The past 13 June took place in Blekinge, Sweden, the Second Forum of the EU Mission: Adaptation to Climate Change
The Forum brought together national, regional and local authorities, Friends of the Mission, European institutions, and research organizations. In that way, the forum facilitated dialogue among participants and provided an opportunity to take stock, identify issues, provide direction, and define the path ahead.
Climate change affects regions, sectors of the economy, and members of society in many ways, and EU regions and cities have different climate vulnerabilities and levels of preparedness.
Adapting to climate change means taking action to prepare for and adjust to both the current effects of climate change and the predicted impacts of the future. Enhancing the importance of this was one of the focus points of the session, as Elina Bardram, Mission Manager and a Director in the European Commission’s DG CLIMA stated:
“Our fight against climate change is not solely about reducing the harmful gases we release into the atmosphere (mitigation), but also about replenishing and preserving our natural ecosystems and dealing with shocks to our economies that climate risks represent.”
The Forum followed a World Café format, where two breakout sessions took place. The subjects addressed were: How to increase collaboration between national authorities, regions, and other Mission actors to deliver on adaptation, and how to scale up adaptation solutions.
Besides the conclusion that adaptation was not receiving the appropriate level of attention it deserved as opposed to mitigation, other issues raised at the panel discussions and breakout sessions were the need for strengthening stakeholder collaboration, the integration of climate adaptation policies, promoting cross-border cooperation, and acknowledging the barriers to scaling up such initiatives characterized by high initial costs compared to the perceived long-term benefits.
In this way, the Mission: Adaptation to Climate Change contributes to putting the EU’s adaptation strategy into practice by helping the regions, cities, and local authorities in their efforts to build resilience against the impacts of climate change, as well as helping deliver the European Green Deal.
For further information, the recording of the forum is available on YouTube at the following link:
