How Science Informs Policymaking in the European Union: Insights from Climate Resilience

Elena Saggioro
European Commission, Belgium

Scientific evidence informs EU climate policymaking processes, yet how this occurs in practice can be unclear from the outside. This seminar explores the functioning of these processes through the case study of a EU policy on climate resilience, aimed at improving the ability of European societies to anticipate, cope and recover from climate impacts. It illustrates how scientific evidence is sourced and integrated into policymaking, drawing insights from the scientific community but also from national authorities and sectoral experts. It will also discuss how such evidence has to operate alongside other determinants, including political priorities and institutional constraints. Examples are drawn from the development of the first European Climate Risk Assessment and the forthcoming EU climate resilience package.

Elena Saggioro is a climate adaptation policy adviser and analyst, with expertise in climate risk assessment, adaptation planning and climate modelling uncertainty. Elena currently works as climate adaptation Policy Officer at the European Commission. She previously was senior adaptation analyst at the UK Climate Change Committee focusing on international climate risks and social vulnerability. As a research fellow at the University of Reading she developed national and regional climate risk assessment for international projects. She holds a PhD in applied mathematics to climate science with a focus on sub-seasonal to seasonal predictions. Her academic background is in environmental mathematics (MRes, Imperial College London) and theoretical physics (MSc and BSc, University of Padova). 

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