News Archive

In December 2024, the German Government published its new precautionary climate adaptation strategy. It is the first of its kind in Germany to establish measurable targets for climate adaptation within the scope of responsibilities and competences of the German government, as required by section 3 of the German Federal Climate Adaptation Act, which was adopted in July 2024. The English version of the 2024 German Climate Adaptation Strategy is now available.

Based on the Norwegian national system of ranking municipalities according to their (local) physical climate risk, which was launched in 2023, an in-depth study for the Troms area in Northern Norway was carried out by the Norwegian Research Centre on Sustainable Climate Change Adaptation (Noradapt) on behalf of Troms county council. This regional study expands on the national assessment by including two additional categories of risk: transboundary climate risks (limited to risk propagated through international trade-links) and transition risks (related to obtaining new renewable energy to substitute local emissions from the combustion of fossil energy). The report is available in Norwegian with an extended English summary.

The European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) released a study highlighting the importance of clearer, and more consumer-friendly information disclosures regarding the natural catastrophe coverage of home insurance policies. EIOPA's analysis of Insurance Product Information Documents shows that many insurers demonstrate good practices in disclosing essential information. However, there is still room for improvement in ensuring that consumers can make better informed decisions.

Addressing increasing natural hazard threats, the EU funded REGILIENCE project, with ARSINOE, IMPETUS, TransformAr, and Pathways2Resilience projects, offers quick guides for local authorities. These practical tools provide clear insights, infographics, and resources for preparing for flash floods, river floods, storms, and droughts (available in English). More guides and translations are coming soon to boost climate resilience across Europe.

This 2025 publication explains the process and results of a peer review exercise in Slovenia on transformative innovation for better climate change adaptation, organized by the European Commission's Joint Research Centre (JRC) in autumn 2024. The main goal of the exercise was to help the volunteering territory to define pathways towards integrating transformative innovation in their climate adaptation strategies, based on learning and exchanges with peers.

France released its third national adaptation plan (PNACC-3) to strengthen resilience against climate impacts. Published on 10 March 2025, following a two-month public consultation period, the plan aims at preparing France to an increase in average temperatures of 2°C in 2030, 2.7°C in 2050 and 4°C in 2100 compared to the pre-industrial era, as set by the reference warming trajectory for adaptation to climate change (TRACC). The entire document, including its 52 measures, is now available in English and can be found in the second link under the introduction section of the document in the reference below.

In the first 2025 issue of the European Central Bank (ECB) Economic Bulletin, the authors look at the economic impact of extreme weather events such as the devastating floods in Valencia, Spain, in 2024. It is not only the increasing frequency that is of concern. This event has shown that also the greater intensity was challenging in this region which has so far not experienced floods as often as other regions in Europe.

The OrganicClimateNET (OCN) project, funded by the Swiss State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation, and co-funded by the EU, supports the integration of climate adaptation practices into organic farming, by establishing a network of 250 farms across 12 EU countries. National hubs have been set up to foster knowledge exchange, provide climate-resilience tools, and support policy engagement. Starting this summer, international cross visits between the hubs will further strengthen collaboration and knowledge transfer within the network.

The EU funding instrument LIFE released a 3-minutes video to show how the programme is driving fundamental change in the environment, economy and people’s lives. It funds over 6,000 projects, including climate change adaptation and climate action, making a difference at the local level.

More than 70% of the 167 European cities are not adapting to climate change in a consistent and coherent way, according to a research study published in Nature Climate Change. Their climate risk assessments, policy goals, adaptation measures and monitoring programmes are not aligned with the goals that societies have adopted. The study demonstrates how assessing consistency in adaptation plans can enhance understanding and help reduce the adaptation gap.

A new release of the Climate-ADAPT ‘Economic losses and fatalities dashboard’ covers data for the six Western Balkan countries (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia and Kosovo). All six countries have a protection gap of 100%, meaning that no loss from climate- and weather-related extremes was insured in the reference period.

Most people in Germany remain deeply concerned about the effects of climate change and also express concerns about global warming’s consequences on health, according to a recent analysis by the German Environment Agency (UBA).

The Interreg Europe Policy Learning Platform is organising an on-site peer review in September 2025 for the benefit of the intermunicipal organisation Interwaas (Flanders, Belgium) on blue-green infrastructure in urban areas. Deadline for submitting applications to become a peer reviewer is 23 May 2025.

A European consortium of experts with vast experience in climate research, public health, and city planning began work in autumn 2024 to deliver transformative AI-driven solutions that help cities build climate resilience and improve public health outcomes.

With forecasts up to June, showing drier-than-average conditions in northern and western Europe, the impacts of low rainfall, dry soils, and shrinking rivers are pressuring ecosystems, agriculture, and transport routes across Europe and neighbouring regions, according to Drought in Europe - April 2025 report, published by the EC's Joint Research Centre (JRC).

A new practical guidance document on climate change resilience proofing, developed and released at the end of 2024 by JASPERS (a joint initiative of the EIB and the European Commission), offers technical support for implementing the European Commission’s 2021–2027 climate proofing requirements. The guidance focuses on infrastructure projects in the Energy, Municipal Solid Waste Management, and Transport sectors. It helps stakeholders to integrate climate resilience considerations throughout the project cycle.

The EU Mission on Adaptation is a key initiative of the European Commission on empowering regions, cities and local authorities to turn urgency into action. The newly released Activity Report of the Mission on Adaptation to Climate Change provides a comprehensive overview of what has been achieved so far.

A report from the German Environmental Agency (UBA) shows how vocational training can contribute to the implementation of climate change adaptation measures and how relevant skills can be anchored in the vocational training system in Germany. Using the professions of roofer, environmental technologist for water supply and wastewater management and landscape architects, the report analyses which climate adaptation skills are already being taught and which will be required in the future. The report concludes with recommendations for action to better anchor climate adaptation in vocational education and training. An extended executive summary is in English available, the full report is in German.

The EU-funded Interreg Europe Programme, through its Policy Learning Platform, provides an overview of EU initiatives to inspire local and regional authorities and showcase policy recommendations, practical solutions and examples to strengthen water resilience. These include flood control and water retention measures, public-private collaboration with farmers, drought mitigation measures, water quota for irrigation systems in agriculture, and nature restoration of free-flowing rivers, floodplains and peatlands.

After five years of operation, a comprehensive evaluation of the KlimAdapt project, consisting of the German Climate Preparedness Portal (KLiVO-Portal of the Federal Government to support climate adaptation) and its accompanying network, was carried out in 2024. The evaluation examined the impact and use of the portal, particularly from a user perspective. It is divided into five main questions, which were answered through a secondary analysis of existing data and the evaluation of an online survey, a series of interviews and a market analysis.

The latest European State of the Climate report, released jointly by the Copernicus Climate Change Service and the World Meteorological Organization, shows that 2024 has been the warmest year recorded in Europe: eastern parts suffered from extreme heat and drought, while western parts were extremely hot and humid. At the same time, it experienced the most widespread flooding since 2013. On the positive side: European cities are becoming more resilient to climate change.

The temperature is rising, putting the world’s growing urban population at risk. Identifying hotspots and making use of all available data sources is key. The EU-funded CityCLIM project developed a tool specifically to support city administrations to find the best options for urban heat mitigation and adaptation.

In the political guidelines 2024-2029 for the European Commission, President Ursula von der Leyen announced the European Climate Adaptation Plan (ECAP) to support Member States on preparedness and resilience planning. Commissioner Wopke Hoekstra has taken the lead in the work on ECAP. The policy package will be presented during the 2nd half of 2026. Climate resilience and preparedness have already been flagged for particular attention in several key EU policy documents.

The Commission and High Representative launched the Preparedness Union Strategy to support Member States and enhance Europe's capability to prevent and respond to emerging threats. The Strategy includes 30 key actions and a detailed Action Plan to advance the Preparedness Union's objectives, as well as developing a ‘preparedness by design culture' across all EU policies. Among others, it confirms once again the European Climate Adaptation Plan and the Water Resilience Initiative as key upcoming actions.

Climate risk assessments (CRAs) guide national adaptation strategies but often lack integrated analyses. This study reviews national CRAs, highlighting Germany’s latest approach. While progress has been made, a common framework is missing. The findings show that integrated analyses enhance decision-making by revealing risk dynamics and spatial patterns—key for effective adaptation policies.