Chapter 12: Measuring the Immeasurable: Towards an Integrated Evaluation Framework of Climate Change Adaptation Projects

The chapter explores challenges that characterize the evaluation of climate change adaptation projects. These are related to the particular nature and characteristics of the vast majority of adaption projects which imply a number of methodological issues such as the existence of long-term time scales and infrequent events, the high level of uncertainty and shifting baselines, the presence of co-benefits, and the absence of agreed metrics. After having analysed these methodological challenges in detail, the chapter outlines an integrated framework for the evaluation of climate change adaptation projects, based on four interrelated components specifically developed to take into account the peculiarities of climate change adaptation projects: evaluation criteria, theory of change, logical framework, and project indicators. The chapter concludes with the application of the integrated evaluation framework to concrete adaption projects implemented by the United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) through its Local Climate Adaptive Living Facility (LoCAL).