European Climate Adaptation Newsletter

Issue June 2, 2026

Editorial

Spring in Europe was marked by record-breaking temperatures, near-record sea surface temperatures, widespread marine heatwaves and persistent climate extremes, as reported in the latest Climate Bulletin by the Copernicus Climate Change Service. Across the continent, contrasting temperature and rainfall patterns, alongside declining Arctic sea ice, underline a clear and accelerating signal: climate risks are intensifying, increasingly interconnected, and transboundary.

As summer approaches with heightened risks of heat waves, droughts and wildfires, the European Commission has presented a new integrated approach to wildfire risk management to strengthen Europe's resilience and better protect people, the environment, infrastructure and cultural heritage. Supporting these efforts, EEA’s Executive Director Leena Ylä-Mononen presented the EEA’s new summer’s featured product - during her intervention at the European Parliament on 2 June. EU funding creates valuable insights into wildfire prevention. Recent LIFE projects have shown that strategically deploying grazing livestock in high-risk areas can help reduce wildfire vulnerability through agroforestry approaches. Complementing these initiatives, Climate-ADAPT provides adaptation options to prevent, manage and recover from climate extremes, alongside a package of case studies from across Europe demonstrating how such measures can be implemented in practice from local to national level. A short video illustrates the added value of these Climate-ADAPT case studies. To facilitate uptake, Climate-ADAPT now presents adaptation solutions in a more visual and structured way.

At the same time, evidence shows that climate impacts are already widely experienced across Europe, while preparedness remains uneven. Most citizens are already feeling the effects of climate change, yet many households and communities are still insufficiently equipped to respond. This gap highlights an urgent need to strengthen climate resilience while ensuring that adaptation efforts protect those most vulnerable to climate risks.

Moreover, a recent stakeholder consultation on the forthcoming European Climate Resilience and Risk Management Framework received 670 responses, including contributions from all EU Member States. Respondents emphasised the need for harmonised climate risks assessments, long-term adaptation financing, resilience by-design across sectors, stronger protection of vulnerable groups, and user-friendly climate risk tools. The results of the consultation also highlighted growing recognition that climate resilience must be embedded across public investment, infrastructure, health, finance, and local governance to strengthen Europe’s preparedness for increasingly severe climate impacts. In this context, Climate-ADAPT offers knowledge on translating scientific knowledge, policy developments and practical experience into accessible and actionable knowledge, helping bridge the gap between climate risk awareness and implementation on the ground.

The Climate-ADAPT Team at the European Environment Agency

and the European Commission

European Climate Adaptation Newsletter

Editorial

EU policies and EEA activities

Results of the public consultation on the European climate resilience and risk management integrated framework

European Commission launches new strategy to tackle rising wildfire threat

The "Climate impacts and preparedness in Europe" EEA web portal 2026 update

Insights from actions at transnational, national, and local levels

Updated Climate Impact Chains for German Climate Risk Assessment

Updated Climate Risk Assessment for the Netherlands

New support programme for peatland in Germany

Report on social dimensions of climate change impacts in Germany

Calls for proposals for new climate partnerships for towns in Austria

Mission Adaptation to Climate Change: Stakeholder meeting in Austria highlights success stories and facilitates mutual learning

Climate ADAPT: new and updated features

New Climate-ADAPT knowledge for adaptation practitioners and policy makers to prevent and manage wildfires

Improved access to adaptation solutions on Climate-ADAPT

New research and assessments

2025 was EU’s most destructive wildfire season on record

Urban green spaces are scarce in Europe, and climate and wealth impact access

New ICT toolkit for integrated climate change assessment developed by EU-funded NEVERMORE project

NGFS Note on the economic and financial impacts of extreme weather events

OECD: Measuring progress in adapting the agricultural sector to more variable and extreme weather events

Launch of new open-access digital library of implemented Nature-based Solutions

Two LIFE projects turn to grazing to prevent wildfires in Southern Europe

Opportunity windows can speed up climate adaptation across Europe

Events