Category: News

Being “creative” about collaboration for climate resilience – Opinion article

You probably experienced or heard about the persistent heatwaves that affected Europe this summer, causing wildfires and droughts, impacting people’s health and the production of food, and influencing energy demand and production, to name a few. This is an example of how natural, social, and economic systems are interconnected and interdependent. And as climate change affects multiple sectors and systems, it leads to a sequence of unforeseen and unpredictable events that impact other systems (cascade effect).

Why do we need to collaborate?

Ideas and solutions to build climate resilience must consider the interconnectedness of the systems. This is only possible by thinking “outside the box” of a certain scientific field or sector, and by involving the ones who know best how climate change impacts the region or territory: its local actors. The time asks for strengthening collaboration among people with diverse knowledge and experience.

“The sheer complexity and specialisation of science today means that attitudes of openness and collaboration are not a nice complement, but rather a critical factor for success.”
Mariana Mazzucato

In her mission-oriented strategy for the European Union, Mariana Mazzucato highlights the importance of developing new forms of collaboration among actors from varied disciplines, sectors, and backgrounds. This is not an easy task, as it entails openness and cooperation among people with diverse interests and perspectives. Therefore, it is crucial to understand how such processes can become spaces that allow the integration of different forms of knowledge while exploring commonalities and complementarities. The concept of creativity may be helpful in designing such group dynamics.

What is creativity?

Recently, creativity has been linked to complex thinking, in which creativity is related to human interactions and work processes that lead to the creation of something (such as a policy, a strategy, knowledge, etc.). Authors such as Montuori (2017) and Runco (2007) argue that, rather than an isolated phenomenon, creativity is understood as a networked, collaborative, “bottom-up” process arising out of interactions of a given system.

In Nature of Creativity, Montuori describes the environments that support creativity, which are often not authoritarian, promoting the independence of judgment, problem-finding, and flatter organisational structures.

Furthermore, the processes that encourage creativity involve the following attributes:

Creative tensions: such as between specialisation and a broad outlook, autonomy and the need for respect and approval, certainty and uncertainty.
Not stressing over specialisation: allowing the freedom to tap into several disciplines and knowledge bases.

No one’s view is ignored: the actors should feel and know that their views will not be ignored and be given a serious hearing.
Isolation and interaction: the process should permit and encourage the participants to experience both moments of isolation (reflection) and interaction with others.
Matching peoples’ interests and skills with the right assignments: which is only possible when there is good knowledge about the actors involved and the nature of the assignment. Challenging tasks: such tasks elicit intrinsic motivation (see below) and creative thinking. On the other hand, too much challenge can result in high levels of anxiety, inhibiting the capacity for creative thought.
Heuristic tasks: with clear expectations and considerable autonomy. On the other hand, tasks that involve specific or pre-established steps, with one right way and one right answer, tend to constrain creativity.

From the participants’ side, it seems essential that they have both intrinsic motivation for the subject (such as fascination, enjoyment while performing the task, or feeling of accomplishment) and extrinsic motivation (such as financial incentives and social approval).

If you’re interested in methods and tools used for stakeholder engagement and co- creation processes, REGILIENCE and the projects TransformAr, IMPETUS, and ARSINOE will use varied ways of involving stakeholders. Stay tuned to discover more about such processes through the materials that will be launched in the coming year, such as TransformAr’s playbook for participatory workshops and REGILIENCE’s stakeholder engagement strategy.

You can download the article here.

The REGILIENCE team travelled to the beautiful city of Athens for the EURESFO 2022

The REGILIENCE team travelled to the beautiful city of Athens, Greece, for the 9th edition of the European Urban Resilience Forum. The city is one of the oldest to be continually inhabited with over 7000 years of history. The Attica region, which includes the capital of Athens, is home to 3,792,469 people.

In 2022 the country has been severely hit by the effects of climate change. From wildfires, which forced hundreds to flee their homes, to short but intense thunderstorms and rain, which flooded the streets of the city, Athens is particularly susceptible to climate-incited devastation, mainly because 80% of Athens’s ground is not water permeable.

This is one of the reasons why the Athens Resilience Strategy 2030 is so important. Its goal is to prepare and protect the most vulnerable ones from future devastations.

The Strategy is framed by the following 4 pillars, including 65 actions and 53 supporting actions:

Open city;
Green city;
Proactive city;
Vibrant city.

“By 2030 Athens strives to be a responsive, embracing and inspirational city that is proud, green and citizen-led. We nurture creativity and innovation, creating prototypes of belonging, bridging history and progress. Athens is a city that listens and speaks with the world.”

During the European Urban Resilience Forum 2022, Mr. Kostas Bakoyannis Mayor of Athens summarized the situation perfectly by saying that “Athens is not bouncing back, it’s moving forward”. Mr. Vasileios Axiotis, Vice Mayor for Urban and Buildings’ Infrastructure and City Planning of the City of Athens, on the other hand, explained that there are currently ongoing regeneration plans in each neighborhood within the city.

Argyro Paraskevopoulou, head of the General Directorate of Sustainable Development and Climate Change, Region of Attica, clarified that the region has a clear plan which sets out immediate adaptation priorities, prioritizing measures and actions to be implemented. The measures are divided into short-term, medium-term and long-term depending on the necessary implementation time. The sectors with the greatest vulnerability, such as water, infrastructure and urban environment are on this priority list.

One such regeneration activity is taking place on Lycabettus Hill, which the REGILIENCE team had the opportunity to visit as part of a study tour. The program aims to breathe new life into this iconic landmark by creating an urban oasis and a spot for recreation. Some of the works being done on Lycabettus Hill include reconstruction and reopening of the iconic Lycabettus Theater, maintenance of the hill’s trails and footpaths, anti-flooding and anti-corrosion works, lighting and road upgrades with the use of sustainable materials.

The images below show one of the adaptation measures on Lycabettus Hill. This place has previously been very risky for the buildings underneath because of falling rocks. This is why wire pallets have been placed, which will then be covered with garden soil and local plants will be planted. The construction will protect the neighborhood below while also promoting the local flora and fauna.

The Omonoia Square has also been rejuvenated and its signature fountain restored. The fountain is believed to be one of the largest ones in Europe when it comes to water volume. The reconstruction efforts were a result of the local authorities wanting to ameliorate the living conditions of the locals and the tourists by creating a “greener” space, which would not only be beautiful but would also cool passers-by during the hot summer months in the city.

Another thing which made a long-lasting impression on us is that the whole city, including the locals, are striving to make their hometown into an urban oasis. The city is covered by green spaces, parks and trees. Almost every museum has an adjoining garden. Almost every balcony is a miniature greenhouse. Apart from being very picturesque, the plants keep the temperatures in the city lower and promote wildlife.

Building networks and innovation ecosystems for resilience and climate change adaptation are key to ensure Europe can withstand the effects of climate change and conflict. This event was a great opportunity for regions to share their experience and failures and learn from each other.

EURESFO2022’s main organizers were ICLEI Europe and European Environment Agency, co-organizers were the City of Athens, the Google Foundation, with the projects Regreen, Regilience and CoCliCo, supported by the European Investment Bank, Covenant of Mayors for Climate & Energy Europe and EU Policy Support Facility, European Committee of the Regions, Life Programme, Science for Environment Policy, with the projects Ruggedised, Excess, proGIreg and ARCH, in cooperation with Resilient Cities Network and Making Cities Resilient 2030 initiative.

You can access the EURESFO 2022 official photo album here.

Transformative pathways for a more resilient, regional development in Europe and beyond

Join the REGILIENCE project and others at #EURegionsWeek for a discussion on the common goals, challenges, and focus areas for European regions and communities impacted by climate change.

From the 11 October 2022 16:30pm to the 11 October 18:00pm

On Tuesday 11th of October from 16:30 to 18:00 CEST, REGILIENCE will participate in an online session and panel discussion at the European Week of Regions and Cities 2022.

About

Climate change is a global emergency that is causing extreme weather events and natural disasters, simultaneously all over the world. In Europe, recent wildfires, droughts, and floods have severely affected regions across the continent, particularly impacting their vulnerable populations. The European Commission’s Adaptation Mission aims to support at least 150 European regions and communities towards climate resilience by 2030. This means fostering the development of innovative solutions to adapt to the unfolding realities of climate change. Because climate change affects different regions in unique ways, the mission helps communities strategise according to their particular needs and vulnerabilities.

At this interactive event, four EU projects will be discussed: REGILIENCE, ARSINOE, TransformAR, and IMPETUS. By assessing and improving the resilience of regions, these projects will help Europe to prepare for future crises and reduce their associated risks. REGILIENCE will pave the way for regional climate resilience pathways. To that end, it will develop a needs survey covering the 50 most vulnerable regions in the EU. By organising hundreds of activities and reaching out to 100 000 individuals and 8 networks, the project will share experiences and disseminate knowledge, overcoming barriers and obstacles associated with climate resilience.

The session will summarise regional innovation for climate adaptation, featuring case studies and good practices on a variety of topics (related to climate adaptation), from Nature-Based Solutions and biodiversity to flooding prevention, tackling droughts and heat waves, and fighting water scarcity. Regional government representatives will be paired with EU institutions such as the Committee of the Regions and the European Commission. The session will not only target local and regional governments, but also individuals, policy-makers, and businesses.

Agenda

5’ – Welcome and introduction to the session
10’ – Keynote address from the Committee of the Regions
10’ – Short input by all speakers
60’ – Panel discussion
5’ – Closing remarks

The panel will provide an open discussion where participants from policy and practice reflect on what they see as novel activities for accelerating resilience and what the adaptation community should be taking away with them as challenges and ideas that might lead to faster, more pervasive action for regional development towards climate resilience.

Guiding questions:

What does the implementation of the new EU Adaptation Strategy mean for regional authorities and communities? How does this link up with the Mission for Adaptation to Climate Change and Societal Transformation?
What is in the pipeline for regions to build resilience in the coming months and years and how does this link up with efforts for a green and resilient recovery from Covid-19 and beyond?
How to make resourcing and financing adaptation less complex for regions and overcome the ‘adaptation gap’ and avoid maladaptation?
How do we evolve towards resilient communities lived in and protected by engaged and empowered citizens?
Which initiatives and programmes will help with this? Which initiatives should regions connect with and collaborate and consult on?

Confirmed Speakers:

Apostolos Tzitzikostas (First Vice President, European Committee of the Regions)

Registration:

REGILIENCE team meets in Freiburg im Breisgau

The REGILIENCE team has just come back from a very fruitful trip from Freiburg im Breisgau, a city known since the 1970s for being particularly environmentally friendly with many sustainable solutions implemented and numerous projects carried out. The team was hosted by ICLEI Europe, the world’s leading network of local and regional governments committed to sustainable development and REGILIENCE partner.

Freiburg believes that the people are at the heart of the city, thus with input from residents, businesses, scientists and researchers, educational institutions, churches, cultural organizations, and many other institutions, a unique Freiburg MIX has emerged, now known in the world as “Green City Freiburg.”

The REGILIENCE team had the opportunity to visit some of the key places in the city, which are great examples of good practices of resilience and climate adaptation. One such location is the Vauban district, known as the most sustainable City District in Europe.

Vauban is a place with a radically dramatic history. A military town through WWII and into the early ’90s, when the military left, Vauban’s vacant buildings were inhabited by squatters. These vagabonds were the people who organized Forum Vauban, creating a revolutionary eco-community. Modern Vauban represents the very cutting-edge of sustainable living. Construction of this intentional community began in the mid-1990s and it opened in the 2000s. By 2001, it had 2,000 inhabitants and now it is said to be home to 5,000 inhabitants with over 600 jobs created inside the district.

The town buzzes with civic engagement, community building, and environmentally-friendly living. Low-energy construction is mandatory, passive construction, plus-energy construction and the use of solar technology are standard for most.

The tree population has been preserved as far as possible. Green spaces between rows of houses provide green space and offer play areas for children. Parallel to the private structures, there are now a school, kindergartens, youth facilities, a civic meeting place, marketplace, and recreational and play areas, with the goal to incite sharing (common pizza wood oven being one example). Green flat roofs store part of the rainwater, which is collected.

The residential area has reduced traffic. A large proportion of households are car-free, and private vehicles are parked in one of the two neighborhood garages. Since 2006, the residential area has been served by a light rail system. Many residents live happily without cars and instead use public transport and bicycles.

Facts and figures

Buildings must meet the Freiburg standard for low-energy construction (annual energy rating 65 kWh/m²). More than 277 residential units have even been built living up to passive house standards, which corresponds to the maximum energy use of 15 kWh/m²a.
The solar houses on Merzhauser Strasse are energy-positive: they produce more energy than they consume.
The heat supply for the entire neighborhood, with the exception of the passive houses, is provided by a woodchip-fired combined heat and power plant that also generates electricity, enough to cover the needs of approximately 700 households.
Vauban’s population density of 12,500 inhabitants/km² is relatively high, corresponding roughly to the population density in the inner-city districts of many major German cities.

The team was also able to visit some iconic and sustainable buildings, such as Rathaus im Stühlinger, Universitätsbibliothek Freiburg (University Library Freiburg), experiment environmentally friendly modes of transportation – mainly walking and metro – and also to drink water from tap water fountains and to have a vegan lunch in the Stadtgarten.

Heat is here: how maps across Europe may help citizens keep cool in extreme heat – Opinion article

“It’s too hot to even commute to the lake…’’ another WhatsApp message arrives. That’s one person less coming to a lake on the outskirts of Berlin to escape the trapped heat in the city. The heat is everywhere – we feel it, read about it, and complain about it because it’s real.

During extreme days of heat in cities, so-called heat islands can form due to the high density of buildings and sealed surfaces and because the temperature does not even drop much lower at night than during the daytime. According to Dr Katharina Scherber, Chair of Climatology, the heat islands also cause more people suffering from heat stress to have to come to hospitals in the city of Berlin, compared to the state of Brandenburg, the region around Berlin.

On the upside, there are various regions and cities across Europe which are mapped to guide citizens to cooler and wetter areas in periods of extreme heat. The maps are a tool for citizens, rather than a direct adaptation measure. I love maps and Berlin’s urban heat scares me these days, so I wanted to take a closer look.

A very direct response to avoid heat stress is to stay in cold spaces indoors and to stay hydrated if possible.

However, usually one needs to commute somewhere during the day – whether it’s for work, school or just to see friends. There are vast differences within each city as to when and where there is extreme heat. Both factors are accounted for in several maps of European cities, some of which the members of the REGILIENCE consortium live in.

The map in Berlin is called Refreshing map (Erfrischungskarte) and was developed by the open data information centre (ODIS) which strives to make the vast data from the public administration digital and usable. By compiling the data the map shows citizens where there is more shade, cooler areas and water stations in the city. The idea arose because the team wanted to test the shadow maps with a mapping tool by QGIS based on the 1×1 m digital terrain model of Berlin. They also wanted to create a useful tool for day-to-day life to „help everyone to adapt to urban heat and to help raise awareness’’, says Lisa Stubert, who leads ODIS.

On the question about how easy it would be to create a map of the entire region, she says there could most likely only be a few features because of a lack of data.

In other parts of Europe, it is also only urban areas, not regions, that have informative heat maps for citizens: An app, Extrema global shows where cooler zones and water stations are across some of Europe’s biggest cities. In direct collaboration with Rotterdam, there is also the Extrema Rotterdam app, which has an Emergency Notification System for Extreme Temperatures and an information management tool to inform citizens about how to get from point A to B in the coolest way possible.

For this, the map of Barcelona, which only covers the coastal districts of Barcelona, offers three modes to choose from so that users can set their own preferences. Shadows are included in the maps (Berlin), a colour spectrum to visualize the differences in temperature (Berlin, Barcelona, all Extrema maps), and there are some maps that feature spots to take a rest such as benches (Berlin) or shelters (Barcelona). The Viennese Map has different types (and icons) for refreshment: spray showers, drinking water stations and water sprinklers.

The maps also provide the necessary information about how to stay cool and hydrated. Thanks to them it will be easier for the commuters to decide whether it is actually a good idea to go to the lake!

When it comes to adaptation to climate change overall, initiatives arise from the bottom-up or in response to calls for building more resilience. Within our work for REGILIENCE we often observe that cities are in fact the pioneers in resilience efforts. We learn through these initiatives what is possible and what may work, also for the regions.

If you want to make your region more climate-resilient contact us or subscribe to our newsletter.

You can download the article here.

Adapting to climate change: the example of France fighting fires and heatwaves

France, like many other EU countries, is experiencing these days the impacts of climate change as never before. For the first time, heatwaves have reached Bretagne, a region normally joked for being mostly rainy. Over 40°C have been recorded and while fires have long happened in the South, for the first time they reached Bretagne and the Paris suburbs too. Several articles have been issued on the topics, linking them to climate change, and this is great news amidst the bad ones: for once, climate news is not put down the headlines by other news. This blogpost gathers insights from these articles (available mostly in French), sharing best practices from across Europe, which is also REGILIENCE reason-to-be. They can be a source of inspiration for all, from policymakers to citizens, insurance companies, urban planners, etc., all who bear the price of these extreme events.

In an article presenting research projects working on ways to tackle the fires, that are meant to become the norm (vs the exception) in a near future, Euractiv explains that every year, almost 500,000 hectares go up in flames across Europe. Sharing good practices between States, especially on adaptation measures, seem essential to avoid the devastating impacts the fires leave behind, on people, the nature, the cities. The article quotes Eric Maillé, engineer at Inrae, a French research institute dedicated to agricultural science. He mentions the Med-Star project and the Italian “firewise communities” (Canadian concept): In Tuscany, an adaptation measure is to invite citizens to regularly voluntarily clear brushwood, which can otherwise fuel the fires. The project is also considering resilience approaches: what happens once the fires are put out? This is a thinking that needs to happen increasingly: which species do we plant back? For instance, holm oak is a Mediterranean species particularly resilient in the face of fires… As fighting the fires and dealing with their consequences is extremely costly and challenging (in terms for example of manpower, water resources use), Europe is eager to bet on prevention and resilience.

In another article in French media Libération, another researcher from Inrae, Arnaud Sergent, insists on the need for better land use planning to limit the damage caused by fires. He explains that the forests currently burning in Gironde (West of France) are self-managed, a method dating from centuries ago, leading to poor maintenance: we come back to the idea of having people cutting what would otherwise serve as fuel for these fires and clearing the trails for firefighters to access them more easily. We need to change the way forests are integrated in our territories and consider them in land planning: how do you adapt to the fires from inside the forests, but also from the communities’ perspective, when the fires come close to them? Ensuring the forests are not too close to houses (or as mentioned, by planting hardwoods on the edge of woods, less flammable than softwoods), ensuring firefighters can access the core of the forests are some answers. This is even more important if we consider the key role of forests in fighting against global warming…

In a series of questions and answers following the French heatwave, Magali Reghezza-Zitt, geographer and member of the High Council for the Climate (HCC), and specialist in risk prevention and adaptation, shares solutions. The heatwave that most EU countries have faced or are facing puts us again in front of the need to adapt to extreme weather events, greenhouse gas emissions increasing their intensity, duration and frequency.

The REGILIENCE project team has experienced it while visiting Vienna: we need to cool our cities, and some adaptation solutions include less concrete and more vegetation, piggybacking on the existing infrastructure to adapt to extreme climate events. We need to work on buildings and the infrastructures: new material, new shapes, new techniques. Nature’s place in cities and communities is key and comprehensive development projects should answer risks while avoiding maladaptation, providing multiple benefits (when you add nature, you act on health and biodiversity, while when you act on housing, you can work on energy poverty, comfort, inequalities and more). An example of maladaptation is air conditioning: whenever possible and of course depending on the situation alternatives include building renovation and better insulation, installing effective blinders, urban greening. As highlighted by the IPCC, the right solutions should solve several problems simultaneously why not adding others.

Magali Reghezza-Zitt also mentions, when writing about the water resource, that despite having instruments and technical solutions in France, what we lack is consistency and more regular evaluations, which fully integrate the changing climate. She also participated to a podcast (in French) focusing on adaptation.

Other posts and articles are coming, sharing useful resources and examples. Stay tuned and do not forget to subscribe to our newsletter, sharing resilience news from various projects and initiatives.

Save the date and join REGILIENCE, ARSINOE, Climate Impetus and TransformAr at the 9th European Urban Resilience Forum!

Local and regional representatives set to come together and take next steps in building a climate resilient future at EURESFO22.

For almost a decade, the European Urban Resilience Forum (EURESFO) has served as an exchange platform for city representatives, experts and stakeholders from the local and regional stage to reflect and strategise on adapting to climate change, building urban resilience, and managing disasters. The unique event has provided an exceptional platform for governments from across Europe and abroad to explore future opportunities for action and collaboration.

EURESFO is a European initiative driven by ICLEI Local Governments for Sustainability and the European Environment Agency (EEA), and this year will be co-organised by the City of Athens (Greece). All local and regional governments seeking to shape a climate-resilient future are once again invited to take part in the discussion and meet-up in Athens on 14 and 15 September (Venue: Athens Technopolis). Registration is now open.

Some topics that will be highlighted in the programme are: coastal resilience and tackling heat waves and wildfires; mainstreaming climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction; the importance of data availability and accessibility; financing for resilient cities, nature-based solutions for equitable development, regional pathways towards resilience transformation, and many more!

This year’s event will also offer a masterclass on how to deal with urban heat, from inception to planning to monitoring, as well as host a Marketplace with various exhibitors, short project pitches, climate resilience assessments, and decision support tools.

About EURESFO22 taking place in the City of Athens, Vasileios Latinos, Urban Resilience and Climate Adaptation Coordinator at ICLEI Europe, says, “Climate change is one of the biggest challenges of our times and moving the event to a region that suffers severely from the effects of climate change seemed somewhat necessary! Since the EURESFO last convened in 2021, the world has experienced extreme climate events and disasters, occurring simultaneously in various countries. Plus, we have had at least two more COVID-19 waves, and an ongoing war in Ukraine. This is the moment to take stock, address the issues cities are facing, and talk about solutions!”

The event will keep its informative, open and interactive character, maintaining its ‘PowerPoint free’ format. Participants are encouraged to share experiences and points of view on a variety of topics that will explore challenges in urban resilience planning and implementation.

For more information and to register, visit the EURESFO website. Follow the @Urb_Resilience Twitter account for the latest updates and programme announcements for #EURESFO22.

For media inquiries, please contact:

Jennifer Cote, EURESFO communications lead
ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability European Secretariat Email: jennifer.cote@iclei.org

Climate change and its effects on our health

We have all heard that climate change has a devastating effect on the intricate balance of nature. Climate change does not mean only rising temperatures. As per the United Nations, the Earth is an interconnected system and changes in one area will have lasting effects on other regions. Among other effects, climate change can be seen in intense droughts, water scarcity, severe fires, rising sea levels, flooding, melting polar ice, catastrophic storms and declining biodiversity.

The World Health Organization (WHO) believes that the climate crisis threatens to undo the last fifty years of progress in development, global health and poverty reduction, and is only deepening the segregation between people of different economic backgrounds. The people with lower income, apart from usually living in more vulnerable regions, are also largely uninsured, therefore the effects of climate change are pushing them even closer to poverty. This means that the effects of climate change are mostly felt by the world’s most vulnerable and at risk populations.

The effects of climate change can have an influence on our everyday life – on our health, housing, ability to grow food, travel etc. WHO calls climate change the biggest health threat for humanity and states that climate change affects the social and environmental determinants of health – clean air, safe drinking water, sufficient food and secure shelter.

In light of these effects, almost 200 Parties around the world have adopted the Paris Agreement. The Paris Agreement is a legally-binding treaty, with the goal of the treaty being the limitation of global warming below 2, preferably to 1.5 degrees Celsius.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has then been invited to create a Special Report on the impacts of global warming of 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels and related global greenhouse gas emissions pathways. According to its latest report, if we continue at this rate, the threshold of 1.5°C will be reached by 2040. It’s important to note that some changes to global warming are inevitable, yet even the 1.5°C threshold is not considered safe.

Climate change can impact health in a variety of ways – it can lead to death or injury, caused by extreme weather events, such as extreme heat, flooding or storms. It can also lead to heat-related illnesses (such as heat exhaustion and heat stroke and even cardiovascular failure), respiratory illnesses such as asthma, water-borne diseases such as cholera, salmonella and gastrointestinal illnesses among others. Climate change can also increase zoonoses, which are diseases which can be transmitted from animals to humans. Extreme weather events can also lead to vector-borne diseases, malnutrition and food-borne diseases. It can also increase the cases of non-communicable diseases and have a negative effect on mental health.

Researchers report that 5 million deaths a year are linked to climate change. The findings are based on data from 2000 to 2019. By region, annual deaths related to abnormal temperatures were: Asia, 2.6 million; Africa, 1.2 million; China, 1.04 million; Europe, 835,000; United States, 173,600; South America, 141,000; India, 74,000; United Kingdom, 52,000, and Australia, 16,500. (Source: U.S. News)

In addition to this the World Health Organization has also reported that between 2030 and 2050, 250 000 additional deaths per year are to be expected due to the effects of climate change, cause by health conditions such as malnutrition, malaria, diarrhea and heat stress.

In their most recent report, the IPCC highlights some climate adaptation measures, undertaken in other sectors that have a positive effect on the health and wellbeing of people:

Adaptive urban design that provides greater access to green and natural spaces that promotes biodiversity, improves air quality, and moderates the hydrological cycle; it also helps reduce health risks associated with heat stress and respiratory illnesses, and mitigates mental health challenges associated with congested urban living.
Turning to vehicles using renewable energy mitigates Green House Gas emissions, improves air quality and lowers risks of respiratory illnesses.
Policies and designs that facilitate active urban transport (walking and bicycling) will reduce emissions, improve air quality, and generate physical and mental health benefits for residents.
Improved building and urban design that foster energy efficiency improve indoor air quality, reduce risks of heat stress and respiratory illness.
Food systems that emphasize healthy, plant-centered diets reduce emissions in the agricultural sector while helping in the fight against malnutrition.

There are many great examples of cities, adapting their infrastructure to accommodate the effects of climate change, which end up having beneficial effects to citizen’s health and wellbeing. Such examples include Vienna, famous for its visionary floodplain, which is a also used as a hotspot for recreation, sunbathing and socializing. The city’s Wiener Linien, Vienna’s public transport operator has also converted tram and metro stations into greenhouses, which apart from promoting biodiversity, also allow commuters to hide from the heat into their shadow during the hot summer months. The city also has over 1350 drinking fountains, offering free refreshment to its citizens and tourists, located in various places such as parks, markets and playgrounds.

Another example is Aubervilliers, a region on the outskirts of Paris, which has created an urban forest out of a former car park. Trees are known for creating shade and unlike the air conditioning we are so used to turning to when we hear that the temperatures will be soaring, trees and vegetation lower surface and air temperatures by providing shade and through evapotranspiration (U.S. Environmental protection agency).

That’s why REGILIENCE is so important. This European Project aims to develop Regional Pathways to Climate Resilience and will share the most promising cross-sectoral adaptation solutions, supporting cities and regions across Europe to become more resilient to climate change. During its lifetime will facilitate the identification and upscaling of the most promising resilience solutions: supporting their replication in 10 vulnerable and low-capacity regions in Europe.

Climate adaptation and resilience on the local and regional level – Croatian perspective

On the 30^th of June 2022, the REGILIENCE team has brought together 26 key Croatian stakeholders, including representatives of the local and regional governments, national utility companies and ministries, to discuss climate change adaptation and resilience. The room was unanimous on several points including that we are witnesses to the effects of climate change on a daily basis and that if we wait with adaptation measures until disasters strike it will be too late. The time to act is now, and the key actors in this process are the local and regional governments and their stakeholders and communities. The impacts of climate change will be felt on all levels and will require the cooperation and coordination both vertically (across different levels of governance) and horizontally (across different sectors), however the implementation of the necessary actions will fall on the shoulders of our municipalities, cities and regions. We must all support them in this process, the climate emergency we are facing can’t be solved with top-down measures alone.

On a positive note, climate change as well as climate change adaptation and resilience are slowly but surely becoming a relevant topic of conversation across Croatia. Considerations of adaptation to climate impacts are a mandatory section of new projects funded by public money and more and more funds are being made available to adaptation and resilience project and not only for climate change mitigation. We do have a long way ahead of us, but we are at least moving in the right direction.

The general conclusions of the workshop can be summarised as:

Climate change is happening, and we need to adapt to it now if we want to be resilient in the future.
Funding is available and we must use it. It is necessary to support both project development as well as prepared actions to act short and long term.
Climate change adaptation and resilience actions must be systemic and not just reactionary. We must prepare for and not just react to climate disasters.
It is vital to act in a coordinated manor, funding, plans and actions need to be aligned and harmonised horizontally and vertically to maximise the impact of the utilized resources.
We still need more capacity in terms of education and additional experts in key positions across the local, regional and national levels to achieve the targets we have set for ourselves.
Municipalities, cities and regions as well as their supporting institutions such as energy, climate and/or development agencies are key for achieving success.

The workshop has been organised in Zagreb, Croatia in the framework of the REGILIENCE project by REGEA and IEECP and supported by the REGILIENCE consortium.

The workshop has been held in Croatian with the following agenda:

REGILIENCE brings the resilience community together to debate National Adaptation Plans (NAP) and Strategies (NAS) in theory and practice

On the 28th of June, REGILIENCE organised a workshop titled “National Adaptation Plans and Strategies in the Theory and Practice – Role of the National and Regional Governments” to discussed how present and future EU policies drive the necessary changes on the ground as well as lessons learnt from the processes of the drafting, implementation, and monitoring of the National Adaptation Strategies from several EU Member States.

To kickstart the workshop Johannes Klumpers – Head of Secretariat for Climate Adaptation Mission at DG CLIMA – introduced the work done by the European Commission through the Mission on Adaptation to Climate Change, a new initiative bringing together efforts both financially and policy-wise to help regions and municipalities become climate-resilient.

After a thorough explanation of the European policy framework (see picture below), Mr. Klumpers moved on to describe the Mission on adaptation to climate change.

The mission specifically targets regions and cities, the main responsible actors of the many actions that need to be undertaken to reach climate neutrality. The mission has three main objectives on top of gathering a better understanding of climate risks:   

Equip all EU regions with necessary knowledge;
Help them develop their adaptation plan, aiming to support about 150 regions;  
Upscaling solutions to trigger transformation and develop enabling conditions aiming to support about 75 regions.

More concretely, the Mission will support the regions in two ways:

by encouraging them to participate in Horizon Europe (and other research programmes) which can be reached throught the Mission innovation platform, the first entry point to access guidance and funding.
by engaging them through the Mission Charter, thought to provide some support to regions which are not yet using (or do not have capacity to use) EU funds.

A practical example was offered by Tom Lamers, EU Affairs Adviser of the of the Green Metropolitan Region Arnhem-Nijmegen. Tom presented how the Climate Planning is structured in the Netherlands with a strong multi-level governance approach. The Green Metropolitan Region of Arnhem-Nijmegen is a region located in eastern Netherlands and is a cooperation of 18 municipalities, with an economic board representing the knowledge institutions. Its regional strategy has five focusing points: circularity, productivity, connectivity, green growth and leisure (climate adaptation is overarching in all five topics).

The main policy instrument at national level is the DELTA PROGRAMME (which was started as a response to the dramatic sea floods of 1953). A commission was installed to prevent such natural disasters in the future. Its work resulted in a world-known infrastructure preventing floods in the north shore, and in one long term strategy on flood risk management, freshwater supply and spatial adaptation. The programme is structured into decisions (6 years periods), which are themselves translated into plans, which are concrete measures for implementation. DELTA is not a top-down but a cooperation between the national government, the provinces, the water authority, municipalities and knowledge institutions and enterprises.

Spatial adaptation is a special sub-programme of DELTA. This is the context where the region sets up the planning measures for the built environment and rural areas (extreme heat, droughts, etc.). The sub-programme is also translated into a delta decision (2015) which includes plans and policies to make the Netherlands water resilient and climate proof by 2050. A DELTA plan on spatial adaptation was adopted in 2018 to set out goals ensuring compliance with the decision.

The DELTA programme is structured by 40 work regions in the Netherlands. These actors can identify vulnerabilities to weather extremes, act as pilots for stress tests, and set out ambitions and policies to take necessary measures. They also work together with other supra-regions. The 40 work regions are mostly based on a structure based on water basins and rivers. For example, the Arnhem-Nijmegen region has 7 work regions active (making it a very complex structure). One of the first work region is the one around the city of Nijmegen. This work region started working in 2016 and drafted its adaptation plan in 2019 and action plan in 2020. Some big projects are already implemented (e.g. island 4 km long and 200 m wide in the river).

In the Netherlands the adaptation strategy needs to be viewed as a whole – as an important interlink amongst all the levels. However, although multilevel governance seems to work quite well in the Netherlands, there are still some sectors which are difficult to engage (e.g. agriculture with the ban on pesticides).

Branka Pivčević Novak, Head of Service for general Climate protection policy, Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development of Croatia presented the national perspective. The national level has the role to create the right framework to allow changes on the ground, which is not always an easy task.

Croatia used a co-creation process for reaching a consensus for the national adaptation strategy: the role of the ministry was drafting the adaptation strategy based on the SEA process (2016-20) with the participation of scientists and experts from universities, media, civil servants, general public, etc. However, it is not always easy to reach a consensus when drafting complex documents which are meant to deal with issues where a lot of scepticism exists. In order to overcome this, the Croatian government involved experts from the meteorologic service, who elaborated scenarios able to show what could happen in the different areas of the country and sectors of the economy in the future if no action was taken. That data was used in workshops all over Croatia, this made people much more involved and interested. Unfortunately, due to economic constraints, this is not easily replicable. More and more work on the ground is done, and policy tools such as Environmental Impact Assessment are a good way to gather data and continue showing adverse effects of climate change.

Finally, Christian Kind, Head of Programme Adaptation at adelphi gave an overview on the “Monitoring and evaluation of the German climate change adaptation and resilience efforts”. Christian explained the German National Adaptation Process and showcased a detailed timeline of the National German Adaptation Strategy, first published in 2008 and being built upon ever since in a cyclic manner and with the help of the local level. In fact, municipal and regional levels are essential for adaptation however the design of plans saw a very limited active role for cities and regions. Needs are formulated and listened to, however only bit by bit. Barriers are the federal system (which has some advantages, but not in seeing the whole picture) and the fact that adaptation is competing with other important topics (e.g. poverty). It is very important for the national government to fund staff in municipalities in order to increase capacity (not for 1 or 2 years but permanently), funding investments (e.g. infrastructure), providing data (municipalities cannot do it by themselves + economies of scale) and supporting exchange and collaboration.

The workshop ended with the Panel discussion “Lessons learnt of the Climate change adaptation and resilience planning, implementation and monitoring process” moderated by Vasileios Latinos Coordinator of Sustainable Resources, Climate and Resilience at ICLEI Europe, where attendees were able to feed the discussion by asking their questions to the speakers.

It was concluded that there is more work to be done, but the geopolitical and economic situation is really rowing against us. The biggest effort should be on capacity building as we are still lagging as a society. Priorities are not there, actions that are planned are not efficient enough – what the EC is doing is good but we really need to invest in capacity building and stop seeing this as an expense but rather as a need.

You can view the full workshop recording below:

By the Autumn, REGILIENCE aims to organize an online workshop, including the 4 projects REGILIENCE, Arsinoe, Climate Impetus and TransformAr, aiming to discuss how the different missions interplay (mainly Mission on Climate-Neutral and Smart Cities and Mission on Adaptation to Climate Change) and work together.