MAIA policy implications and recommendations: a national level approach

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MAIA is an EU-funded Horizon Europe project (2022-2025) which seeks to amplify the impact of European climate research by creating synergies between existing projects. It aims to maximize the joint impact of such research by enhancing connections between knowledge and networks.

Introduction

This Policy Brief distils the most relevant insights and good practices gathered through the MAIA Policy Roundtables, Policy–Science Dialogues, Assemblies and Workshops. These events brought together policymakers, researchers, practitioners, community leaders, and a wide variety of climate stakeholders to examine the structural levers needed to accelerate climate action and resilience.

Discussions converged on four national priorities, each a pillar of an effective climate governance system: inclusive climate action, and foster evidence-based decision-making across the EU:

• Open and accessible climate knowledge
• Coordinated multi-level governance
• Sustainable financing and resource mobilization
• Integrated, adaptive planning and evaluation

These are not abstract principles – they are operational imperatives, supported by tangible evidence and concrete models tested in real contexts across Europe and beyond.

Open and accessible climate knowledge

National governments cannot act decisively if climate information remains fragmented, inaccessible, or disconnected from decision-making. MAIA events repeatedly confirmed that reliable, interoperable, and actionable climate data is the backbone of evidence-based policy.

Action priorities:

• Mandate national protocols for data harmonisation and cross-sector interoperability;
• Integrate citizen science into official national monitoring frameworks;
• Deploy knowledge-brokering units to translate research into actionable guidance;
• Facilitate multilevel and cross-border data exchange via collaborative stakeholders.

Coordinated multi-level governance

No national climate strategy will succeed without the alignment of regional, municipal, and sectoral policies. Fragmented governance delays implementation, wastes resources, and erodes trust.

Action priorities:

• Institutionalize vertical coordination platforms between ministries, regions, and municipalities;
• Formalize civil society and private sector roles in national climate governance;
• Strengthen subnational capacity to participate in cross-sector and transnational initiatives.

Sustainable financing and resource mobilization

Without predictable, adequate, and accessible financing, adaptation and mitigation plans remain on paper. MAIA dialogues, particularly at COP29, confirmed the urgency of reforming national climate finance systems to mobilise both public and private resources.

Action priorities:

• Create dedicated national climate finance windows with simplified access; 
• Establish technical assistance for bankable project preparation; 
• Promote blended finance models, climate bonds, and resilience funds; 
• Ensure balanced financing for adaptation and mitigation.

Integrated, adaptive planning and evaluation

National frameworks must provide a unified strategic direction while allowing flexibility to adapt to new data, technology, and risks. Without integration, climate action risks fragmentation and inefficiency.

• Align local/regional plans with national and EU targets through standardised procedures; 
• Embed adaptive management with regular updates based on new evidence; 
• Support multi-disciplinary planning teams integrating environmental, social, and economic priorities.

Strategic Imperative

National governments must:

• Open the data – make it accessible, interoperable, and trusted; 
• Align governance – connect all levels and sectors under shared accountability; 
• Unlock finance – innovate, simplify, and target funding where impact is greatest; 
• Plan adaptively – integrate across sectors and update as knowledge evolves.

National governments should act decisively and cohesively now, or risk locking in vulnerabilities that will cost far more to address later. MAIA evidence shows that national leadership – paired with local empowerment – is the fastest route to a just, climate-resilient future.

Disclaimer

Created with funding from the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the granting authority. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.

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