imperative and the GEF historically has and willcontinue to play a key role in assisting countries makestrategic choices that address climate concerns. At therequest of the Parties to the UNFCCC, the GEFmanages the Special Climate Change Fund (SCCF)and the Least Developed Countries Fund (LDCF) -both funds recognise that in the world's poorestcountries adaptation is a matter of life or death.Integrating adaptation into existing developmentprogrammes is essential to make future growth moreresilient. For example, in China, an SCCF grant ismainstreaming climate change resilience into a majorinvestment for the agriculture sector in the"breadbasket of China". In the Andes region, anotherSCCF project is helping countries deal with the impactof melting glaciers on local and national water supply.Investing in adaptation also means we need to pursuefinance path-breaking strategies: for example, in thehealth sector, we hope to make investments in vector-038FINANCEAbove: Local villagersand engineers inBhutan's Lunana regionare working to preventclimate-inspired glaciallake flooding throughGEF adaptation projects

change induced glacial lake outburst floods happening(through artificially lowering the water levels of one ofthe most dangerous glacier lakes), but also introducesmeasures and capacities such as early warningsystems and evacuation plans that will reduce theimpact of glacier lake outburst floods if or when they happen.These GEF successes are the result of many visionaries,many donors, and many partners. Over our history wehave laid a strong foundation to learn from and build.We see ourselves as a learning organisation with aunique role - to catalyse in the developing world waysto transfer new technology and to adapt to the existingchallenges of climate change. As the global communitybegins to embrace and accelerate future investments to protect the climate and promote sustainabledevelopment on a much larger scale, we believe that GEF investments will again lead the way. nABOUT THE AUTHORMonique Barbut, a French national, has been the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Chairperson of the Global Environment Facility since August2006. She was appointed by a unanimous decision of the GEF Council in June 2006. During her tenure she initiated widely recognised path-breaking reforms that have made the GEF organisation a more effective, responsive and results-basedinstitution. In November 2008, Monique Barbut was re-appointed by the GEF Council for an additional three-year term; as CEO she also led a record replenishmentfor the GEF's fifth funding cycle with donors recentlyannouncing a record US$4.3 billion over the nextfour years. Prior to joining the GEF, Mrs Barbut served as Directorof the Division of Technology, Industry andEconomics of the United Nations EnvironmentProgramme (UNEP) from September 2003 to July2006, where she undertook a reorganisation of theDivision and established a pragmatic approach toensuring the link between environment andeconomics, setting up development policies and pilotprojects, including in developing countries orcountries experiencing critical backgrounds (Chinaand Iraq).As a member of the French government delegation tothe 1992 Rio Earth Summit, Mrs Barbut was a keyplayer in the financing negotiations, and later on anactive negotiator in the creation of the GlobalEnvironment Facility (GEF) as well as the FrenchGlobal Environment Facility (FGEF), to which she wasappointed first Chief Executive Officer.FINANCE039control programmes in areas where changingtemperature and rainfall patterns create a newenvironment for diseases such as malaria and denguefever. Similarly, new investments in flood managementwill be required when frequency of flooding increases,especially if settlements have to be abandoned andpopulations relocated. We know this from past practice: in Bhutan, the LDCFfunded a project which limits the actual risk of climate