In regard to the highly vulnerable coastal areas of Indonesia, the focus of this thesis is on what might comprise effective community engagement to enhance local capacity building for climate change adaptation. Following an extensive multidisciplinary literature review complemented by field work, suggestions are made. The literatures include those of public participation and community engagement; particularly in regard to closely interrelated contexts of environmental management, sustainable development and climate change adaptation, internationally and in Indonesia. A series of semi-structured interviews with relevant policy actors from the governmental to the community level provided data in Indonesian practice, thought, and context to well inform the analysis. A key finding was that current community enagement practices in Indonesia are wanting in any meaningful engagement with local communities and their representatives to build effective adaptive capacity at the local level. Lack of local social knowledge and perspectives in government facilitated programs is a significant causal factor of low participation in such programs. Enhanced community engagement that stresses social inclusion in partnership programs for building adaptive capacity and local acceptance and support is thus needed. Other key determinants or attributes for such programs were found to be enhanced social capital, institutional change to facilitate participatory governance approaches, and the associated need to address social-economic issues of vulnerable, usually poor, communities, in particular, poverty and low levels of literacy and education.