Myth 1: More climate adaptation action? We have already taken energy-saving measures, haven't we?

Yes, 

we have replaced light bulbs with LED bulbs, bought more energy-efficient equipment and machines, and turned down our room temperature. All this helps to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions and to curb climate change. We have adapted to the new situation. 

But,

this is not climate change adaptation or, in longhand, adaptation to the consequences of climate change. Despite all efforts to mitigate climate change, at best we are reducing the change to a global temperature increase of 1.5 degrees. That is still a significant change in the climate as we currently know it. Especially in the northern hemisphere and over the continents, the increase is even higher. This drives the water cycle and leads to sea level rise and more extreme events, such as heat waves, heavy rain floods, storm surges as well as droughts. The climate in my region around Frankfurt am Main in Germany will soon be the same as the current climate in Milan in Italy.

Energy-saving measures do not really help against these unavoidable climate change impacts. We need to find ways to cool our cities and buildings, learn to cope with water scarcity as well as to protect ourselves from floods, grow food differently or source it from other regions, etc. Climate change mitigation and climate change adaptation are two different strategies to deal with climate change and both are needed. Climate adaptation requires completely different measures than those we have already taken to mitigate climate change. And... these measures protect ourselves very concretely and directly - here at our place, now and in the future.