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“Exploring the Use of Land Value Capture Instruments for Green Resilient Infrastructure Benefits”

Abstract

Team members from I2UD collaborated with the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy from 2015 through 2019 to produce a research paper that explores how land value capture can finance green resilient infrastructure (GRI) in rapidly urbanizing, climate-vulnerable cities, using a flood-mitigation river project in Santiago de Cali, Colombia as a case study.

This research provides evidence that green resilient infrastructure (GRI) can measurably increase land values—even in flood-prone, low-income urban areas—creating a real financial basis for climate adaptation. By showing that most of the land value uplift comes from green amenities rather than flood control alone, it demonstrates that well-designed GRI can both reduce climate risk and generate revenue that cities could recapture to fund resilience. However, without stronger institutional capacity and safeguards against displacement, land value capture for climate adaptation risks reinforcing inequality rather than financing equitable resilience.

Project Year:2015-2019
Project Type:Research and Policy Discussion
Geographic Regions:Cali, Colombia
Reports:Exploring the Use of Land Value Capture Instruments for Green Resilient Infrastructure Benefits (Working Paper, July 2019)
Authors:Stelios Grafakos; Alexandra Tsatsou; Luca D’Acci; James Kostaras; Adriana Patricia López Valencia; Nohemi Ramirez Aranda; Barbara Summers
Sponsors:Lincoln Institute of Land Policy
Categories:Climate Change and Resilience Building
  
ID:2015_10_001
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“Assessing Alternative Resiliency Strategies in Under-Resourced Coastal Communities in Belize Impacted by Climate Change and Vulnerable to Environmental Risk”

Abstract

From 2014-2016, team members at I2UD, in collaboration with Elizabeth Hamin and Jan Meerman, conducted research assessing climate resilience strategies for Dangriga, Belize, a low-lying coastal municipality vulnerable to sea-level rise, flooding, and severe storms. The study compares grey and green infrastructure approaches while evaluating whether land value capture and other land-based financing tools could support implementation in a low-capacity municipal context.

The report’s findings suggest green infrastructure offers a more flexible and cost-effective pathway for resilience, but financing remains constrained by weak land governance and institutional capacity. Land value capture shows promise, yet without stronger planning systems and municipal authority, resilience investments risk being impractical or inequitable, highlighting the need for integrated land-use planning and incremental, community-supported approaches.

Project Year:2014-2016
Project Type:Research and Policy Discussion
Geographic Regions:Dangriga, Belize
Reports:Assessing Alternative Resiliency Strategies, Belize (Working Paper, 2015)
Authors:James Kostaras; Elda Solloso; Maren Larsen; Elizabeth Hamin; Jan Meerman
Sponsors:Lincoln Institute of Land Policy; Belize Social Investment Fund
Categories:Climate Change and Resilience Building
  
ID:2014_12_001
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“Climate Change Adaptation and Resiliency Framework,” Development Strategy for Cartagena, Colombia and Condega, Nicaragua, 2012

Abstract

In 2012, I2UD assisted the municipalities of Cartagena, Colombia and Condega, Nicaragua to develop a “Climate Change Adaptation and Resiliency Framework” to inform their urban planning. The projects provided context for research on physical and social climate change vulnerabilities in informal settlements in Colombia and Nicaragua.

In partnership with the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy, the I2UD study team addressed changes in land policies to foster adaptation measures and facilitate their implementation, to assess social vulnerabilities, and to make institutional considerations. Reports demonstrated that lack of enforcement for housing or service regulations, poor quality construction, and environmental degradation increased vulnerabilities to climate change in both regions. Although the two municipalities had undertaken risk assessments, neither had specifically addressed the special vulnerabilities in informal settlement areas to floods and landslides resulting from climate change.

Documents include the final report from January 2014, followed by earlier concept papers, research presentations, report elements on Cartagena and Condega, and a curriculum outline. The final report is available in English and Spanish.



[Excerpt: Final Report, “Increasing the Resilience of Informal Settlements to Climate Change in Two Latin American Cities: Condega and Cartagena.” I2UD, January 2014.]

ABSTRACT
“The conceptual framework for the research is based on the documentation of climate change effects and adaptation approaches by the International Panel on Climate Change but it focuses on risks in informal and lower-income settlements. It adapts basic guidelines that apply fundamental principles found in current climate and urban planning literature to these settlements. Despite IPCC warnings, many cities in the developing world are taking a reactive approach to climate change, only addressing impacts when they become emergencies. A strategic approach fostering adaptation is needed to address the multiple dimensions of risk faced by urban settlements, particularly lower-income communities, and build their resilience. Underlying causes of vulnerability include the lack of developable, serviced urban land, unplanned urbanization and limited public resources, all of which arise from ineffective management of land as a valuable asset, a creator of development potential and a generator of public revenues.”

“Two case studies document and evaluate the strategies adopted by the cities of Condega, Nicaragua and Cartagena, Colombia to reduce climate change related risks in informal and lower-income settlements, and assess remaining sources of risk. The proposed land-based policies, instruments, and projects – some conventional and some more innovative – are intended to better prepare the communities through both remedial and preventive adaptation measures.”

Project Year:2012
Project Type:Risk Assessment and Local Development Strategy
Geographic Regions:Cartagena, Colombia / Condega, Nicaragua
Reports:
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Authors:Mona Serageldin; Warren Hagist; Carolina Morgan; Alejandra Mortarini; Mauricio Rodriguez Gomez; Luis Sevilla Fajardo; Alfredo Stein
Sponsors:Lincoln Institute of Land Policy
Categories:Climate Change and Resilience Building
  
ID:2012_10_001
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“Strategic Land Use Planning for Climate Change-Driven Water Shortages in El Alto, Bolivia”

Abstract

I2UD contributed to a research report that examines how the high-altitude city of El Alto, Bolivia faces water shortages driven by climate change—declining glacier melt, shrinking watersheds, rapid urban growth—and explores how land use planning and growth management can strengthen urban resilience.

The study shows that managing growth and land-use patterns is as important as water infrastructure—adaptation must integrate spatial planning, institutional capacity, and drought resilience to protect vulnerable populations in expanding cities. The study used land use scenarios and projected their impacts on water demands to guide the analysis.

Documents include the final report from 2013 and presentations in English and Spanish.

Project Year:2011-2013
Project Type:Research and Policy Discussion
Geographic Regions:El Alto, Bolivia
Reports:
Authors:Linda Shi; Marisa Escobar; Brian Joyce; James Kostaras
Sponsors:Lincoln Institute of Land Policy
Categories:Climate Change and Resilience Building
  
ID:2011_10_001