Climate Project Design
From concept to impact - the complete framework
Your Progress
Section 1 of 5Why 70% of Climate Projects Fail
Good intentions aren't enough. Most climate initiatives fail not from lack of passion, but from poor design.
The data is stark: Only 30% of sustainability projects achieve their original goals. The culprits? Weak stakeholder engagement, unrealistic assumptions, and missing impact frameworks.
🎯 Interactive: Project Lifecycle
Click each phase to explore activities, deliverables, and common pitfalls. Understanding the full journey prevents costly mistakes.
Click any phase to explore activities and deliverables
✨ Five Principles of Great Project Design
1. Start with "Why" Not "What"
Don't jump to solutions. Deeply understand the problem, its root causes, and who's affected. Example: "Install solar panels" (what) vs. "Reduce energy poverty in off-grid communities" (why).
2. Co-Design with Stakeholders
Communities aren't beneficiaries—they're co-creators. Projects designed with people succeed 2x more than those designed for them.
3. Theory of Change = Your North Star
Map how your activities lead to outputs, outcomes, and impact. Make assumptions explicit. If X happens, then Y will result—test this logic ruthlessly.
4. Plan for Adaptation
Reality never matches plans. Build in feedback loops, monitoring checkpoints, and decision triggers. Successful projects pivot 3-5 times during implementation.
5. Measure What Matters
Outputs ≠ outcomes. "Trained 500 farmers" is an output. "Increased yields by 25%, improving income" is an outcome. Design M&E from day one, not as an afterthought.
🗂️ Four Common Climate Project Archetypes
Infrastructure Projects
Solar farms, charging stations, green buildings, water systems
Behavior Change Programs
Training, awareness campaigns, community mobilization
Policy & Advocacy
Regulation development, coalition building, research-to-action
Innovation & R&D
Technology pilots, proof-of-concepts, demonstration projects