Adaptation Discourses and Modes of Governance in Swiss Alpine Regions

Work in progress – Please do not cite without permission Like other European countries, Switzerland has started to develop a national climate change adaptation strategy only rather recently. In contrast, Swiss cantonal (i.e., state-level) governments—in particular those in highly vulnerable mountain regions—have been more active in formulating and implementing adaptation measures. These measures, however, differ considerably with respect to scope, range, and mode within and across regions. In this paper, we analyze this variety of regional adaptation measures within the Swiss federalist political system looking specifically at three mountainous cantons in different parts of Switzerland. Particularly, we will try to explain the timely occurrence of these adaptation activities and the governance patterns that emanate from these activities at the regional level. Fur this purpose, we developed a dataset including all public (in the sense of ‘public policy’) adaptation measures in the three selected cantons for the period from 2001 to 2011 based on publicly available documentations such as legal documents, governmental and administrative reports, parliamentary minutes and press releases. The study shows that similar patterns over time in the occurrence of adaptation activities in the three regions can be observed. This similarity seems to be due to a trans-regional adaptation discourse shaped by the national and international policy agenda rather than by specific regional conditions such as the occurrence of locally explicit extreme events. The discussed or applied modes of governance in these adaptation activities, on the other hand, display some significant differences between the three regions. Most adaptation activities are information or research oriented with the cantonal government and its public administration being the main body in charge of the activities. However, the relevant fields of application (policy sectors) clearly reflect the topographical and socio-economic conditions in the three cantons