Abstract
Community-based (CB) approaches for Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) and ClimateChange Adaptation (CCA) are increasingly recognised as beneficial for enhancing re-silience to climate change. While the role of CB approaches in DRR and CCA has beenwidely researched, gaps remain regarding the specific circumstances, purpose and meth-ods of community inclusion. Using an existing and adapted framework, this literature re-view screened thirty empirical studies in which participatory approaches were thoroughlyanalysed via a deductive content analysis. We analysed who is engaged, how, for whatpurpose, and how these dimensions were interconnected to the CB objectives. Findingsreveal that participation was most common in the early stages of the DRR and CCAcycles, with localized actors playing key roles, though marginalized groups and womenremained underrepresented. Participation occurred in diverse forms, reflecting its adapt-ability to local contexts rather than adherence to a fixed model. Far from being a one-fixed solution, participation emerged as both a strategic tool and a transformative process,shaping objectives while empowering communities through inclusive engagement, whendeveloped appropriately.