Co-production is increasingly acknowledged as the preferred mode for producing climate services, especially in complex and information-limited decision contexts. This paper contributes knowledge on practices and processes that can enable effective climate services in such contexts.

The paper leverages insights that emerged from the FRACTAL project, which focused on informing actions to tackle climate-related issues in nine cities in six southern African countries over a six-year period.

The authors advocate shifting away from a focus on “products” to a transdisciplinary knowledge co-production “process” in which collaborative learning is the defining characteristic.

The paper offers a more comprehensive set of principles than was previously available in the literature. They urge climate service providers to:

• Engage participants’ emotions.
• Avoid making climate information the centrepiece of interactions.
• Use a “third space” to facilitate equitable engagements.
• Direct resources towards having fun and learning actively.
• Focus on contemporary issues with which stakeholders can connect.
• Introduce a pathways framing.
• Embed researchers in decision-making contexts.