Maladaptation

Technically sharp, but unfamiliar; risks losing people unless unpacked.

Names a specific failure mode: well-intentioned interventions that make things worse for someone. Sea walls that protect wealthy coastal areas while redirecting flood risk to poorer neighbourhoods. Irrigation projects that solve water scarcity for commercial farms while depleting community aquifers. The question 'who might this make things worse for?' should be built into every design process.

Adaptation that makes things worse for someone else.