EU Mission on Adaptation to Climate Change
The EU Mission on Adaptation to Climate Change is more than a funding programme. It has become a catalyst for coordinated climate action across Europe. We bridge the long-standing gap between scientific knowledge and implementation by connecting research and innovation with policymaking and local action, turning solutions into concrete results on the ground. This integrated approach accelerates adaptation and strengthens Europe’s collective preparedness and resilience to growing climate risks.
Our Goal: Climate Resilience by 2030
At the core of the Mission is a clear overarching goal: to support at least 150 European regions, local authorities and communities towards climate resilience by 2030.
Our Objectives
To achieve this goal, we work through three interlinked and mutually reinforcing objectives:
- Preparing Europe for climate disruptions
We provide general support to all regions and local authorities in Europe to better understand, prepare for, and manage climate risks. This includes improving access to climate data, risk assessments, planning tools, and governance approaches that strengthen long-term preparedness. - Accelerating the transition to a resilient future
We support at least 150 regions and local authorities in accelerating their adaptation efforts and strengthening their capacity for implementation. This includes financial and technical assistance to develop strategies, build institutional capacity, access to finance, and embed resilience into sectoral policies and investment decisions. - Building and demonstrating resilience on the ground
We demonstrate climate resilience solutions in at least 75 regions and local authorities and prepare them for replication and scaling up across Europe. These real-world demonstrations help turn innovative approaches into deployable solutions that can be adapted to different regional contexts.
Together, these objectives reflect our ambition to shift Europe from fragmented, incremental adaptation efforts towards a more strategic, transformative resilience agenda.
How the Mission is Implemented
The Mission is implemented through a diverse portfolio of 64 Horizon Europe projects representing an EU investment of EUR 615 million (as of December 2025). These projects address the full spectrum of adaptation challenges and operate at different stages of the innovation and deployment cycle:
- Research and Innovation Actions advance scientific knowledge, data, and methods.
- Innovation Actions test and demonstrate solutions in real-world settings, together with regions and local authorities.
- Cascade Support Projects provide financial and technical assistance directly to regions and local authorities.
This portfolio approach ensures that new knowledge, tested solutions, and implementation support progress together and reinforce each other.
MIP4Adapt: Connecting the Mission Ecosystem
To ensure coherence and maximise impact across this broad portfolio, the Mission Implementation Platform (MIP4Adapt) plays a central coordinating role. It promotes mutual learning through the Community of Practice, facilitates access to tools, data and guidance for climate adaptation and provides tailored technical assistance (on finance and citizen engagement).
MIP4Adapt brings the diverse activities and projects of the Mission under one single umbrella, accelerating collective progress towards a climate-resilient Europe.
By connecting territories with expertise, practical resources and each other, the Mission helps translate strategies into actionable roadmaps and strengthens the capacity of public authorities to move from planning to implementation.
Dangerous climate change is almost upon us. We have already experienced a rise in global temperatures of more than one degree since the Industrial Revolution. Even if the World’s countries succeed in delivering the reductions in carbon emissions detailed in their Nationally Determined Contributions to the Paris Agreement, we remain on course for more than a two-degree rise in global temperatures by the end of this century.
Concurrently, the magnitude, frequency and synchrony of extreme weather events are increasing. These changes are already leading to direct and indirect impacts across all aspects of our economy, society, and environment. They may also lead to transnational spill-over effects on international trade, resource competition, regional conflict, migration, and the spread of diseases and invasive species.
Climate adaptation actions that can enhance our resilience to climate change will take many decades to implement. This is not only due to their scope and scale but also because they may take as long as it takes a tree to grow and deliver benefits. Therefore, regional and local authorities and communities must take immediate action with real urgency to prepare for the inevitable impacts of climate change.
Climate mitigation and climate adaptation are two sides of the same coin. There is no point in reducing emissions in ways that are maladapted or lead to wider maladaptation, and it is important that adaptation actions are implemented in ways that minimise carbon emissions.
The European Commission has launched five Missions:
1. Adaptation to Climate Change
2. Climate-Neutral and Smart Cities
3. Restore our Ocean and Waters
These Missions aim to deliver concrete solutions to significant societal challenges by combining research and innovation with new forms of governance and collaboration, as well as stakeholder and citizen engagement.
The Missions address issues that really matter for citizens. They are grounded on the idea that complex societal challenges require coordinated and interdisciplinary efforts across Europe. They have a clear goal and a well-defined timeframe to help deliver concrete results with broad impact.
The Mission Portal is developed by the European Commission and the Mission Implementation Platform (MIP4Adapt) team. To report an issue, please visit our Contact Us page.