Trees4Adapt project to address risks from climate change and biodiversity loss through tree-based solutions

(Press-News.org) Researchers from the IIASA Biodiversity and Natural Resources Program are involved in the recently launched EU-funded Trees4Adapt project. The project focuses on tree-based solutions for climate adaptation, aiming to strengthen Europe’s adaptation and resilience to climate change in a way that supports people and nature.

Climate change and biodiversity loss are two of the most pressing challenges of our time. These crises are deeply interconnected, creating complex risks that threaten ecosystems, human wellbeing, and the economy. Yet, current decision-making and land-use planning often fails to account for this interconnectedness, limiting the effectiveness of adaptation strategies.

To address this gap, the European Union has launched Trees4Adapt – Addressing complex risks from climate change and biodiversity loss across systems and scales: Leveraging the potential of tree-based solutions for adaptation in Europe, a Horizon Europe project under the Mission on Adaptation to Climate Change. Starting in October 2025 and running for four years, Trees4Adapt brings together 12 partners from across Europe, coordinated by the Natural Resources Institute Finland, with a budget of €4 million. The project aims to improve understanding of risks from climate change and biodiversity loss and support decision-makers in designing and implementing nature-based solutions involving trees (“tree-based solutions”) that build resilience, conserve and restore biodiversity, and avoid maladaptation.

“Mitigation will not help us fast enough - the time is for adaptation,” said Prisca Haemers, Policy Officer for the Mission on Adaptation to Climate Change, during the project’s kick-off meeting. “Projects like Trees4Adapt are essential to accelerate Europe’s resilience and must work together through the Mission networks to maximize impact.”

Trees4Adapt combines cutting-edge research with practical solutions. It uses long-standing European research platforms to study how different tree species and mixtures deliver multiple benefits, including buffering microclimates and strengthening ecosystems. The project will also assess the economic viability of tree-based solutions through bioeconomic and spatial modeling, creating scenarios that show how different decisions could shape future landscapes.

IIASA leads the key activities in Trees4Adapt’s WP4, using its suite of biophysical and ecological models to upscale and map climate and biodiversity risks and interlinkages across Europe. By combining hydrological, forestry, and biodiversity models with local and best available data, IIASA researchers will identify where tree-based solutions face future climate risks and where they can most effectively support climate-resilient land use and biodiversity conservation.

To ground this work in specific local contexts, Trees4Adapt draws on a range of experimental sites with dedicated field data collection and three case studies. In Finland’s boreal forests, researchers are building on unique forest diversity experiments to see how increasing tree species and genetic diversity can improve resilience in planted forest landscapes. In Germany, the focus is on agroforestry networks and how integrating trees into farming systems can boost biodiversity and support farmers. In Portugal, the case study examines Mediterranean landscapes recovering from wildfires, investigating whether greater tree diversity can slow fire spread and accelerate recovery. From the start, Trees4Adapt works hand-in-hand with local stakeholders and EU-level actors to co-create solutions that are practical and ready for real-world application.

The project kicked off with a two-day meeting in Helsinki in November 2025, where partners came together to set priorities and explore strategies for impact. The sessions were lively and forward-looking, featuring opportunities to connect with related projects and discuss case studies, modeling approaches, and stakeholder engagement plans. Partners also embraced Finnish traditions with a ferry ride to the historic Suomenlinna fortress and a sauna evening, moments that strengthened connections and set the tone for a partnership built on trust and shared goals.

Over the next four years, Trees4Adapt will turn research into action, providing guidance and tools to help communities and policymakers make informed choices. These results will feed directly into EU policies and investment plans, ensuring that Europe is better prepared for climate change while safeguarding biodiversity.

“We are excited to be part of Trees4Adapt and to work closely with partners across Europe to identify opportunities for upscaling climate adaptation through trees,” says Martin Jung, a senior research scholar in the Biodiversity, Ecology, and Conservation Research Group of the IIASA Biodiversity and Natural Resources Program. “Collaborating with institutions in IIASA member countries such as Finland and Germany allows us to connect long-term research with real-world decision-making, helping ensure that tree-based solutions strengthen resilience for both people and nature.”

The Trees4Adapt project is funded by the European Union under the Horizon Europe Programme, Grant Agreement No. 101213184 (Trees4Adapt).

Further information on IIASA’s involvement in the project: https://iiasa.ac.at/projects/trees4adapt

 

About IIASA:

The International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA) is an international scientific institute that conducts research into the critical issues of global environmental, economic, technological, and social change that we face in the twenty-first century. Our findings provide valuable options to policymakers to shape the future of our changing world. IIASA is independent and funded by prestigious research funding agencies in Africa, the Americas, Asia, and Europe. www.iiasa.ac.at

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