Climate change is one of the most challenging social, environmental and
economic issues Ecuador and its capital, the Metropolitan District of Quito, are
facing. It is estimated that in the last 100 years, the average temperature in Quito
increased by 1.2–1.4°C, causing significant change in weather patterns and directly
and indirectly impacting ecosystems, infrastructure, water availability, human
health, food security and hydroelectric generation, among others. In response to
current and projected impacts, the municipality of Quito adopted Quito’s Climate
Change Strategy (QCCS) in 2009. In coordination with key stakeholders, including
the academia, the municipality is currently implementing a series of adaptation
and mitigation measures in key sectors. Actions fall under four strategic axes:
(1) information generation and management; (2) use of clean technologies and good
practices for adaptation and mitigation; (3) communication, education and citizen
participation; and (4) institutional strengthening and capacity-building. Given
the importance of water resources for the city and its surroundings, measures to
face climate change in the water provision and risk management sectors are at the
core of the strategy. Quito is one of the few Latin American cities that have a local
policy instrument such as the Climate Change Strategy, which together with the
use of the city’s ecological footprint as a planning tool, put the city at a vanguard
in local responses to climate change.