Defining successful climate services for adaptation with experts

Climate services are increasingly developed and used to plan for climate change adaptation, but it remains unclear what constitutes their success. In this global Delphi study, a wide range of experts evaluated 12 elements to be most relevant for defining success, clustered along 3 dimensions: climate service, production process, and results of production and/or use. Two possible ways of combining these elements into a definition received convincing support from the experts. The definition shows that user satisfaction is key. Moreover, climate service developers should acknowledge climate change uncertainties, and build trust and capacity with the users, while tailoring interactions. Ultimately, better adaptation decisions should follow. There was limited agreement on including elements regarding the process of how a service should be developed. This paper proposes a first global definition for successful climate services that is widely supported and can be used to develop, research, and evaluate climate services.