The practice of climate adaptation in a challenging environment

“In five years from now, there will be at least 100 European regions with a transformative climate adaptation plan, and ready to implement a number of actions to build resilience in their communities.

That would be a fantastic catalyser for change,” says Fernando Diaz Lopez, lead of Pathways2Resilience, a programme funded by Horizon Europe under the EU Mission on Adaptation to Climate Change to support European regions and communities in building resilience to climate change impacts.

When it comes to climate adaptation, a lot can be done at the regional level. From developing adaptation plans that identify potential risks (including the cost of inactivity) and impact of climate change on their natural and built environment, to increasing the number of green spaces in urban areas to absorb carbon dioxide and reduce the concentration of pollutants in the air, to supporting sustainable agriculture practices that are also restoring soils’ health, to protecting natural habitats to enhance the capacity of ecosystems to adapt and increase biodiversity, to promoting awareness campaigns and develop educational materials for the public, and so on. These actions are already happening locally. But many vulnerable regions around Europe lack the knowledge, awareness, agency or funding to tackle climate adaptation in a systemic, transformative way.

Pathways2Resilience: creating a step-by-step guide on regional climate adaptation pathways

The European Commission has mandated a consortium of organisations led by EIT Climate-KIC to work with 100 regions so that they can develop a transformative climate adaptation strategy, complete with concrete innovation projects and funding opportunities to carry it out in practice. The Pathways2Resilience project will launch two competitive sets of calls for proposal between now and 2025, and will distribute €21 million of funding to the selected regions. The programme will also provide a number of interconnected services that will support the 100 beneficiaries, plus fifty additional regions who can participate with their own funding.

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