CLARE Capacity Strengthening Hub
The Capacity Strengthening (CS) Hub, part of the CLARE Programme, supports the CLARE initiative in its objective to strengthen capacity from research to action for sustainable, climate-resilient development. Hosted by the African Centre for Technology Studies (ACTS) and PlanAdapt, the CS Hub works closely with CLARE projects to strengthen capacity in climate change adaptation and resilience across individuals, organizations, and networks. The Hub provides tailored and demand-based virtual and in-person support for researchers, practitioners and project staff through training, facilitation, advisory services, and learning coordination.
Our Mission
The Capacity Strengthening Hub’s mission is to support locally led climate adaptation and resilience research to action by strengthening the capacity of researchers, practitioners and institutions engaged in CLARE.
Our Work
The Hub will serve the CLARE programme until December 2026, deepening the focus on strengthening networks, deepening research-for-impact capacities, and fostering innovation within the CLARE community. Emphasis is on supporting capacity strengthening, diverse learning methods, and inclusive capacity strengthening approaches through clear outcomes and inclusive metrics. This is an illustration of our core activities:
Figure 1: Conceptualization of our work. Source: Carys Richards – PlanAdapt
From seasonal schools and inclusive workshops to responsive funds, we promote collaboration, gender equality, and Southern leadership in climate resilience research. Here is a more detailed look at our work:
1. Strengthening Research and Research for Impact Capacities
We work to strengthen the capacities of researchers, practitioners and project staff to conduct research for climate-resilient development. This includes building both research capacities and research-for-impact capacities. To enhance these individual and institutional capacities for research and research uptake, we employ a diverse set of activities. These include targeted trainings and workshops, peer-learning sessions, seasonal schools, and specialized initiatives such as the CS Studio, CS Funds, Communities of Practice (COPs), and tailored support on concepts and advisory.
2. Promoting inclusive and well-designed CS Approaches
We provide support and guidance to CLARE projects to ensure their capacity-strengthening activities are well-designed, inclusive, and enhance southern leadership. Our efforts focus on embedding CS more deliberately within projects. This includes initiatives such as “the CS Responsive Fund” and the integration of CS-focused components into broader project designs
3. Learning about CS
We enable learning for the CLARE programme, to foster a deeper, critical understanding of the barriers and enablers to research-informed action and identify what capacities are required and by whom in these contexts. As the CS Hub, we not only track and share our progress – we’ve also developed a theory of change to understand how capacity strengthening is unfolding across the CLARE programme and our role within it. Through our learning agenda, we will actively explore the assumptions and pathways of how capacity strengthening occurs, working closely with the CLARE programme and projects to learn together.
Connect with us
Stay informed about new capacity-strengthening updates:
Bangladesh, Benin, Bhutan, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Fiji, Ghana, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Madagascar, Malawi, Maldives, Mauritius, Mozambique, Nepal, Niger, Nigeria, Philippines, Rwanda, Somalia, South Africa, South Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Zambia
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