Mikkel Funder

• PhD
• Senior Researcher at Danish Institute for International Studies

In this article, we call for more attention to the national and local politics of climate change in developing countries, and contribute to this through a study of climate change adaptation interventions in Zambia. We show how such interventions can form part of central state efforts to extend authority and control over natural resources, and how c...

When climate change policies are implemented in practice, they travel through the hands of a range of practitioners who not only mediate but also potentially transform climate interventions. This article highlights the role of a group of actors whose practices have so far received little attention in the study of climate change governance, namely...

Renewable energy companies increasingly employ community engagement professionals tasked with facilitating dialogue and collaborative activities with communities in project areas. Situated at the interface between corporate renewable energy production and community needs and grievances, these practitioners occupy a potentially significant position...

The transfer of climate finance to developing countries is a key feature in global climate change agreements. This article examines how conflicting interests between climate finance donors and domestic actors affect the diffusion of emerging international norms on climate finance coordination at national and subnational levels in Zambia. Informed b...

Climate change adaptation is critically important for communities in the Global South. Land and land rights are key assets in adaptation. However, our understanding of the ways in which community adaptation strategies develop under different land tenure systems – and how such strategies shape local land tenure systems – remains limited. This artic...

Locally-led adaptation (LLA) is a framework of key principles for how to support communities in adapting to climate change. This policy brief looks at a study of six LLA water-related projects in Kenya and Tanzania to explore how donors, governments and civil society actors can best support the approach.

Climate change adaptation is a major global challenge and key to securing livelihoods and economies in the Global South. Locally-led adaptation (LLA) is gaining momentum as an approach to integrate local context, address equity concerns, and enhance the efficiency of adaptation efforts. This study focuses on LLA in the water sector, examining progr...

Land rights issues underpin a number of the key agendas in climate action in the Global South, ranging from compensation for Loss and Damage over adaptation to mitigation. They are critical for successful implementation of many major initiatives agreed at UNFCCC COPs, and they are important for a just transition in the Global South. Yet land...

This Policy Brief draws on empirical research in Kenya to show how differences in wealth and access to land lead to differentiated adaptation strategies among pastoralist communities. Policies and projects that aim to support pastoral adaptation must therefore move beyond the normal "One-size-fits-all" approach, and instead aim to support locally i...

The Adaptation Research Alliance (ARA) aims to bridge action and research on climate adaptation. This report brings together experiences from ARA members on what works and what does not when designing, conducting, and using action-oriented research on climate change adaptation. ARA operates with an emphasis on bridging action and research on clima...

The governance of public climate finance for mitigation and adaptation in developing countries is fragmented on both the international and national levels, with a high diversity of actors with overlapping mandates, preferences, and areas of expertise. In the absence of one unifying actor or institution, coordination among actors has emerged as a re...

How does urban expansion interact with pastoral climate change adaptation? This article explores pastoral adaptation strategies at the rural-urban interface. It examines how Maasai pastoralists in peri-urban Nairobi, Kenya, respond to climate hazards in the context of urban expansion, land use change, and land privatisation. Drawing on the literatu...

Community monitoring can track environmental phenomena, resource use, and natural resource management processes of concern to community members. It can also contribute to planning and decision-making and empower community members in resource management. While community monitoring that addresses the environmental crisis is growing, it also gathers d...

This study examines how political and technical factors influence climate finance coordination in different country contexts. Emerging scholarly and policy literature calls for the improved coordination of climate finance to enhance the effectiveness of multiple sources of funding for adaptation and mitigation purposes, with country ownership over...

As debates on the colonial legacies in SouthNorth academic collaboration continue, there is a persistent need to address the structures of inequality in research partnerships from both sides. In September 2021, researchers from Kenya, Ghana and Denmark, working together in three multi-year collaborative research programs funded by the Danish Minist...

We are observing a significant increase in the deployment of large scale solar and wind technologies in the global south, and it is therefore a strategically and academically important focus of inquiry to understand context-specific spaces for locally-embedded actors to initiate energy transitions. This paper examines the linkages between the energ...

Nature-based Solutions (NbS) aim at protecting natural ecosystems as a means of addressing climate-and development challenges. The growing emphasis on NbS offers opportunities but also involves risks for indigenous peoples and local communities across the Global South. If done in the wrong way, NbS can lead to ‘green grabbing’ whereby communities l...

This DIIS Working Paper provides a status and overview of the Great Green Wall initiative since its inception in 2007 and considers whether such green mega-projects actually work. The original vision of the Great Green Wall project was to create a 15-km-wide vegetation barrier over a length of at least 7,000 km (later updated to 8,000 km) along the...

Since the Paris Agreement in 2015, adaptation debates have increasingly shifted from focusing narrowly on finance to considerations around governance of programming, implementation and impact of support for climate change mitigation and adaptation. Most of the finance for climate change adaptation is currently used and governed at international and...

There is a growing emphasis on biodiversity conservation outside conventional protected areas. This offers new opportunities for both conservation and development, but it also poses a risk of ‘green grabbing’ whereby communities lose access to land and natural resources that are key for their survival and resilience. Community Based Conservation (...

Two major bilateral climate funds exist that support developing countries with climate aid: the Climate Investment Funds and Green Climate Fund. However, their differing structures and overlapping focus areas create redundancies and competition. This policy brief argues that funding coordination challenges must be considered in a political context...

Research on environmental governance would benefit from greater attention to the practices, agency and subjectivities of the frontline civil servants who implement and shape environmental policies and interventions on the ground. These actors conduct the everyday work of bringing global agreements and state policies into being. In doing so, they in...

Nature-based Solutions (NbS) to climate- and development-related challenges have recently gained attention in development cooperation. This Working Paper focuses on nature-based solutions to climate change adaptation, also known as Ecosystem-based Adaptation (EbA). It provides an overview of selected lessons learnt from EbA in the context of develo...

Locally based monitoring is typically undertaken in areas in which communities have a close attachment to their natural resource base. We present a summary of work to develop a theoretical and practical understanding of locally based monitoring and we outline tests of this approach in research and practice over the past 20 years. Our tests show tha...

Denmark’s development cooperation supports climate change mitigation in a number of countries. This study, conducted by the UNEP DTU Partnership and DIIS, provides an overview of Denmark’s support in recent years, and discusses this in relation to overall developments in global mitigation commitments and -financing. The study presents key trends i...

This Preparatory Study, commissioned by the Evaluation Department of Denmark’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, lays the groundwork for an evaluation of Danish support to climate change adaptation through development cooperation. The study provides overviews of all Danish climate change adaptation-related Official Development Assistance (ODA) from 2008...

Renewable energy is key to combatting climate change, but it is critical to ensure a just energy transition that benefits all. Denmark’s development cooperation supports the growth of large-scale renewable energy schemes in several countries, but what is good for recipient governments and Danish exports is not automatically good for the poor. In r...

Addressing climate and security challenges for the long term involves societal transformation and the development of resilience. These are not primarily military tasks but civilian and governance tasks, and it is important to avoid ‘securitizing’ climate change. Yet military actors are increasingly being confronted with climate change in policy deb...

Analysis of pastoral responses to environmental crises in Kenya, and what the world can learn from this in terms of living with uncertainty.

Climate change has a severe impact on the livelihoods and economies of developing countries and will constrain achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals on virtually all fronts. While efforts to reduce emissions are obviously vital, it is equally critical that societies adapt to the already ongoing impact of climate change. Integrating clim...

The world needs resilient societies. In order to achieve this, adaptation to climate change is key. Denmark's development cooperation should take a leading role in the integration of climate change adaptation and development. This brief points to three areas for action.

Understanding the role of state actors in natural resource governance requires a nuanced view that moves beyond a monolithic view of the state. The aim of this chapter is to encourage a grounded perspective on one particular group of state actors, namely the public servants who work at the frontline of the state as key actors in the everyday implem...

With the establishment of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in 1992, developed countries committed to mobilizing $100 billion a year in publicly- and privately-sourced finance to assist developing countries in their societal response to climate change. Although this goal remains to be achieved, developing countries...

To veje tegner sig i diskussionen om biologisk mangfoldighed: En, der satser på at adskille natur og samfund ved at frede store dele af naturen, og en, der satser på at integrere natur og samfund ved at sammentænke de to. Men der er også en mellemvej.

Analysis of common climate change challenges in Kenya and Danmark, published in Danish national newspaper 'Politiken' 13 April, 2019

There is a growing recognition of the role of meso-level institutions that operate between the central state and communities in facilitating climate change adaptation at local and district levels. This article explores how collaborative approaches to planned adaptation by an external agent in Ghana can create linkages between meso-level institution...

Most debates on climate change and migration have focused on people’s individual mobility in response to climate change. In recent years, however, state-led resettlement of populations severely exposed to climate change impacts – referred to as Planned Relocation – has emerged as a possible response. Yet little is known about how such interventions...

Der har været meget fokus på, at klimaforandringerne kan bidrage til massemigration fra fattige lande mod nord. Men hvad siger forskningen egentlig?

With decentralization policies in place in many African countries, rural local governments are in principle well positioned to create an enabling environment for climate change adaptation. But what is in fact the situation on the ground? What is the real-world context in which rural local governments in African countries operate in terms of climate...

Klimaet trækkes i stigende grad ind i populistiske og/eller mere eller mindre autoritære politiske dagsordener.

The Government of Zambia is making important progress in establishing a national framework for climate change adaptation. However, there is a need for more attention to the crucial role of district level institutions such as Local Government, local sector agencies and NGOs.

The Green Climate Fund will play a key role in channeling climate funds to developing countries. But it should not be assumed that these funds will automatically benefit the world’s poor. Three specific areas need more attention in the development of the GCF.

I lande som Mozambique, Zambia og Zimbabwe i det sydlige Afrika og bl.a. i Vietnam eksperimenterer man med at flytte folk væk fra de store floder for at undgå hyppige oversvømmelser af landsbyer.

Afrika har det med at blive hensat til offerrollen. Det gælder også i klimakrisen, hvor afrikanske lande ofte fremstilles som passive ofre for tørke og oversvømmelser. Den opfattelse er dog i stigende grad fejlagtig. Afrikanske regeringer, virksomheder og befolkninger forholder sig stadig mere aktivt til klimaforandringerne, og på nogle områder er...

Many have pointed to the important role of local governments and other sub-national institutions in climate change adaptation. Yet little is known about the way such institutions are responding to climate change, and how they interact with the central state and local communities in practice. This report brings together key findings from a collabora...

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDG's) represent the most ambitious global development agenda in history. Achieving them will require financing far beyond traditional aid, especially at a time where established donors are cutting or diverting aid budgets to meet refugee and security issues. Alternative sources of development financing such as th...

Syn på verden og egne interesser er afgørende for, hvordan klimaaftalen fortolkes. Tekniske uenigheder er en biting.

Verdens politikere har med nød og naeppe bestået en vigtig test af fremtidens internationale samarbejde: De er nået frem til en aftale om finansiering af kampen mod fattigdom.

Bricolage in natural resource governance takes place through the interaction of a variety of actors. This article explores the practices of a group whose agency as bricoleurs has received little attention, namely the government officers who represent the state in the everyday management of water, land, forests and other resources across rural Afric...

Access to water is increasingly recognized as a pivotal issue in household food security. Such access is partly influenced by physical water availability and the technological and economic constraints to exploiting water resources. However, relative water scarcity in terms of unequal distribution of water resources is equally critical. Access to wa...

A growing number of civil society organisations apply a rights based approach in their work. But what are the practical experiences with such approaches in climate change adaptation? This report examines how NGOs in Cambodia and Kenya are approaching the issue of human rights in their efforts to support climate change adaptation. It finds that whil...

This report compares and contrasts how disaster risk management is being conceptualised in relation to emerging climate change adaptation efforts and how these two agendas are influenced by different governance systems, accountabilities and social contracts in Zambia, Uganda, Viet Nam and Nepal. Particular attention is paid to how this relates to d...

Er det en menneskeret at blive beskyttet mod klimaforandringer?

Inconsistent climate change policies increase the vulnerability of marginalised populations and lead to resource conflicts. A human rights-based approach can help protect the adaptive capacities of climate vulnerable populations.

Økonomisk set går det tilsyneladende fremad i Kenya, der er vækst og fremdrift, og nu har de også fundet olie. Alligevel er manden på gaden bekymret. Hvorfor?

Naturfredning i Afrika, er det ikke noget med baby-elefanter og voksne mænd i khaki-shorts? Måske, men det er også skueplads for en stadigt mere globaliseret kamp om adgang til det vildt og tømmer, som findes i og omkring Afrikas nationalparker, skovområder og vildtreservater.

The rapid global growth of conservation schemes designed to incentivize local communities to conserve natural resources has placed new importance on biological monitoring to assess whether agreements and targets linked to payments are being met. To evaluate competence in natural resource monitoring, we compared data on status and trends collected i...

In the past ten years a significant number of policies and projects have been implemented in African countries in order to address climate change. At the same time, African countries have become more vocal in the global climate change negotiations. And yet there has been little analysis of domestic climate change agendas in African countries. This...

I afrikanske lokalsamfund er der en lang tradition for at tilpasse sig det omkringliggende miljø, og det ser man også nu.

Drawing on a study of community‑managed forest reserves in southern Tanzania, this article discusses how community members engage and shape inclusive protected area management practices to produce outcomes that were not intended by external implementers. The article shows how a participatory natural resource monitoring scheme becomes part of the vi...

In the past ten years a significant number of policies and projects have been implemented in African countries in order to address climate change. At the same time, African countries have become more vocal in the global climate change negotiations. And yet there has been little analysis of domestic climate change agendas in African countries. This...

Environmental governance takes place at many levels of society through statutory as well as through customary institutions and with the involvement of a wide range of actors. As societies change and new economic actors as well as new ways of using natural resources develop, the need for the establishment of a statutory framework for environmental g...

Different monitoring approaches collect data that can measure progress toward achieving global environmental indicators. These indicators can: (1) Audit management actions; (2) Inform policy choices; and (3) Raise awareness among the public and policy makers. We present a generic, empirically based, framework of different environmental monitoring a...

Kritiske røster advarer mod, at indførelse af grøn økonomi i Afrika i virkeligheden er et skalkeskjul for vestlige virksomheder. Lokalbefolkningen risikerer at blive den store taber.

Since the 1990s, many African countries have invested in efforts to develop national frameworks to address crosscutting environmental management issues and problems. But how and to what extent have these frameworks been implemented at the local level? And what has been the contribution of development cooperation? This report seeks to improve our in...

Since the 1990s, many African countries have invested in efforts to develop national frameworks to address crosscutting environmental management issues and problems. But how and to what extent have these national frameworks been implemented at the local level? And what has been the contribution of development cooperation in this respect? This repor...

Klimaforandringerne er virkelige, og konsekvenserne for især verdens fattigste lande er betydelige. Men klimaet må aldrig blive en undskyldning for fejlslagen udvikling.

This article presents the results of comprehensive inventories made of water-related conflict and cooperation occurring in five districts in Africa, Asia and Latin America between 1997 and 2007. Following a description of the conceptual and methodological framework developed for undertaking these inventories, the article documents the extent, natur...

Media stories often speak of a future dominated by large-scale water wars. Rather less attention has been paid to the way water conflicts already play out at local levels and form part of people’s everyday lives. Based on case study studies from Vietnam, Bolivia and Zambia, this paper examines the strategies of poor households in local water confli...

Climate change is rarely the sole cause of conflicts, but it can intensify and multiply them. This report presents the main findings of a desk study of experiences with conflict prevention and resolution in natural resource management, and how these can be applied in development cooperation.

This report presents the main findings of a desk study of experiences with conflict prevention and resolution in natural resource management, and how these can be applied in development cooperation in relation to climate change. The report briefly discusses the link between climate change and conflict, including the need to see climate change as a...

I disse år dukker forestillingen om en fremtid fuld af klimakonflikter ofte op i medierne.

Based on a questionnaire survey carried out during 2008 in in Namwala district, Zambia, this Working Paper provides data on household poverty profiles and access to water for poor, less poor and non-poor households and their contact to water governance institutions. The work was part of the collaborative Competing for Water research programme which...

Understanding the nature of water conflict and cooperation is a crucial element in water governance within Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM). Much of the recent attention to the issue has however focused on transboundary aspects, while we know rather less about the nature and dynamics of local water conflict and cooperation. Drawing on t...

Critical analysis of participatory community development has claimed that such approaches serve as a vehicle for social control and co-option by external actors. Drawing on a case study from Southern Thailand, this article argues that we need to take a less deterministic perspective, and pay more attention to the ways in which community members the...

The proposed mechanism for Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation (REDD+) offers significant potential for conserving forests to reduce negative impacts of climate change. Tanzania is one of nine pilot countries for the United Nations REDD Programme, receives significant funding from the Norwegian, Finnish and German governments and...

Introduction Conventional scientist-executed forms of monitoring are expensive and rely upon highly skilled scientists or technicians (Danielsen et al., 2000). As such only a small amount of this type of monitoring is undertaken in developing countries, where funding and available expertise are limited. This is unfortunate as the developing countri...

Our knowledge of local water conflicts tends to be based on sporadic accounts and anecdotal evidence. This working paper presents the findings from an attempt to coduct a systematic inventory of water related conflict- and cooperation events in Namwala District in Zambia over a 10 year period. The work was part of the collaborative Competing for Wa...

This paper describes a case of local water conflict and cooperation in Namwala District in Zambia and is one of several similar papers developed within the Competing for Water research programme. The papers were initially prepared as part of the internal documentation for the research programme, but have been made publically available on the intern...

This paper describes a case of local water conflict and cooperation in Namwala District in Zambia and is one of several similar papers developed within the Competing for Water research programme. The papers were initially prepared as part of the internal documentation for the research programme, but have been made publically available on the intern...

Det er gennem vand, at mange mennesker allerede i dag mærker effekterne af klimaforandringer. I forskningsprogrammet Competing for Water har vi kortlagt konflikt og samarbejde om vand gennem en 10-årig periode i Bolivia, Mali, Nicaragua, Vietnam og Zambia. Vores kortlægning tyder på at (1) en meget stor andel af såvel de samarbejdsprægede som de k...

The monitoring of trends in the status of species or habitats is routine in developed countries, where it is funded by the state or large nongovernmental organizations and often involves large numbers of skilled amateur volunteers. Far less monitoring of natural resources takes place in developing countries, where state agencies have small budgets,...

Otte år inde i det nye årtusinde står de afrikanske lande med en udfordring af dimensioner.

Efforts to understand the relationship between environmental trends and local livelihoods has led to the adoption of qualitative fieldwork approaches in many interdisciplinary environmental studies in developing countries. This paper discusses how bias, presuppositions and power relations affect and form part of such approaches, with a particular e...

This chapter presents the findings of a multi-disciplinary study of the social and environmental impacts of infrastructure development in the uplands of the Lao PDR. Specifically, the study examines how road development influences livelihoods and land use in the Ca River Basin in Xieng Khouang Province.

This report looks into the household level impacts of Zimbabwe's community based conservation programme, CAMPFIRE. It presents and comments on the findings of a study carried out in two villages using Participatory Rural Appraisal. Particular attention is given to differences within the communities, showing how gender and wealth affects impacts of...