As designed and promoted by experts in the framework of adaptation projects, sectoral strategies or national plans, a local adaptation response to climate change may become maladaptation if considered from another standpoint, in another context or after an unexpected event. The sustainability in time of adaptation responses depends on the possibilities to adjust them to different stakeholders and changing conditions. Having observed that adaptation actions regarding land use and agricultural practices are often assessed to support one-shot decisions, we propose to discuss and illustrate with concrete examples, how the assessment of local adaptation measures can better account for the specificities of climate change and land use issues. Such improvement would be achieved by : 1) accounting for the diversity of viewpoints and contexts according to which a measure results in desired adaptation or not; 2) nurturing a process with several entry points (adaptation or vulnerability for instance) and iterations between the definition of adaptation and its assessment; 3) addressing uncertainties of different types (on climate change and its impacts, on the adaptation response and its results) and the role of uncertainty on adaption and its assessment. The objective of the panel is to bring together the concepts, lessons learnt and ideas on these three leads, and several emblematic cases of adaptation regarding land use and agricultural practices in Latin America and in Africa. For that matter, at least one main article on each lead (diversity of viewpoints, iterative processes, uncertainties) has been identified whose contribution will be highlighted and discussed in terms of improved assessment of on-going adaptation responses. The panel will contribute to building together a companion assessment approach that aims for more consistency between principles and actions, to embody the principles of successful adaptation to climate change, and to improve the relevance and timeli