Adaptation to climate change in Sweden: knowledge, policy and practice in decision-making

This fact sheet describes research from the Mistra-SWECIA Project 4 (2008-2011) regarding the processes of climate change adaptation in Sweden. It examines the role of scientific knowledge, political priorities, and sectoral challenges in forestry, spatial planning, and water management, highlighting barriers such as short-term productivity goals and a lack of national guidelines.

• Sweden has started incorporating climate change adaptation into policy and implementation, with County Administrative Boards coordinating regionally and adaptation appearing in strategic planning for public and private entities. However, there is a lack of mechanisms to promote the use of scientific and practical knowledge or to encourage collaboration across different sectors and stakeholder groups.
• Local adaptation decisions are heavily influenced by larger-scale politics and formal administrative processes, which can make international scientific findings relevant and credible locally. Key barriers to local action include a failure to prioritize adaptation and the need to 'mainstream' adaptation into professional practices and sectoral policies due to the influence of technical norms and regulations. The Swedish Meteorological and Hydrological Institute (SMHI) is identified as a central knowledge broker.
• While stakeholders are positive about using scientific knowledge for adaptation, current scientific results—specifically impact and climate change scenarios—are often not user-friendly. There is a demand for information that features shorter time horizons, clearer graphics, and greater local relevance, alongside more informal interaction between scientists and policymakers.
• The Swedish forestry sector lacks a climate adaptation strategy despite its size and importance. Integration of adaptation into forestry policy is hindered by uncertainty regarding climate change effects and a focus on short-term productivity. The research suggests these barriers persist due to insufficient collaboration between lobby groups promoting adaptation.
• In municipal spatial planning, particularly in the Stockholm region, responses to adaptation vary from 'weak and passive' to 'strong and proactive'. Integration is hindered by a perceived lack of national government support and guidelines, as well as a conflict where the pursuit of immediate gains from property development outweighs long-term vulnerability risks, such as sea-level rise affecting waterfront developments.
• In the water and waste water sector of the Stockholm Region, investment in adaptation is driven primarily by climate knowledge because there are no clear regulations or requirements. However, an over-reliance on cost-benefit analyses, 'optimal solutions', and 'climate facts' in decision-making currently limits the implementation of expensive adaptation measures.

APA

Massé, N. (2010). Adaptation to climate change in Sweden: knowledge, policy and practice in decision-making. Stockholm Environment Institute. https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/Sustainable-livelihoods/sei-2011-fs-swartling-sweden-climate.pdf

Chicago

Massé, Nicolas. Adaptation to climate change in Sweden: knowledge, policy and practice in decision-making. Stockholm Environment Institute, 2010. https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/Sustainable-livelihoods/sei-2011-fs-swartling-sweden-climate.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Massé |first1=Nicolas |title=Adaptation to climate change in Sweden: knowledge, policy and practice in decision-making |publisher=Stockholm Environment Institute |date=2010 |url=https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/Sustainable-livelihoods/sei-2011-fs-swartling-sweden-climate.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{mass2010adaptation, author = {Massé, Nicolas}, title = {{Adaptation to climate change in Sweden: knowledge, policy and practice in decision-making}}, institution = {Stockholm Environment Institute}, year = {2010}, url = {https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/Sustainable-livelihoods/sei-2011-fs-swartling-sweden-climate.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }