Table 2.

Overview of general challenges for monitoring and specific challenges for adaptation monitoring.

General challenges for monitoring	Proposed solutions
Useful information: salient and context sensitive, responsive to specific information demands	Involve stakeholders to check information needs Research mechanisms in system(s) of interest
Technical quality of indicators: accurate, valid, precise, robust, meet SMART criteria	Use/develop review procedures Use existing indicators/data sources Research physical mechanisms in system(s) of interest
Communicative value and efficiency of indicators: simple and straightforward to understand	Test communicative value of indicators Use existing well-known indicators
Credible production of information: unbiased, legitimate, transparent, objective/independent	Scientifically sound methods Independent operation of monitoring organisation
Monitoring must be feasible: availability of data, limited financial and human resources	Limit the set of indicators Use existing datasets Evaluate usefulness of indicators
Specific challenges for adaptation monitoring	Proposed solutions
Coping with uncertainties	Adaptive monitoring Design for learning
Addressing shifting baselines	Monitor background variables for climate and economy
Demonstrating contribution  (we use of contribution rather than attribution, acknowledging that an outcome is a combined effect of several factors; see Bours et al. 2014, point 9)	Use theories of change to describe causal mechanisms Combine qualitative, quantitative and binary indicators Create links with adaptation measures
Meeting stakeholder needs	Involve stakeholders in the monitoring and evaluation process