Concept/Ideas

Climate change stands as a double challenge for humanity, calling now for both mitigation and adaptation actions. On the one hand, preventing climate change impacts requires immediate and concrete actions to be taken, so that global emissions are stabilized in the short term and reduced in the medium/long term, with a view to reach the EU’s objective of keeping global average temperature increase below 2oC compared to pre-industrial levels. On the other hand, climate change is already evident and its impacts are inevitable for the next century and beyond, irrespectively of the effectiveness of any mitigation measures taken. Societies are forced to adapt to the new conditions, both by minimizing the risk of damage and exploiting the new opportunities arising from a changing climate. The project acknowledges the need to enhance the expertise and sharing of experience on designing and implementing adaptation strategies at regional and local level.

The majority of regions in EU Member States will be significantly affected by climate change. The impacts of climate change and hence the required adaptation measures vary significantly in different regions, creating a challenge for regional planning authorities. Vulnerable regions include among other: southern Europe and the entire Mediterranean basin – expected to suffer from high temperatures and droughts; mountain areas – melting of snow and ice changes river flows; coastal zones – sea level rise and risk of storms; densely populated floodplains – risk of floods leads to damages in infrastructure and built-up areas; Northern Europe – increased precipitation mainly in the form of rain as opposed to snow. Climate change adaptation transcends administrative boundaries and demands multilevel governance, with complementary actions taken each time at the most appropriate level.

The elaboration of cost-effective adaptation strategies requires precise knowledge of regional/local conditions, hence the direct involvement of regional /local authorities. Moreover, regional/local authorities are in the best position compared to other levels of governance to mobilize citizens and local stakeholders towards adaptation. By raising awareness and engaging directly with stakeholders, local authorities can stimulate behavioral change within societies and communities; many of the decisions taken at the local level, influence climate change adaptation e.g. with regard to land management and land-use practices. Both mitigation and adaptation measures imply an increased financial burden for the regional and local authorities who will be called upon to respond to an increased need for spatial planning, awareness raising and the adoption of a proactive approach, including the provision of technical guidance and exchange of good practices.

At the same time, such measures bring about opportunities for the development of new economic activities (e.g. summer tourism in northern regions) or the creation of better living conditions (e.g. safer houses, more efficient transportation networks, etc.). The social impact of adaptation action is also significant, especially as regards employment (job losses and gains due to revised land-use planning regulations) and health (pressure on the regional / local health system). In this context, REGIOCLIMA aims to go one step further from past initiatives (e.g. the Interreg IIIC AMICA project) and produce concrete climate change adaptation policy recommendations and intervention measures that can be applied by all MS, focusing on Regions (as opposed to local and provincial authorities) and addressing three geographic zones: South, Central, North Europe. Moreover, REGIOCLIMA works on the coordination of regional and local initiatives with EU and MS’ action.