Climate politics and governance across scales

One of my key interests is understanding climate politics and governance across different levels of action. This work has analysed the role of ideas and knowledge in shaping national planning processes around climate change, the role of international urban networks in influencing action in cities, and how local action, national policies, international organisations and adaptation finance interact to shape decisions and action on the ground.

Effective adaptation and measurement

I am interested in what constitutes effective adaptation and my research has focused on practical tools and approaches to assess how effective programmes are, approaches to the global adaptation goal in the Paris Agreement, as well as research analysing how evaluation and learning systems interact with local and national planning processes. I am developing new work on the politics of measurement practices in adaptation.

Gender, inclusion and innovation

I am interested in how gender and other dimensions of exclusion or marginalisation affect people’s engagement with and ability to influence climate policies and finance. I also work on innovation as a political process and its relationship to adaptation.

There is more about my academic work here.

Academic and policy publications

Peer-reviewed articles, books and book chapters

  • Fisher, S., 2023, Four questions to enhance the effectiveness and the adequacy of adaptation in the global stocktake, UNEP Perspectives Series.

  • Fisher, S., 2023, Opening up new regional ontologies around adapting to climate change, Tijdschrift voor Economische en Sociale Geografie, https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/tesg.12552

  • Beauchamp, E., Abdella, J., Fisher, S., McPeak, J., Patnaik, H., Koulibaly, P., Cisse, D., Toure, M., Bocoum, A., Ndao, M., Deme, Y., Gueye, B., 2019 Resilience from the ground up: how are local resilience perceptions and global frameworks aligned? Disasters, 43 (S3) S295-S317.

  • Fisher, S., and Dodman, D., 2019, Addressing climate uncertainties in urban adaptation through social learning: climate science, process and politics. Environmental Policy and Governance, https://doi.org/10.1002/eet.1851.

  • Fisher, S., Dodman, D., Van Epp, M., and Garside, B., 2018, The usability of climate information in local governments in India, Uganda and Kenya: social learning and the role of intermediaries. Climatic Change. vol. 151(2), pages 219-245.

  • Craft, B. and Fisher, S., 2018, Measuring the adaptation goal in the global stocktake of the Paris Agreement. Climate Policy. 18:9, pages 1203-120.

  • Rai, N., and Fisher, S., (eds), 2016, The political economy of low carbon resilient development planning, Routledge, UK.

    o   Rai, N., and Fisher, S., Understanding the politics of low-carbon resilient development in the least developed countries, pages 1-21.

    o   Fisher, S., Poggi, C., Steinbach, D., and Huq, S., National and international experiences of low carbon resilient development, pages 22-48.

    o   Fisher, S., Kallore, M., Islam, N., Tesfaye, L., and Rwirahira, J., Storylines of low carbon and resilient development: finance, ownership and shifting synergies, pages 49-64.

    o   Fisher, S., Supporting effective low-carbon resilient development: lessons from the political economy of the LDCs, pages 152-169.

  • Fisher, S., Dinshaw, A., McGray, H., Schaar, J., and Rai, N., 2015, Using methodologies from international development to address the challenges of monitoring and evaluating climate change adaptation, New Directions For Evaluation, Issue 147, p13-35.

  • Fisher, S., 2015, The emerging geographies of climate justice, The Geographical Journal, Vol 181, No 1. p 73-82.

  • Fisher, S., 2014, Exploring nascent climate policies in Indian cities: a role for policy mobilities?, International Journal of Urban Sustainable Development, 6:2, p154-173.

  • Fisher, S., 2012, Policy storylines in the Indian climate change regime: opening new political space?, Environment and Planning C, 30:1 p109-127.

  • Fisher, S., 2012, India's climate change policies and politics in Bailey, I., and Compston, H., (Eds), Feeling the Heat: Political Strategy and climate policy outside the affluent West, Palgrave Macmillan.

Selected working papers, reports and policy articles

  • Fisher, S., and Anderson, S., 2018, Developing meaningful local metrics for adaptation: learning from applying the TAMD framework at local scales in Christiansen, L., Martinez, G., and Naswa, P. (eds), 2018, Adaptation Metrics: perspectives on measuring, aggregating and comparing adaptation results. UNEP DTU Partnership: Copenhagen.

  • Fisher, S., and Shakya, C., 2018, Gendered voices for climate action, a theory of change for the meaningful inclusion of local experiences in decision-making, IIED, UK.

  • Economic Commission for Africa, 2016. Economic Report for Africa: Greening Industrialisation (contributing author). Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

  • Fisher, S., and Mohun, R., 2015, Low carbon resilient development and gender equality in the least developed countries, IIED Issue Paper, IIED, UK.

  • Craft, B., and Fisher, S., 2015, National experiences can inform global goal for adaptation, IIED policy briefing, IIED, UK.

  • Dinshaw, A., Fisher, S., McGray, H., Schaar, J., and Rai, N., 2014, Methodologies for monitoring and evaluation of adaptation, OECD Working Paper 41, Paris.

  • Brooks, N., and Fisher, S., 2014, Tracking adaptation and measuring development: a step by step guide, IIED Toolkit, UK.

  • Fankhauser, S., Ranger, N., Colmer, J., Fisher, S., 2013, Surminski, S., Stainforth, D., and Williamson, A., 2013, An Independent National Adaptation Programme for England, Policy Paper, Grantham Research Institute.

  • Fisher, S., and Slaney, M., 2013, The monitoring and evaluation of climate change adaptation in Nepal: a review of national systems, Research report, IIED.

  • Tacoli, C., Bakari B., and Fisher S., 2013, Urban food security and climate change, IIED Working Paper, IIED, UK.

  • Ranger, N., and Fisher, S., 2013, The Challenges of Climate Change and Exposure Growth for Disaster Risk Management in Developing Countries, expert paper for the UK Foresight report (Government Office of Science)