The city of Guwahati has a rich historical past and finds frequent mention in medieval historical sources and epics. From the pre-historic existence, the city has evolved through various stages of development and lately, the city has entered a phase of vigorous growth changing remarkably its fabric of settlement and the overall morphology of the urban landscape. Throughout the history of growth and development of Guwahati city, the river Brahmaputra has played the most important role in shaping the socio-economic life of its dwellers and the land use pattern of the city.

This paper considers how resilience thinking and, in particular, its emphasis on learning has been applied in 10 cities in Vietnam, India, Thailand and Indonesia. Applying a “shared learning” approach in the Asian Cities Climate Change Resilience Network (ACCCRN) has helped to create or strengthen networks, build appreciation for complexity and uncertainty among stakeholders, provide a space for deliberating concepts such as vulnerability and resilience, and build knowledge and capacities for stakeholders to engage and represent their own interests.

The city of Dar es Salaam, with a population of more than four million, has no climate change adaptation plan. It also has a very large development deficit and lacks adequate provision for infrastructure and services such as piped water, sewers, drains and solid waste collection. Addressing this deficit (and building the institutional and financial capacity to do so) is also important for building resilience to climate change impacts.