ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the challenge for climate change adaptation from planning for adaptation that is, planning and designing of spatial structures that render the Netherlands more robust to climate change on the basis of the present knowledge, to adaptive planning. It explores some important aspects for improving the institutional setting for adaptive planning. The chapter further presents a short introduction into possible climate change effects within the Dutch urban context, and some typical technical and planning measures for counteracting them. It describes the fact that adaptive planning calls for institutionalization of these normative choices for certain policy instruments. Adaptive planning takes place in interaction between government bodies, between government and citizens, and between government and private sector companies. The concept of adaptive planning as elaborated is only applicable to climate change. New policy instruments could improve the conditions for political and administrative awareness of climate change in decision making.
