This policy brief builds on results arising from the mitigation and policy appraisal research domains of the ADAM project (Adaptation and Mitigation Strategies: Supporting European Climate Policy). Funded by the European Commission and coordinated by the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research in the UK, ADAM is an integrated research project running from 2006 to 2009 that will lead to a better understanding of the trade-offs and conflicts that exist between adaptation and mitigation policies. This multi-authored report addresses questions surrounding the European Union’s proclaimed goal to stabilise the global mean temperature at less than 2°C above pre-industrial levels.