Since 1994, South Africa has witnessed exponential growth in informal settlements, currently housing about a quarter of households in urban areas. Informal settlements are particularly vulnerable to climate impacts, such as heat, flooding and storms. Climate adaptation and disaster relief, especially community-led initiatives, are really important, but to achieve systemic change, at scale, a fundamentally new approach to informal settlement upgrading is needed – one where innovation, targeted investment, capacity enhancement and community agency take centre stage.