The purpose of this group of steps is to define the challenges and the city system in order to frame the further planning process (‘what are we looking at’).

Underlying steps are:

• Problem definition, making clear the reasons that drive your climate adaptation goals.
• Survey areas of Climate threat, determine relevant climate hazards/stressors and gather information on climatic conditions, past extreme events and climate change projections.
• Survey the non-climate trends that can have a major influence on climate stressors and their effects.
• Determine stakeholders to involve in the adaptation process as well as their interests.
• Determine the right Time horizon to find the right balance between vision and attainability of your immediate plans.
• Analyse the Context in order to find additional constraints for the adaptation process.