Who leads, who lags? Inter-urban inequities in European climate adaptation funding and financing

Despite increased attention to climate finance in urban adaptation, empirical data on the socio-political processes shaping funding accessibility, allocation, and their implications for inter-urban adaptation progress remains limited. In a first-of-its-kind survey, we analyse results from 148 urban administrations across 17 EU countries. Our results reveal widespread funding shortages (>85% of administrations), insufficient staff capacity (73%) and low levels of political support (43%). Additionally, we find limited participation of vulnerable groups and inadequate consideration of climate risks and vulnerability when allocating resources. Towns lag behind cities, and Southern Europe lags behind Northern Europe in funding adaptation measures. Notably, higher climate risk levels are not associated with easier access to funding sources or increased funding availability. With reliance on public funding over loans, we nuance the role of financialisation in urban climate governance and propose cohesive adaptation as a finance strategy towards more equitable policy and practice.