Climate impact research needs more real-world data
Radboud University Nijmegen
European cities are experimenting with hundreds of climate solutions, from green roofs to electric vehicles, all in the hopes of adapting to the warmer world around us. But despite more and more research on these solutions, we still only barely have an idea of what actually works in practice. That’s according to a study published in Environmental Research Letters today, co-authored by researchers at Radboud University.
The study reviewed more than 1600 papers about climate mitigation and adaption measures in more than 1200 European cities. “We wanted to identify which climate actions work best in which type of city, and what cities can learn from each other,” explains Natascha Wagner, one of the authors of the study, professor of Development Economics at Radboud University and director of the Global Data Lab.
Comparing similar cities
“Something that works for a big, growing metropolis in Spain might not work for a shrinking, older town in Poland. They may face very different problems: Southern Europe is dealing with extremely high temperatures and water scarcity, while Eastern European cities are more likely to be affected by flooding and high-intensity industrial emissions”, adds Olexiy Kyrychenko, assistant professor at Radboud and a co-author. “By looking at cities with similar characteristics across Europe, policymakers can get a better understanding of what measures might succeed, because they’re already successful in comparable locations.”
However, the researchers also realized that the studies they looked at were rather fragmented. Wagner: “One study looks at electric vehicles in one specific city, while another might look at renewing the infrastructure in a different, completely dissimilar location. That makes it a lot harder to identify broader patterns, and to learn from what works.”
More observational data needed
In addition to being fragmented, most of the studies were based on models and simulations, rather than on observations of real-world outcomes. Wagner points out that those studies often provide limited insights into the effectiveness of adaptation and mitigation strategies: “Some models are based on situations that are extremely unlikely to happen in the real world, such as a study on what would happen if the entire population of a city like Amsterdam switched to vegan food.“
If we want climate policy to be more effective, we need observational data, the researchers argue. “Many studies estimate what should happen under certain assumptions, but we have far fewer assessments of what happens on the ground. To understand possible changes, we need local data on behaviour, health, mobility and environmental conditions, for example”, says Kyrychenko. Wagner adds: “What we need now, in particular in response to the recent heat wave, is the systematic collection of observational data across cities to determine what truly works, under which conditions, and for whom. The next step for climate research isn’t necessarily about developing more new solutions, but about evaluation existing ones more rigorously.”
Journal
Environmental Research Letters
Article Title
Climate mitigation and adaptation strategies tailored for different types of European cities: a typology and associated systematic review
Transport transition for Berlin, heat protection for Tirana: new study identifies suitable climate measures for European cities
For the study, published in the journal Environmental Research Letters, the researchers classified 1,263 European cities into four city types based on shared characteristics – metropolitan, established, growing, and shrinking cities – and linked these with a systematic review of 1,613 studies on urban climate mitigation and adaptation measures. This allowed them to identify which mitigation and adaptation measures are particularly suitable for cities with similar climatic, infrastructural, and socioeconomic conditions:
Rapidly growing cities in Southern and Southeastern Europe, such as Tirana and Barletta, need infrastructure investment in heat protection and water management.
Economically established cities such as Landshut and Seville should advance building retrofits, urban greening, and the transport transition.
Metropolises such as Paris and London particularly benefit from electrification, expanded public transport, and early warning systems for heat and other extreme events.
In shrinking cities in Eastern Europe, such as Daugavpils and Bydgoszcz, nature-based solutions and infrastructure upgrades can contribute to climate action and flood protection.
“Rapidly growing cities in Southern and Southeastern Europe are already heavily affected by heat and have less urban greenery to mitigate heat stress,” says lead author Mira Kopp, a PIK researcher. “In addition to the necessary adaptation to climate risks, affluent cities in particular bear a significant responsibility to reduce emissions and thus protect the climate. This requires creative approaches and active public participation to drive the transition to environmentally friendly modes of transport and the retrofitting of existing buildings.”
The findings can also be applied to Berlin: with its “Baumgesetz” (tree law), the metropolis aims to plant more than 400,000 additional street trees. “This can help slightly mitigate heatwaves,” says Felix Creutzig, PIK researcher and co-author of the study. “But overall, Berlin is not on track to meet even its moderate 2030 climate targets with current measures. There is a lack of policy instruments to achieve emissions reductions, particularly in the transport sector.”
Kopp, M., Montfort, S., Pflieger, G., Wagner, N., Kyrychenko, O., Nogherotto, R., Zharova, A., Baklanov, A., Cheval, S., Nair, A., Ulpiani, G., Aue, T., Creutzig, F. (2026): Climate mitigation and adaptation strategies tailored for different types of European cities: A typology and associated systematic review. Environmental Research Letters. [DOI: 10.1088/1748-9326/ae7e97]
Link: https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1748-9326/ae7e97
Journal
Environmental Research Letters
Method of Research
Literature review
Article Title
Climate mitigation and adaptation strategies tailored for different types of European cities: A typology and associated systematic review.
Article Publication Date
14-Jul-2026
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