This paper underscores the importance of the concept of “climate-compatible development” or making development actions “climate neutral” by tackling both vulnerability and green growth in the same policy framework, as well as the relationships between them.

The implications extend beyond a response to climate change but go the heart of development as a whole. The underlying ideal of the Millennium Declaration (UN, 2000) is that growth should be balanced and influenced by poverty reduction, equality and environmentally sustainable imperatives.