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Reducing disaster risks and adapting to climate change are ever more important policy goals in Europe and worldwide. The commitment to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and complementary multilateral frameworks, including the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015–2030 and the Paris Agreement on Climate Change, has galvanized pursuits for policy coherence. The report Climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction in Europe: enhancing coherence of the knowledge base, policies and practices of the European Environment Agency identified several ways for how coherence and resilience can be built through knowledge sharing, collaboration and investments.

This report is addressed to the many different stakeholders concerned with urban adaptation. It gives an overview of action that can be taken to adapt cities in Europe and the progress made over the last couple of years, and it puts this in relation to the future challenges that the impacts of climate change pose: Is what cities are already doing leading to attractive and climate-resilient cities? If not yet, what needs to change? The report provides food for thought about reviewing and adjusting urban adaptation to climate change. It thereby supplements many other tools, reports and initiatives on urban adaptation in Europe. The report targets local, regional, national and European governments and organisations as well as experts and researchers concerned with urban adaptation. Beyond that, it includes perspectives and ideas that may interest communities, individual citizens or businesses too.

Scientists rely heavily on tree-ring records to better understand climate variability of the past millennium. Tree rings can also be utilized to give students a window into paleoclimate research, the methods scientists use, and the importance of scientific findings. Here, we present five online labs that introduce undergraduate students to the field of dendrochronology. Students learn about foundational tree-ring concepts and are guided to use many of the same tools and strategies as scientists, including exploring important field sites, measuring tree-ring data from those sites, using online paleoclimate databanks, and evaluating climate trends and extremes. The labs have been classroom tested and were modified based on a professional assessment, and faculty and student reviews. Faculty and student surveys and student lab grades show that the majority of students were able to meet the learning goals of the labs. Students reported that they felt they were working as scientists would, and, after completing the labs, that they better understood tree-ring science methods and applications. These materials were developed collaboratively with faculty input from a variety of institutions to have broad appeal and allow for use in a variety of classroom settings.

Scientists rely heavily on tree-ring records to better understand climate variability of the past millennium. Tree rings can also be utilized to give students a window into paleoclimate research, the methods scientists use, and the importance of scientific findings. Here, we present five online labs that introduce undergraduate students to the field of dendrochronology. Students learn about foundational tree-ring concepts and are guided to use many of the same tools and strategies as scientists, including exploring important field sites, measuring tree-ring data from those sites, using online paleoclimate databanks, and evaluating climate trends and extremes. The labs have been classroom tested and were modified based on a professional assessment, and faculty and student reviews. Faculty and student surveys and student lab grades show that the majority of students were able to meet the learning goals of the labs. Students reported that they felt they were working as scientists would, and, after completing the labs, that they better understood tree-ring science methods and applications. These materials were developed collaboratively with faculty input from a variety of institutions to have broad appeal and allow for use in a variety of classroom settings.