Operationalizing the Loss and Damage Fund: Learning from the perspectives of funders and potential recipients

This brief summarizes key points that emerged from recent research specifically intended to inform the loss and damage fund’s design to help it to achieve its aims.

The brief presents key recommendations and highlights key trade-offs that warrant careful consideration based on information from two reports: (i) “Operationalising the Loss and Damage Fund: Learning from the Funding Mosaic” (Schultheiß et al., 2023), which brings together information from potential funders and the existing funding landscape; and (ii) a complementary report, “Operationalizing the Loss and Damage Fund: Learning from the Intended Beneficiaries” (Bakhtaoui et al., 2023), which draws on insights from those representing and working with potential fund applicants in governments and organizations throughout the Global South.

The reports are based upon a desk-based evaluation of existing funding institutions; interviews held with representatives of existing funding institutions, including multilateral climate funds, multilateral development banks, humanitarian aid institutions, and philanthropies; and regional focus groups conducted with potential recipients in Asia, Africa, Latin America and Small Island Developing States (SIDS), which included national government actors, local government actors, local funders and local NGOs. The research was led by the Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI), Germanwatch and the International Centre for Climate Change and Development (ICCCAD).