Case study 2: The HEAT report – Harmful Environmental Agendas and Tactics in France, Germany, and the Netherlands 7/7

The report also highlights how these narratives exploit existing distrust in authorities, making it harder to communicate urgent risks or promote behavioural changes that support climate resilience. This creates a hostile environment for climate adaptation policies, which often require community participation and long-term planning based on scientific evidence.

Furthermore, the lack of regulatory clarity—such as the absence of climate disinformation in the list of systemic risks under the EU Digital Services Act—limits the ability of policymakers to counteract these harms effectively. This regulatory gap allows false or misleading claims about adaptation policies to circulate unchecked, weakening public understanding and engagement.