The EU Taxonomy Regulation, established to guide sustainable investments, includes six environmental objectives. Among these, climate change mitigation and climate change adaptation are central pillars, each with a distinct focus and criteria for activities to be classified as sustainable. Understanding the difference between these objectives is crucial for seeking alignment with the EU's climate goals.

Climate change mitigation refers to efforts aimed at directly reducing or preventing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. This includes actions that limit the magnitude of climate change, such as improving energy efficiency, switching to renewable energy sources, and advancing carbon capture technologies. Within the EU Taxonomy, an economic activity qualifies as contributing to mitigation if it substantially lowers GHG emissions in line with EU targets, particularly the goal of achieving climate neutrality by 2050.

Activities deemed as supporting climate change mitigation might include renewable energy projects, such as wind and solar farms, improvements in energy efficiency across industries, or the development of low-carbon transport infrastructure. To be classified as a mitigation activity, the activity must align with align with activity-specific criteria set by the Taxonomy to ensure it makes a genuine contribution to reducing emissions.

In contrast, activities related to climate change adaptation not focus on reducing emissions directly but to build resilience to changing climate conditions, such as more frequent extreme weather events, rising sea levels, and shifts in temperature patterns. These activities could be related to e.g., infrastructure, and systems to reduce vulnerability to the adverse impacts of climate change.

For example, infrastructure upgrades to withstand flooding, strategies to protect coastal regions from erosion, and agricultural practices that are resilient to drought.

Distinguishing between mitigation and adaptation clarifies the unique ways economic activities can support climate goals. While some activities may contribute to both climate change adaptation and mitigation, each activity’s description helps identify which objective is most relevant. However, for some activities, the descriptions may overlap, making it essential for your company to clearly understand the primary goal of its activities.

Most companies focus on activities related to climate change mitigation, while comparatively few engage directly in climate change adaptation.