ABSTRACT
This chapter provides some background information on the evolution of adaptation and vulnerability planning in China and the United States. The chapter examines how climate adaptation planning has unfolded in both countries and how this corresponds with the current state of adaptation governance more broadly. It considers problems of low local capacity adaptation planning in China compared to the somewhat more advanced local planning in the United States. The chapter then provides deeper overviews of adaptation policy processes and planning instruments in both countries. The approaches to climate adaptation in both countries are briefly sketched. China’s focus on urban areas, food security, water and migration in the form of adaptation pilots, the preference for engineering and technological measures, and climate-induced ecological migration are compared with a lack of a clear national vision in the United States. National engagement in the United States shifts in time especially with changes in government. The lack of clear national guidance is met by significant adaptation efforts at the local level. The chapter concludes with detailed overviews of key actors and their understanding of adaptation and human vulnerability as well as relevant environmental laws and regulations.
