The failure of the Climate Summit in Copenhagen in December 2009 emphasized the limitations of greenhouse gas (GHG) mitigation as a singular policy response to climate change and highlighted the urgent need to design effective adaptation strategies. Current GHG mitigation efforts seek to limit the global average temperature rise to 2 degrees centigrade. There is some scientific evidence that suggests that this may not lead to catastrophic climate change impacts, but will still have significant effects on vulnerable populations. However, in the absence of any consensus on GHG mitigation plans, the target of limiting global average temperature rise to 2 degrees centigrade appears difficult to achieve. Given the possibility of significantly adverse impacts of moderate as well as catastrophic climate change on developing countries, adaptation as a policy option requires careful attention.