Life and the climate pact.
Date: 2022-12-20
Institutions: European Climate, Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency
Subjects: carbon neutrality, climate change policy, community resilience, energy transition, green economy, sustainable development

and the  
  Climate Pact

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The  EU  is  striving  to  become  climate-neutral  by  2050.  Involving  people,  communities  and  
organisations is key to achieving this ambitious target, and in 2020, the EU launched the European 
Climate Pact to help make this happen. Several LIFE projects support the Climate Pact’s ambitions.

The  Climate  Pact  is  a  European  Commission  initiative  to  engage 
people in climate action and more sustainable behaviour.

Informing and communicating on climate

The  LIFE  Programme  community  has  implemented  a  wide  range  of  
projects with a positive climate impact. These projects have showcased 
innovative  technologies,  raised  citizen  awareness,  provided  accurate  
information and laid the foundations for a people-centred approach to 
climate action.

The  ‘LIFE  and  the  Climate  Pact:  Awareness  and  Engagement  for 
Lasting Climate Action’ platform meeting brought together LIFE project  
beneficiaries  and  climate  action  practitioners  from  across  Europe  to  
discuss their experience of engaging communities in climate action and to  
recommend approaches, actions and good practices.

Guidance for climate action

The  platform  meeting  evolved  around  the  three  themes  below,  which 
are closely related to the key pillars of the Climate Pact:

Informing and 
communicating on climate

Engaging citizens and 
stakeholders and facilitating 
participation and co-creation 

Supporting action

Knowing the Local Situation
Effective action cannot be implemented in an unclear context:

•  Get to know your local context

•  Understand  the  priorities  and  concerns  of  local  citizens  and 

politicians

•  Ask  yourself  why  engaging  citizens  and  local  communities  is  

important for your project

•  Gather information on similar past awareness-raising campaigns

Engaging citizens and stakeholders and 
facilitating participation and co-creation

Targeting Stakeholders

•  Develop a strategy based on a precise stakeholder mapping

•  Start with ‘supporters’ and ‘ready-to-go’ communities to create a 

snowball effect but do not exclude anyone

•  Involve  authorities,  policymakers,  and  local  communities  in  the  
process - doing this gives them a sense of ownership of the process

•  Go beyond preaching to the converted; also target difficult to reach 

communities

•  Employ  a  variety  of  strategies  and  digital  tactics  to  reach  your 

audience

European Climate, 
Infrastructure 
and Environment 
Executive Agency

 
 
•  Engage stakeholders with opposing ideas which then can result in 

•  Develop communication tools tailored to different audiences and 

realistic and acceptable solutions for the majority

situations

•  Consider  other  targets  like  media  outlets,  business  owners  and  

•  Spread your campaign across multiple channels (including online 

financial institutions

tools like mobile applications) to reach all of your targets 

•  Design  actions  that  build  trust  and  long-term  relationships  with 

Ensuring Adequate Resources

stakeholder groups

•  Plan and look to the longer-term: enduring commitment is vital for 

change to happen

•  Ensure that you have enough resources (financial, people and time) 

to reach your goals

•  Put these resources in place early in the process

•  Offer financial incentives when possible but only if necessary

•  Take advantage of available complementary funding or subsidies, 
but bear in mind that for long term sustainability, tailored commu-
nication is needed

Transmitting the Right Messages

•  Define clear key messages for each target audience

•  Always  have  a  positive  narrative  and  underline  that  fighting  

climate change benefits everyone

•  Ensure  that  your  actions  align  with  local,  regional  and  national  

climate policy objectives

•  Take time to explain the challenges and potential solutions

•  Combine climate action messages with other societal challenges 

like ageing and gender issues

•  Integrate  artistic  elements  and  storytelling  into  the  process  to  

target non-experts 

•  Present  data  from  reliable  sources  and  use  real-life  examples 
such  as  the  climate  impacts  that  the  local  population  is  already 
experiencing

•  Address misinformation 

Supporting action

Implementing your Project

•  Don’t present a fixed plan to stakeholders - instead, co-design or 

start from scratch to involve everyone in the process

•  If  appropriate,  involve  a  mediator  to  manage  potential  negative 

views, avoid conflicts and build consensus

•  Use artists, religious leaders, sports organisation representatives, 
NGO heads, mayors, local politicians, storytellers, and other social 
multipliers as spokespersons to transmit your messages

•  Get  ambassadors  on  board  -  but  keep  in  mind  that  they  may  

require training and financial compensation

•  Use  conventional  and  social  media  to  increase  awareness  and  

enhance key messages 

•  Get to know what tools and media your audience uses and adapt; 
for  instance,  develop  a  short  movie  rather  than  a  PowerPoint 
presentation, develop mobile apps or online tools, etc.

•  Hold events like press conferences and festivals to garner public/

official support

•  Provide  feedback  on  your  project  to  policymakers  as  soon  as 

possible

Providing Progress Updates

•  Be patient. Getting people to take climate action takes time and is 

a medium to longer-term process

•  In the meantime, promote short term achievements for public and 

political support

•  Provide  regular  updates  on  the  co-creation  process  and  the 
goal  -  this  is  necessary  to  ensure  inclusiveness  and  long-term 
participation

Adapting your Strategy

•  Don’t panic - you can tweak your strategy based on initial results 

and experiences

•  Have no fear of making mistakes - listen to feedback, adapt and 

learn for next time

How  

is supporting the Climate Pact

Many LIFE projects are well versed in communicating, raising awareness 
and engaging citizens on the environment and climate action.  
Here are some examples for inspiration.

Keeping city dwellers cool  
in the summer

LIFE  Tree  Check  involves  partners  from 
Czechia,  Hungary,  Poland,  and  Slovakia,  who 
want  to  increase  green  infrastructure  like 
trees and water bodies in their cities. 

Actions:
• 

The team developed a mobile application 
that  recognises  specific  types  of  plants 
and trees when photographed and shows 
the user how these species can help im-
prove a city’s climate. 

• 

• 

• 

They also set up an online database fea-
turing  green  infrastructure  projects  like 
green buildings, a bus stop draped in ivy 
and a sustainable drainage system. 

The  Tree  Check  manual  explained  how  
climate change impacts our cities.

A  series  of  training  workshops  were  
offered to lawmakers and those working 
in urban development.

Photo: LIFE17 GIC/CZ/000107

Public support for  

energy-efficient buildings

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Photo: LIFE17 CCA/SK/000126

With  public  help,  LIFE  DELIVER  is  devel-
oping  resilient  and  low  carbon  solutions  for 
Slovakia’s urban areas. 

Actions:
• 

The team renovated an entire school and 
a  kindergarten  using  energy-efficient  
materials,  which  will  provide  cleaner  air 
and more greenery to occupants. 

• 

They set up a climate and biodiversity edu  -
cation centre involving local communities, 
helping  raise  awareness  of  the  need  to 
combat and adapt to climate change. 

• 

• 

• 

They  also  published  a  catalogue  of  
selected adaptation and mitigation 
measures.
The public was encouraged to actively par-
ticipate in the project through information 
sessions, planning meetings and surveys.

Amendments  were  proposed  to  improve 
Slovakia’s  current  nature  and  public 
buildings’ laws. 

Saving the climate on a tight budget

LIFE DoppelPlus helped low-income people 
in  Tirol,  Austria  become  climate  protection 
heroes.

Actions:
• 

The team sent climate protection starter 
kits to low-income families. 

• 

• 

• 

• 

Free  advice  was  provided  to  more  than 
1 000  households  on  saving  energy, 
using public transport, and nutrition.

They  raised  awareness  through  a  com-
prehensive communication strategy. 

Long-term  partnerships  were  forged 
through effective networking.

The  initiative  created  a  win-win  situa-
tion - for the environment and household 
budgets.

Photo: LIFE15 GIC/AT/000092/DoppelPlus

LIFE_WZROST_PL ran an information cam-
paign  on  Poland’s  climate  change  and  sus-
tainable development. There was a particular 
focus on shifting from a coal-based to a green 
economy. 

Actions:
• 

The team raised public awareness of the 
need to boost renewables, improve ener-
gy efficiency and consume sustainably. 

•  More  than  eight  million  people  viewed 
ten short films made by the project, which 
were broadcast on the Discovery Channel 
and associated networks. 

• 

• 

The project worked with bloggers to build 
substantial  public  interest  in  its  five-
minute  clips  and  award-winning  docu-
mentary film. 

This  approach  contributed  to  increased 
support for climate action and renewable 
energy at regional and national level.

Raising climate 
awareness  
through film

Photo: LIFE14 GIC/PL/000008

 
 
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Photo:LIFE16 CCA/NL/000096

Making better use of  
Rotterdam’s roofs

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LIFE@Urban  Roofs  aims  to  stimulate  multifunctional  roofs  and  
climate adaptation investments in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.

Actions:
• 

The team encouraged real estate developers and building owners 
to invest in climate change adaptation. 

• 

• 

• 

The project tested multifunctional roofs with greater benefits for 
property owners than traditional green roofs. 

They completed the longest green roof in the Netherlands on an 
iconic social housing building called the Peperklip.

Other  multifunctional  roofs  were  constructed  on  De  Doelen 
Congress  and  Concert  Hall,  the  Valentijn  School,  the  De  Heuvel 
building, and others.

Learn more 

 ec.europa.eu/life 
 @LIFEprogramme 

LIFE programme 
LIFE programme

lifeprogramme

How to apply for LIFE funding 
The European Commission organises annual calls for proposals. 
Full details are available at ec.europa.eu/life

Contact
European Climate, Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency (CINEA)
European Commission - W910 - B-1049 Brussels, Belgium

  CINEA-COMMUNICATION-LIFE@ec.europa.eu

PDF 

EF-07-22-450-EN-N 

ISBN 978-92-9208-132-4 

doi: 10.2840/544476

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Environment Executive Agency (CINEA), 2022
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