KNOWING Final Event

How can regions move from abstract climate targets to concrete, legitimate and actionable decisions? Over the past years, the Horizon Europe project KNOWING has worked with cities and regions across Europe to answer exactly this question.

Co-creating Climate Futures with Regions

At the KNOWING Final Event in Vienna, we will present how scientific climate modelling and local knowledge were brought together to co-develop Climate Pathways tailored to real-world challenges; from heat stress and flooding to energy transitions and mobility choices. These pathways were designed in close collaboration with regional and municipal stakeholders, combining data-driven insights with lived experience, institutional realities and political constraints.

A central outcome of this work is a shift in perspective: climate action is not only about reducing risks, but about improving everyday life. The pathways developed in KNOWING show how climate-resilient planning can lead to cooler neighbourhoods, more reliable infrastructure, fairer mobility systems and greater energy security. For citizens, this means tangible benefits they can feel; for regions, it means stronger social acceptance and more robust long-term strategies.

Turning Complexity into Informed Decisions

The event will showcase the KNOWING Tools & Services that made this possible. At the core is the Decision Support System (DSS) and the KNOWING Knowledge Base, which translate complex climate and socio-economic models into transparent decision spaces ready to explore. These tools allow planners and decision-makers to test options, understand trade-offs and explore future scenarios before choices are locked in.

Equally important are the project’s participatory formats. Through Playful Trainings, structured dialogue formats and the Shape Your Future App, KNOWING created spaces where stakeholders from different backgrounds and citizens could engage with climate futures in an accessible and constructive way. This participatory approach was key to anchoring modelling results in local priorities, values and power structures within the demonstrator regions.

What to Expect at the Final Event

By enabling regions to actively plan their climate futures, KNOWING supports a shift from reactive adaptation to strategic, self-determined transformation. Climate governance becomes more transparent, more inclusive and ultimately more resilient. In a time of growing uncertainty, this strengthens the capacity of cities and regions to act and to retain democratic legitimacy while doing so.

The Final Event brings together project partners, regional stakeholders and the wider policy and research community to reflect on lessons learned, experience KNOWING’s tools hands-on, and discuss how the approach can be scaled and transferred beyond the project.