Climate Change Adaptation in South Asian Cities: A Scoping Review of Literature from 2008 to 2022

Abstract

South Asian cities, home to nearly 700 million people, are rapidly urbanising while facing intensifying climate impacts such as heatwaves, flooding, and sea-level rise. This paper presents a systematic review of 622 academic publications from 2008 to 2022, analysing how climate adaptation policymaking has been approached through non-structural and structural measures. Of these, 129 publications were analysed in depth, revealing a strong connection between extreme climate events and the resulting policy developments. The findings highlight a dominant focus on non-structural measures and secondary cities, yet also underscore how separating non-structural from structural interventions risks fragmenting adaptation strategies. This fragmentation can marginalise vulnerable communities, reflecting a market-based, technocratic governance model. Informality, particularly in peri-urban areas, emerges as a critical yet underexplored dimension of urban vulnerability. The review calls for inclusive adaptation efforts that involve co-produced knowledge and active participation of local communities, emphasising the need to bridge the gap between structural and non-structural approaches. By integrating informality, strengthening governance capacity, and fostering collaborations across societal actors, policymakers and practitioners can develop more equitable and resilient urban systems to effectively address climate challenges in South Asian cities.

Keywords: climate change, urban adaptation, South Asia, non-structural measures, structural measures, policymaking