Climate Change Adaptation Network

The Climate Change Adaptation Network brings together federal government, cantons, communes, cities, the business and scientific communities, and civil society, promoting dialogue on solutions and strategies for adapting to climate change.

More frequent and intense precipitation, heatwaves and summer droughts are some of the effects of climate change that can already be seen today. Switzerland must start adapting more quickly and extensively to the negative consequences of climate change. This is the only way to restrict damage and improve the resilience of natural, human and economic systems.

Goal: Working together to find better solutions more quickly

The Federal Council’s adaptation strategy, which was introduced in 2012 and fleshed out in action plans, is currently being updated. The new version will show how the challenges of adapting to climate change will be tackled from 2026. In order to reach as many relevant stakeholder groups as possible and coordinate adaptation activities with them, the federal government is launching the Adaptation Network from 2025. The legal bases for this network are Article 8 of the Climate and Innovation Act (ClA) and Articles 28 and 29 of Climate Protection Ordinance (ClO).

The Adaptation Network brings together representatives from the federal government, cantons, municipalities, cities, the business and scientific communities, and civil society. This means that stakeholders who were previously not actively involved in implementing the adaptation strategy can now also be approached.

The network supports knowledge sharing between stakeholders, as well as enabling strategies and principles to be harmonised and coordinated between and within different levels of government (Confederation, cantons and communes). The network also makes recommendations to the Federal Office for the Environment (FOEN) on ways to develop the adaptation strategy.

The Adaptation Network is managed by the FOEN. The network’s activities and results are presented in a short annual report, and key resolutions are periodically published in summary form.

Governance

Within the network, the content-related work is carried out in committees whose activities are designated and approved by a steering group. The institutions involved in the network incorporate the results, basic principles and strategies into their own organisations and networks. Involvement in the network has no effect on the governance of the participating institutions – in other words, participants retain all of their rights, obligations and decision-making competences.

More on working methods and committees:

Climate Change Adaptation Network: Committees and working methods

Extending existing solutions, introducing new approaches

Results and proposals from the network are also incorporated into the strategic considerations of the adaptation to climate change funding programme. The aims of the funding programme are to introduce and extend innovations for adapting to climate change and to ensure that suitable measures are implemented more quickly on a broad scale. The programme draws on experience gained from the ‘Adaptation to climate change’ pilot programme, which supported and supervised around 80 projects throughout Switzerland between 2018 and 2023.

National Center for Climate Services (NCCS): Pilot programme 'Adaptation to climate change'

Contact for the Adaptation Network Secretariat:

André Olschewski, Head of Adaptation Network Secretariat, Climate Division, Federal Office for the Environment: andre.olschewski@bafu.admin.ch