Despoina Charchousi

Despite the institutional establishment of Regional Adaptation Action Plans (RAAPs), no systematic cross-regional assessment has examined their structure and implementation dynamics. The objective of this research is to categorize various adaptation strategies identified at the regional level within the 13 RAAPs of Greece and evaluate the current implementation status by introducing a three-pillar RAAP assessment approach including (i) typological classification of all RAAP measures (soft, development and hard), (ii) functional classification of sectoral measures applied to two indicative pilot regions (Crete and the Ionian Islands) and (iii) stakeholder insights on the implementation of regional adaptation. Each measure is assigned to its corresponding adaptation sector to enable cross-regional comparison. The implementation level is assessed through interviews with regional officials exploring criteria guiding measure selection, existing funding mechanisms and social consequences. These findings reveal the characteristics of early stage regional adaptation planning in Greece, where monitoring priorities, institutional capacity and sectoral exposure strongly shape adaptation strategies. Beyond descriptive mapping, the study introduces a structured multi-level analytical framework that offers a replicable tool for the comparative assessment of regional adaptation governance and advances research from policy-inventory approaches toward governance-oriented evaluation at the sub-national scale.

Threats on groundwater quantity and quality impose the need for monitoring and protection of Groundwater Dependent Ecosystems (GDEs) and their related services. The present study aims to the development of a GDEs and related services management framework, with emphasis on preliminary but practical monitoring and mapping tools, such as the Groundwater Footprint (GWF) and the land-scoring mapping technique. The main objectives of the paper are to: (a) provide an overview on existing GDEs and related services monitoring tools, as well as on the related legislation; (b) propose a GDEs services classification in order to set the basis for a common language and framework; (c) link GDEs services with UN Sustainable Development Goals; and (d) further elaborate the GWF concept based on the land use/land cover matrix assessment. In this context, an expert opinion survey on the links between land uses and the two major groundwater-related components of GWF (i.e., groundwater abstraction C and groundwater contribution to the environmental flow E) was conducted. Policymakers may use the survey findings as a tool to map GDEs services such as supply potential. Additionally, the developed assessment matrices provide information on potential hotspots of anthropogenic activities impacting components C and E.