On 21–22 September, 31 representatives from UNDERPIN partner organisations gathered at the IIASA headquarters in Vienna, Austria, to take stock of the project’s progress, exchange on needs, and align on the next steps for implementation.
The two-day meeting brought partners together for a mix of presentations, working sessions, and informal exchanges. Discussions focused on key areas of UNDERPIN’s work, including the development of the Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) framework and dashboard, regional collaboration, and engagement with the public and decisionmakers.
The meeting also provided an opportunity to consider how emerging European and international policy developments, including COP31 and the planned European Climate Resilience and Risk Management – Integrated Framework may shape UNDERPIN’s work with European regions. As the project moves into a new phase of collaboration with regions, these developments will help inform the further refinement of its MEL approach, guidance, and tools.
With European and international policy developments like COP31 and the planned release of the European Climate Resilience and Risk Management – Integrated Framework, UNDERPIN, which will be in the midst of its collaboration journey with European regions, will be reflecting on emerging policy priorities to refine its Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning approach, guidance, and tools. Beyond ensuring alignment and sharing progress, informal collaboration strengthens relationships and trust needed for effective collaboration across a diverse project consortium, which consists of both technical and non-technical partners.
On the second day, Markus Leitner, Head of Climate Adaptation and Resilience at the Austrian Environment Agency (EEA TC-CA), led a session on lessons learned from more than ten years of climate adaptation MEL. His contribution highlighted the importance of clearly defined policy objectives as the foundation for meaningful MEL systems that can track both processes and long-term impacts.
“What is needed is to progress further on the indicators and proxy indicators, moving beyond process indicators. There is a need for robust, outcome-oriented evidence on preparedness and progress towards climate resilience.”
Alongside the technical discussions, meeting in person created space to strengthen relationships and trust across UNDERPIN’s diverse consortium of technical and non-technical partners—an important foundation for effective collaboration and knowledge exchange.
As partners head back to their home countries, the focus now shifts to putting the ideas and lessons from Vienna into practice and continuing to develop an Adaptation MEL approach that strengthens learning and measurement capacities, tracks progress and informs decision-making in practice.
