As part of its ongoing efforts to empower the LDCs to access climate finance, the LDC University Leadership for Catalyzing Climate-Adaptation Finance (UNI-LEAD) Project recently developed a series of short courses aimed at enhancing university-government collaboration and strengthening the capacities of government officials to develop fundable concept notes and proposals to the Green Climate Fund and other multilateral climate finance schemes. These complementary courses are designed to deepen participants’ knowledge on climate finance and to help them develop robust climate finance concepts and proposals. The short courses include:  

1. Basics of Climate Finance in the LDC Context examines key global climate finance flows, instruments, and mechanisms, set in the context of the challenges that LDCs face in securing funding through these multilateral initiatives.
2. Public and Private Sector Financing for Climate Change Adaptation examines the role of public and private financing in supporting climate change adaptation, and how climate finance can be decentralized to meet local adaptation needs. 
3. Mainstreaming Gender Equality and Social Inclusion (GESI) in Climate Finance for addressing specific gendered vulnerabilities related to climate risks and impacts, and guidance on how to develop GESI-sensitive climate finance proposals.
4. Fundamentals of Developing a Climate Rationale centers on utilizing climate data and information to build a solid climate rationale, which is essential for securing financial resources to support adaptation efforts, particularly through mechanisms such as the Green Climate Fund. 
5. Developing concept notes and funding proposals presents the conceptual framing around project design for climate funds and addresses the project preparation process, accessing major climate funds under the UNFCCC, key investment areas and criteria, financial instruments, and how to meet the Green Climate Fund’s investment requirements.

All materials are currently in English to reach a wide audience within the LDC University Consortium on Climate Change network. We are also working on a French version of the courses. All materials will be available on START’s website in the coming months.