BEATLES has launched its Climate-Smart Agriculture Policy Toolkit, a new online platform offering practical guidance to policymakers and public administrations working to build more resilient, fair and sustainable European agri-food systems.
The Toolkit translates the principles of Climate-Smart Agriculture (CSA) into practical guidance for European policymakers, Managing Authorities, governance bodies and other public-sector actors. It supports authorities throughout the policy cycle—from assessing whether the necessary conditions are in place to designing interventions, monitoring results and improving implementation.
Developed by AEIDL (European Association for Innovation in Local Development) within the BEATLES project, the Toolkit builds on research into the behavioural, economic, social, institutional and policy factors that influence the adoption of CSA practices.
Evidence from five European Use Cases
Its resources draw on scientific and policy analysis, behavioural research, stakeholder engagement, consultations and interviews, as well as evidence from five European Use Cases: wheat systems in Lithuania, organic dairy farming in Germany, organic apple production in Spain, the pig sector in Denmark, and potato and onion production in the Netherlands.
This territorial evidence helps ensure that the Toolkit reflects the realities faced by farmers, value-chain actors and public authorities across different agricultural sectors.
Three tools to diagnose, design and monitor
At the centre of the platform are three complementary operational tools:
- DIAGNOSE: CSA Policy Readiness and Enabling Conditions Checklist, to help assess whether the institutional, financial, governance and knowledge-related conditions needed for CSA implementation are in place.
- DESIGN: CSA Intervention Design Tool for NRPP programming 2028–2034, to support the design of coherent CSA intervention pathways.
- MONITOR: CSA Performance Monitoring Tool for National Regional Partnership Plans (NRPPs) implementation 2028–2034, to support the definition of indicators and the monitoring of CSA-related outcomes in terms of productivity, adaptation, mitigation and wider sustainability performance.
Policy recommendations for the future NRPPs
The platform also includes 12 EU Policy Recommendations designed to inform the future Common Agricultural Policy and National and Regional Partnership Plans. They address key issues such as policy coherence, fairness, financial support, administrative simplification, behavioural approaches, advisory services, digitalisation and outcome-based monitoring.
These resources are complemented by five Use Case Policy Insights, which translate project findings into recommendations tailored to specific countries, sectors and territorial conditions. Users can also access four thematic policy briefs, BEATLES contributions to EU consultations and the project’s full policy deliverable.
The Toolkit brings practical resources together in one place, creating a lasting BEATLES legacy and helping public authorities develop effective, farmer-centred policies for more resilient and sustainable European agri-food systems.
Explore the Toolkit at climatesmartagri.eu
For any questions or suggestions regarding the Climate-Smart Agriculture Policy Toolkit or the BEATLES project, please contact Blanca Casares Guillén (bca@aeidl.eu)
Authors: Miranda García and Blanca Casares-Guillén (AEIDL)
