II - Co-developing climate resilient pathways across Europe
The impact on European citizens is real, and local decision makers are starting to feel the obligation to act.
Fernando Diaz Lopez, Pathways2Resilience project coordinator
Extreme weather events such as widespread flooding, snowstorms, heatwaves and wildfires are already striking across Europe, with huge social and economic repercussions. Climate change is making these both more frequent and more intense. “The impact on European citizens is real, and local decision makers are starting to feel the obligation to act,” says Fernando Diaz Lopez, EIT Climate-KIC Transitions Hub lead and Pathways2Resilience project coordinator. The Pathways2Resilience project (previously known as PEERS) aims to help Europe’s regions and communities make progress towards their climate resilience goals. In the next four years, the project will distribute a total of EUR 21 million of funding to 100 regions through two rounds of calls for application. Pathways2Resilience is one of the flagship projects under the EU Mission on Adaptation to Climate Change, which contributes to putting the EU’s adaptation strategy into practice by helping regions to accelerate their climate adaptation efforts. The project will also develop a series of interconnected services (from capacity building to innovation finance labs) to support the beneficiaries, along with a further 50 regions that will join the project with their own funding.
From forest to coast
Through these activities, Pathways2Resilience will help decision makers take on climate knowledge and develop tailored adaptation plans. These regional adaptation strategies will incorporate nature-based solutions to address the impacts of climate change. Examples include planting trees, reintroducing native species and restoring critical coastal ecosystems such as mangroves and coral reefs. Pathways2Resilience will also develop a self-assessment tool so that regions and communities can assess their position along the journey to climate resilience. Through a series of innovation groups and climate finance model labs, the project will provide a comprehensive range of knowledge and mechanisms that regional authorities need in order to effect change. At the end of the project, Europe’s regions and communities will be equipped with a comprehensive strategy for transformative climate adaptation and will be ready to implement it to protect their citizens from future threats of climate change.
Keywords
PEERS, EU missions, cities mission, adaptation mission, climate change, projects info pack, research, innovation, resilience, sustainable, urban, climate-neutral, smart mobility, clean energy