement with place directors shows that councils need practical tools and case studies that demonstrate the application of adaptation pathway approaches. Beginning with simple steps to build a consensus before delving into technical assessments.
The adaptation pathway approach allows for timely, informed decisions, ensuring that resources are invested effectively. It allows decision makers to act even under climate uncertainty, identifying what actions can be taken now and, in the future, to plan and adapt for climate hazards and changes.
Environment Agency’s £8m Adaptation Pathways Programme – Video Resource
Together with the Environment Agency, we have developed an introductory ten-minute video, which aims to assist local authorities in understanding and implementing the adaptation pathways approach to manage flood and coastal risk and create resilient, thriving places.
The video includes animation to explain simply what an adaptation pathway approach is. It outlines how the approach can benefit local authorities, supporting placemaking and adaptive planning for all sources of flood risk.
It forms part of the Environment Agency’s £8m Adaptation Pathways Programme, which is developing long-term plans to adapt and invest in flooding and coastal change in four strategic locations. To find out more about the adaptation approach, please visit: Adaptation Pathway Programme | Engage Environment Agency (engagementhq.com)
You can watch the video here on YouTube.
Rapid Adaptation Pathways Assessment (RAPA)
RAPAs are ‘high-level’ adaptation pathways, developed in workshop settings. They use the expert judgement of participating stakeholders to identify thresholds and actions, using maps and defined data.
Early learning from the Environment Agency’s Adaptation Pathways Programme shows it’s helpful to bring partners together at an early stage to consider the problem at hand, rather than dive straight into detailed adaptation pathway building. It’s helpful to start simple: building consensus around one or more pathways before delving into technical assessment. RAPAs can help with this.
ADEPT and the Environment Agency have worked with three local authorities to test the approach and to create a RAPA toolkit, providing the tools for other local authorities to use the approach.
Pilot RAPA Approach
We tested the RAPA approach with workshops in three pilot locations: Marlborough (Wiltshire Council), Adur & Worthing (West Sussex County Council) and Severnside (South Gloucestershire Council & West of England Mayoral Combined Authority). These locations helped us to test the RAPA approach and use lessons learnt to develop the RAPA toolkit.
You can find more information on the pilot locations here.
RAPA Toolkit
In collaboration with the Environment Agency, we have developed a Rapid Adaptation Pathway Assessment toolkit. The toolkit and additional supporting resources are available via the Environment Agency Engagement HQ link below.
You can find a pdf of the RAPA Toolkit here.
This focuses on flood and coastal erosion risks and is aimed at local authorities, allowing them to undertake a basic rapid adaptation pathways assessment approach in their places and partnerships.
By using the RAPA approach, local authorities can take adaptation actions at the right time, avoiding the cost associated with acting too early or too late.
The concept is based on two key questions:
- Are there climate change impacts that make current assets or services inefficient, ineffective, or redundant?
- At these thresholds, what are the best options for enabling a local authority to continue to meet its objectives?
The RAPA toolkit was officially launched on 13th May 2025, with a webinar delivered in partnership with the Environment Agency.
Flood and coastal practitioners can access supporting templates and case studies from the Environment Agency’s Adaptation Pathways Knowledge Hub.
Webinar & Further Resources
You can find further resources on the Adaptation Pathway Programme | Engage Environment Agency (engagementhq.com) including a link to access the Adaptation Pathways Knowledge Hub.
