This paper reviews how aspects of disaster risk reduction, social protection and livelihoods approaches may act in contributing to the various features of adaptive capacity. It provides part of the theoretical basis for a project led by Oxfam and supported by the Overseas Development Institute (ODI): the Africa Climate Change Resilience Alliance (ACCRA), which also includes Save the Children UK, World Vision International and CARE. The paper does not seek to expand on the conceptual underpinnings of adaptive capacity; rather, it aims to find out what aspects of disaster risk reduction, social protection and livelihoods approaches can contribute to adaptive capacity, as well as to understand how such approaches can better respond to climate change and facilitate adaptation.