Transformative innovation for better climate change adaptation : case study : Blekinge and Värmland, Sweden

This report has been prepared at the request of the European Commission's Joint Research Centre (JRC), Innovation Policies and Economic Impact Unit, in collaboration with DG CLIMA. The aim of this report is to investigate the potential for harnessing key features of Transformative Innovation to improve the design and the implementation of Climate Change Adaptation (CCA) strategies, based on empirical analyses of territorial cases across Europe. The study draws on the conceptual framework on this question previously defined in another JRC report (European Commission, 2024). The case study research covered several territories from across the EU and beyond, comprising various institutional contexts, a variety of climate risks within different biogeographical regions, different ranges of population sizes, and representing a diversity of approaches to CCA and transformative innovation. The methodology for the case studies relies on the following main sources: Qualitative interviews carried out with key actors in the two main policy fields: R&I and climate/environment. - Other policy fields chosen for their particular relevance for each territory: e.g. regional development, spatial planning, energy, water, agriculture, forestry, food, fisheries, health, etc. Interviewees included decision-makers, officials in implementing bodies, researchers, NGOs and experts active in the field. Documentary and website analyses on strategies, policies and projects. A first round was carried out prior to the interviews on publicly available material, followed by a second round, with documents (public or draft) obtained from interviewees. This Report provides the findings for the regions of Blekinge and Värmland, Sweden, as at November 2023.