Step 4: Implement Adaptation Actions; Step 5: Monitor and Evaluate

Step 4 and Step 5 should be worked through together. Monitoring and evaluating for each adaptation action should be planned for from the beginning, in order to ensure useful data for determining success and next steps.

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Introduction: Climate Adaptation – Framework and Implementation

Step 1: Building a Strong Foundation

Step 2: Assess Vulnerability and Risk

Step 3: Identify and Select Adaptation Options

Steps 4 and 5: Implement Adaptation Actions, Monitor and Evaluate

Climate Adaptation Worksheet – download

Implement Adaptation Actions

• Return to your answers in Step 1. Do you still have the support you identified?
• Do you have support, funding, and time for the specific adaptation actions you identified as the most feasible and effective?
• Do you need to re-evaluate the feasibility or timeline for any adaptation actions in light of the support, funding and time that you have?
• What steps do you need to take in order to implement the actions? What is the plan for completing those steps?

Monitor and Evaluate

• How will you measure the success of each adaptation action?
• How will you determine when adaptation actions need to be modified, altered or halted?
• How will you determine when to implement further adaptation actions?
• Who needs to be involved in monitoring and evaluation? Think of key stakeholders and local experts.
• Who will be responsible for re-evaluating techniques as new information and resources become available?

About Measuring

Many factors can be used to assess and record progress and they will be dependent on the task.

Before you can make a measurement, you need to know your starting points or your benchmarks. For example, if your outcomes include a reduction in monthly heating costs, you need to know the average costs before you start the project. You will need that number when it is time to assess your progress.

Keep in mind your goals need to be:

• Realistic – can you actually achieve this goal in the allotted time?
• Clear and simple – Do you actually know what is expected from the project and goal?
• Measurable – what is the indicator that you have achieved what you set out to do?

Some types of measuring to consider:

• Quantities, units – people, time, money, items
• Milestones for projects that happen over several stages
• Start/finish
• Costs: expenses, savings
• Experiences, observations
• Quality (satisfactions, mistakes, complaints)
• Deviations from plan and goals

About Evaluating

Evaluation will help you learn from and record the experience, check programs, identify strengths, weaknesses, and effectiveness of your planning, and, most importantly, help you to determine the next steps.

Some sample questions you might want to ask when evaluating your outcomes and measurements:

• What has been completed and what is yet to be accomplished?
• Were we realistic in assessing the situation and setting the goals?
• What prevented completion? Were the timelines realistic?
• Did we understand the problem that we were trying to fix and the tasks and goals?
• Did we deviate from the original plan?
• Did the project justify the actual outcome?
• Did unexpected problems arise? Could these have been anticipated in the planning process?
• What did we learn?

As you develop and evaluate your plan, consider sharing your work with your members, community, stakeholders, and even your local and regional governments. There is also a benefit in sharing your work with your visitors, letting them know that your organization is serious about climate action and you are actively mitigating the effects on your historic site. This can be done in much the same way as you would promote conservation efforts.

Recording Measurements and Evaluations

Use the fourth tab on our climate adaptation workbook to record your information.

Here is a basic example for your reference: