Unipol (Italy) are launching Life ADA, a project to encourage insurers to adopt an innovative approach to building their capacity in risk reduction, ensuring the long-term insurability of farmers. The project focuses on individual farmers and producer organisations in three value chains: dairy, wine, and fruits and vegetables. The project launched in 2020 and is based on the implementation of an innovative public-private partnership model between insurance, the public authorities (Regions), technical-scientific institutions, NGOs and producer groups: Italian agricultural producer organisation (OPI) or cooperatives.
The main aim of Life ADA is to transfer knowledge on climate scenarios, risk management, and adaptive measures to improve the skills of farmers in addressing current and future climate risks. It seeks to develop tools to support decision-making processes and efficient adaptation strategies at the farm and supply chain levels. A key aspect is to frame a coherent political strategy at the regional level, involving partnerships with regional public administrations.
The challenges faced by the agricultural sector include Italy’s vulnerability to climate change and the economic losses caused by extreme weather conditions. Farmers are struggling to adopt adequate adaptation plans due to the increasing frequency and magnitude of climate change and difficulties in assessing future climate scenarios. Additionally, there is a lack of awareness and integration of climate change resilience in insurance pricing and services.
In the insurance sector, the challenges include the scale of climate change posing risks to affordability and insurability of climate-related risks. Insurers are expected to play a triple role as risk carriers, risk managers, and investors, supporting communities’ resilience and funding adaptation efforts. Current regulations also require increased control on environmental, social, and governance risks.
The Life ADA project involves the development of risk maps, climate scenarios, and adaptation intervention libraries. Unipol are piloting this project in Emilia-Romagna, Veneto, Tuscany and Lazio and training sessions are provided to farmers and organisations in these regions. The project aims to replicate and spread this approach to other agricultural value chains and territories. Challenges include aligning time frames between public policy planning and business strategies, involving additional regions, and addressing complex administrative processes.
There is also a focus on building a tool to support farmers’ decision-making processes in defining adaptation plans. The tool is a web application designed using a human-centred approach and innovative methodologies. It provides analyses of climate hazards, indices of extreme events, and proposed adaptation actions. The tool targets both individual farmers and farmers’ organisations, aiming to change the mindset and facilitate adaptation actions.
You can view the Life ADA flyer here.
