Abstract: Abstract: Adaptation to climate change is emerging as an important developmental challenge in Nepal and globally. To address climate change risks and vulnerabilities, a set of mutually integrated strategies are necessary at different sectors and levels. This paper examines institutional, technological and informational barriers to designing and implementing adaptation. In particular, it combines literature review and case studies to diagnose the limitation of adaptation and its institutional environment in Nepal. The findings reveal that there are limits to adaptation, which are caused by barriers of available technology, knowledge and institutional frameworks. These barriers undermine the effectiveness of the initiatives promoted both at the national as well as local level. Effective climate change requires addressing these barriers by reworking of the ways in which institutions operate and by building on the existing knowledge, skills, and best practices. This can be facilitated by changing the design of development planning and modes of delivery.

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The use of participatory approaches in devising disaster risk reduction strategies has increased. With the emergence of this new risk management approach, the concepts of vulnerability assessment and hazards analysis have been put into practice. This paper introduces an efficient, empirically tested, and user‐friendly hazards assessment tool (HAT). HAT follows six steps for a quick hazards assessment. They are i) identification of hazards, ii) historical overview of disasters, iii) severity and frequency analyses, iv) hazard ranking of communities, v) vulnerability scenario building, and vi) summary of hazards analysis. This paper describes each step in a very detailed way demonstrating its application in three village development committees of Nawalparasi District in Nepal. The applicability of HAT is reviewed in terms of promoting learning, fostering local empowerment and building participation, which are the basis of participatory methods of assessment. HAT bears generic criticism of participatory approaches which can be resolved with proper preparation and facilitation. HAT is an attempt to analyze people's perception of vulnerability and suffering from hazards by fostering their active participation in the process that pave the way to holistic disaster risk reduction strategies.

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