Implementation of climate change adaptation policy in the local spatial development plans in Warsaw: A case study

Abstract The purpose of this paper is to present how a city’s strategy to strengthen its resilience to climate change threats, as formulated in the Urban Adaptation Plan (UAP), is implemented in Local Spatial Development Plans (LSDPs), using Warsaw as a case study. The results of this exploratory study conducted in Warsaw show that the potential of local spatial planning for climate change adaptation is well utilised, and that LSDPs effectively implement the city’s strategy to strengthen its resilience to climate change threats, as formulated in the UAP for Warsaw. As the study is limited to the capital city, it would be interesting to examine how the situation looks in other major cities in Poland, using the current study’s results as a reference point. Considering that the policy-making process, including adaptation to climate change, may encounter cognitive, social, organisational/institutional, technological and financial barriers or constraints in nature, future research could include other research methods, such as monitoring the implementation of LSDPs provisions in urban space and interviews with spatial planners, municipal authorities, city residents and investors.