Sustainability & Organizations Institute

HEC Paris Hosts Kick-Off of the EU-Funded UNDERPIN Project on Climate Resilience

HEC Paris proudly hosted the official launch of UNDERPIN Climate, a three-year, EU-funded research project that will transform the way Europe measures progress on climate resilience. The kick-off meeting took place on September 25–26 on the HEC Paris campus, with partners to mark the start of this ambitious collaboration.
Led by the Climate & Earth Center at HEC Paris under the scientific coordination of Fernando J. Díaz López, Ph.D., the UNDERPIN project brings together leading European climate scientists to design a breakthrough outcome-oriented monitoring framework for assessing progress in climate resilience.
 

Why UNDERPIN Matters

As Europe becomes the world’s fastest-warming continent, it faces intensifying climate impacts. Yet, existing monitoring, evaluation and learningsystems often fall short: they track plans and processes rather than real-world results. The UNDERPIN project — short for oUtcome iNDicators to mEasuRe Progress on climate resIlieNce — aims to change this.
By developing a large set of standardized outcome indicators and a AI-enabled dashboard with novel data sources, the project will enable policymakers, researchers, and communities to measure what truly matters: reduced vulnerabilities, lasting resilience, and the effectiveness of adaptation solutions.

An Innovative Framework for Europe

As the fastest warming continent on the planet, Europe needs to adapt faster, better and in a more systemic way to climate impacts,
Over the next three years, UNDERPIN will:

  • Design a new, outcome-focused monitoring framework, aligned with EU and UN standards.
  • Develop new outcome-oriented climate resilience indicators, drawing on Earth observation data, artificial intelligence, and citizen science.
  • Create a user-friendly dashboard to support smarter, evidence-based decision-making at local, regional, and national levels.
  • Engage stakeholders through three pilot regions, ensuring that tools are co-designed, tested, and ready for practical use across Europe.

 

 

A European Collaboration supporting the EU Adaptation Strategy and IPCC AR7 

UNDERPIN is the flagship project of the EU Mission on Adaptation to Climate Change that aims to support at least 150 European regions and communities towards climate resilience by 2030. This project is also instrumental for achieving the objectives established in the EU Adaptation Strategy to become a climate resilience continent by 2050. 
At the international level, the IPCC AR6 (WGII) has recognized that “most adaptation monitoring and evaluation efforts have been focusd on processes and outputs rather than on achieved outcomes such as climate risks, vulnerability, well-being or development”. Moreover,  “a set of all-purpose and globally applicable standard indicators that could comprehensively measure adaptation does not exist.” 
For this reason, there is a pressing need to develop a novel framework that birdgets the gap between short-term adaptation measures and long-term resilience outcomes, UNDERPIN will help European authorities, EU Adaptation mission regions and the international climate science-policy community to assess progress, refine strategies, and unlock finance for more effective climate action.
The project is powered by a consortium of leading partners in climate change research:

  • HEC Paris (Lead Partner)
  • CMCC (Euro-Mediterranean Center on Climate Change)
  • Tecnalia
  • International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA)
  • ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability
  • Adelphi
  • IIED Europe
  • Fresh Thoughts Consulting
  • Climate-KIC

This diversity of expertise ensures that UNDERPIN integrates scientific excellence with practical policy insights and local engagement.

Looking Ahead

The launch meeting at HEC Paris marked the beginning of a collaborative and human adventure, combining cutting-edge science, stakeholder participation, and a shared European commitment to climate resilience.
As the framework and dashboard take shape, UNDERPIN will provide policymakers and communities with tools to move from promises on paper to measurable impact.
“Europe needs to adapt faster, better and in a more systemic way to climate impacts, At HEC Paris, we are proud to lead this effort to ensure Europe’s climate adaptation makes a real difference for all,” said Fernando J. Díaz López, Ph.D., Scientific Coordinator of UNDERPIN, a lead author to the IPCC AR7 report, and Executive Director of the Climate & Earth Center at HEC Paris.
 

More about EU missions and the EU Climate Adaptation Mission

 


 



 


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