Samuel Geldin

While emerging literature on urban climate adaptation has begun assessing how actions and policies diffuse through transnational networks of cities, little if any work has examined the role that virtual knowledge-sharing platforms play in city-to-city policy learning and transfer. This study examines how informal knowledge networks, particularly online community forums and “best practice” resources promoted by intergovernmental, nongovernmental, and foreign aid organizations shape local policy actions and offline networks on-the-ground. Through semi-structured interviews and a social network analysis of virtual platform users, this research specifically focuses on the external and internal factors influencing local policy action and diffusion in four Indonesian cities part of the Asian Cities Climate Change Resilience Network (ACCCRN), an eight-year Rockefeller Foundation initiative. Evidence suggests that online and offline networks selectively channel knowledge and policy practices in ways that can promote lack of coordination and erase the influence of other organizations. This study’s results will help direct practitioner efforts to build capacity, form partnerships that avoid replicating existing work, and disseminate useful practices related to urban climate adaptation virtually and through more formal avenues.