548 ITU‐T's Technical Reports and Specifications The following are the key steps of adaptation planning and implementation, and the potential contribution of ICTs to each the step: 1) Setting the basis: Observation and understanding: city planners should consider the role of ICTs in climate change adaptation as a new alternative in their local adaptation plans. They should take stock of existing measures, opportunities and challenges on the integration of ICTs in climate change adaptation. 2) Assessing climate change risks and vulnerabilities: this should involve an assessment of how ICTs can support to identify adaptation options to climate change, as well as to carry out an assessment of the specific risks and vulnerabilities on ICT infrastructure. 3) Planning of adaptation options: for planning of the adaptation process, it is important to define the role of ICTs in identifying adaptation options for cities, as well as those options that would allow for the use of ICTs for impacts of climate change. Once the potential adaptation options are identified, an assessment should be carried out to determine which of them suit the cities specific context. The approach is based on prioritizing those ICTs that would best support adaptation options in a given city context, including the evaluation of social, environmental and economic variables. This step also involves the prioritization of adaptation options for the ICT infrastructure. 4) Implementation of adaptation actions: this step relates to the development of an implementation plan to convert adaptation options into action. It involves the integration of ICTs in the design of implementation strategies for identified/prioritized adaptation options, together with the implementation of specific adaptation options for the city's ICT infrastructure. 5) Monitoring and evaluating adaptation actions: this step consists of a monitoring system and evaluation of the role on ICTs in climate change adaptation, to ensure the focus and effectiveness of adaptive actions. ICTs have the capacity to support this process in various ways including (but not limited to) usage of software tools to enable modelling, monitoring and analysis of climate change impact in cities. A smart sustainable cities' adaptation checklist is also provided in the last chapter of this report, to enable cities mayors to evaluate the degree of inclusion of ICTs in their cities strategic responses, and assist them in improving relevant adaptation interventions.