The poor in cities are faced with dual challenge – that of housing shortages and of increased vulnerability to climate change impacts, given the location of their houses as well as their capacities to recover. More often than not, housing for the urban poor is not only an asset, but also a place for income generation. Based on consultations with key stakeholder groups in Gorakhpur city in eastern India, this paper examines the housing vulnerability challenges faced by the urban poor. The paper analyses the existing constraints within the current financial mechanisms for home mortgages, especially for low income group households; the lack of technical capacities of the local masons on low cost and climate resilient building techniques; and the absence of information at the household level towards creating a demand for climate resilient housing construction. Recognising and revamping the micro-finance mechanisms to cater to the housing needs of this section of the population (labourers, daily wagers, petty shop owners, etc.) who do not have the necessary documentation, such as proof of income and land titles, are some of the suggestions put forward to improve the cost and accessibility of financing. Building the capacity of local masons on climate resilient building techniques – as part of the government’s skills development programme – is also an important part of resilience building at the local level for the urban poor. To create a demand for climate resilient housing, there is a need for awareness generation amongst the people, coupled with policies that mandate the linking of home loans with resilient designs and techniques. AsiAn Cities ClimAte ResilienCe 4

With cities representing concentrations of risk from many of the impacts of climate change, local communities are beginning to consider and implement actions to adapt to current or likely future impacts. Tools that can supplement existing community knowledge in assessing flood and other disaster risks have a valuable role to play, particularly in cases where the lack of reliable data in the public domain can impede local level planning. Such tools include Geographical Information System (GIS) and Global Positioning System (GPS) which can be used by trained local communities to assess flood risk intensity at a local level and hence develop risk management plans. This article describes how local communities in Gorakhpur, India have used participatory GIS to facilitate local resilience planning.