The Maximising Adaptation to Climate Change (MACC) Hub’s Second Annual conference took place in Belfast on the 23rd September 2026 at the ICC Waterfront. We hosted some 200+ attendees spanning all corners of the UK and Ireland, and brought together adaptation experts from central and local government, private and public sector, academia and practitioner spaces.

Why we brought people together

Ambitious adaptation action to prepare for the impacts of climate change is increasingly recognised as an essential counterpart to decoupling our economies from the burning of fossil fuels. We are already experiencing these impacts at a societal scale, from the widespread disruption and devastation caused by Storm Eowyn last year, to the repeated and record-breaking heatwaves faced across Europe and the UK this summer. Climate change impacts have worsened the cost of living crisis and put additional pressure on our healthcare systems.

We know that across policy, research and practical delivery there is a wealth of knowledge and experience across these islands, which we endeavoured to gather a cross-section of in Belfast. Yet the challenge for adaptation is turning this knowledge and ambition into implementation. The conference therefore brought together people working across these areas to explore what is needed to accelerate action. In essence, we wanted to ask the question ‘What will it take to move from understanding climate risk and developing adaptation plans, to delivering meaningful change across our communities, organisations and systems?’

To do this, we organised the conference around three interconnected themes:

Leadership | Finance & Capabilities | Communication

What emerged was not necessarily a call for another layer of policy or research, but a challenge to connect the knowledge, resources, relationships and experience we already have access to, and ultimately turn them into action.

Thank you!

We want to thank everyone who made the day a huge success, from the venue staff, session leads and speakers, and most importantly everyone who took time out of busy schedules to attend this conference.  Your participation and engagement in all of the sessions made the day what it was, and thanks to so many of you who have provided such positive feedback already.