How do we close the adaptation finance gap in Europe?

At last week’s European Climate Change Adaptation Conference, BwB Executive Director, Allison Lobb, joined an expert panel to explore the changes that are needed to close the adaptation investment gap in Europe. 

The compelling economic argument for investing in climate adaptation is highlighted in a recent working paper from the World Resources Institute . The WRI research team’s analysis of 320 adaptation projects across 12 countries between 2014 and 2024, representing a total investment of US$133 billion, found an average return of 27% on these initiatives. 

A key challenge in mobilising investment for adaptation is that the full spectrum of benefits is still not captured in scalable business cases. As evidence of private sector interest in this space continues to grow, it is crucial that stakeholders explore practical ways to bring the demand and supply sides together. 

𝗞𝗲𝘆 𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗲𝗮𝘄𝗮𝘆𝘀 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝗰𝘂𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻:

 Enabling environments matter – systemic, whole-of-government approaches are needed. 

 National-level reforms must be linked to local and regional investment planning. 

 Tools such as the OECD - OCDE’s Climate Adaptation Investment Framework (CAIF) and EU initiatives like Pathways2Resilience, CLIMATEFIT_HEU, and NetZeroCitiesEU are key levers. 

 Innovation and collaboration are essential for moving from policy ambition to bankable action. 

“We need to stop treating adaptation as a cost and start framing it as a value proposition,” said Allison. “Cities and regions are not just risk managers; they're opportunity architects. With the right support, they can lead on resilient, investable solutions.” 

A major initiative of NetZeroCitiesEU, the implementing platform for the EU's ‘100 Climate-Neutral and Smart Cities by 2030’ Mission, is the Climate City Capital Hub. The Hub is helping to bridge the investment gap faced by cities pursuing decarbonisation goals by mobilising finance for urban climate mitigation and adaptation projects through a neutral, pan-European platform. 

Learn more at https://lnkd.in/dbhrQyfG 

Earlier this year, BwB launched its Adaptation Centre of Excellence. Learn more about its work at https://lnkd.in/dzKDmG9T

You can read the WRI paper here https://shorturl.at/70KZi