Developing and assessing novel educational and user-centred actions towards scaling up behavioural change and climate resilience through an AI-enhanced solution

Project Information

NEUROCLIMA

Grant agreement ID: 101137711

DOI

10.3030/101137711

EC signature date 24 October 2023

Start date 1 January 2024

End date 31 December 2026

Funded under

• Climate, Energy and Mobility

Total cost

€ 3 986 716,25

EU contribution

€ 3 986 716,25

Coordinated by

POLITECNICO DI MILANO
Italy

Periodic Reporting for period 1 - NEUROCLIMA (Developing and assessing novel educational and user-centred actions towards scaling up behavioural change and climate resilience through an AI-enhanced solution)

Reporting period: 2024-01-01 to 2025-06-30

Summary of the context and overall objectives of the project

The NEUROCLIMA project was conceived to respond to the pressing challenges of climate adaptation, behavioural transformation, and democratic participation in Europe. Its overall objective is to design and validate a digital ecosystem that monitors behavioural adaptation to climate change, evaluates social tipping dynamics at scale, and supports inclusive policy co-creation processes. By combining advanced AI-driven monitoring tools with frameworks from the social sciences and humanities, the project addresses both the technological and socio-political dimensions of climate resilience. The project aims at 1) creating a “nervous system” for monitoring climate adaptation and social tipping points; (2) supporting the EU Adaptation Strategy and Mission on Adaptation through toolkits and frameworks for climate literacy; (3) developing digital learning and engagement tools to empower citizens and decision-makers; (4) verifying and validating the solution through pilot demonstrations in at least five sites; and (5) raising awareness, providing policy recommendations, and ensuring long-term exploitation and sustainability.

Work performed from the beginning of the project to the end of the period covered by the report and main results achieved so far

During the first reporting period (M1–M18), the consortium successfully established the conceptual, technical, and methodological foundations of the solution. Key achievements include:
The design and delivery of the Minimum Viable Product (MVP), integrating all core modules of the NEUROCLIMA Platform such as NeuroClimaLens (search and monitoring interface), NeuroClimaDialogues (large-scale deliberation), NeuroClimaBot (decision-making assistant), and the educational tools NeuroClimaLearn and NeuroClimaPlay.
The creation of a Reference Architecture ensuring modularity, interoperability, and scalability of the digital infrastructure.
The preparation of the Evaluation Framework (WP6), defining metrics and protocols for inclusivity, accessibility, and trust in the forthcoming pilot activities.
Within WP3, the consortium developed and delivered the framework for scaling behavioural and systemic change for climate adaptation, which provides actionable methodologies for enhancing citizen participation, climate literacy, and systemic transformation.
The MVP and framework were showcased in key events, such as the “Climate Resilience Blueprints” workshop, the BioMed AI Summer School, and the STS Italia Conference, providing early feedback from citizens, educators, researchers, and policymakers.
These results were supported by extensive co-creation workshops, stakeholder surveys, and interdisciplinary collaboration across technical, social, and policy domains, ensuring that the solution is both technologically robust and socially attuned.

Progress beyond the state of the art and expected potential impact (including the socio-economic impact and the wider societal implications of the project so far)

The results achieved so far confirm both the technical feasibility and the social relevance of the NEUROCLIMA solution. The MVP demonstration, public events and internal workshops have shown strong interest from citizens, educators, policymakers, and international organisations, including presentations at high-level fora such as the WHO. Out of the 15 partners of the Consortium, at least 11 regions are expected to effectively integrate the project’s results. The engagement of these regions will be facilitated through the involvement of specific regional stakeholders, nominated in due time by their national representatives, ensuring concrete progress in adopting the NEUROCLIMA solution for both educational purposes and inclusive policy co-creation.
Looking forward, the project has the potential to generate systemic impact by:
Strengthening democratic governance through deliberation tools that increase transparency and accountability.
Improving climate literacy via creative and playful learning approaches that reach students, educators, and citizens at scale.
Enabling evidence-based policymaking, thanks to AI-supported monitoring and the integration of social tipping dynamics.
For successful long-term uptake, the project identifies several enabling factors: the development of a sustainable business model and exploitation plan, access to markets and finance, clear IPR agreements, and a supportive regulatory and standardisation framework. Two complementary business models are under preparation to ensure scalability across diverse contexts, aiming at market readiness by the end of the project. In this way, NEUROCLIMA not only supports the EU’s climate adaptation goals but also contributes to reinforcing civic engagement and resilience across Europe.

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