One of the actions of the Climate Adaptation Partnership focuses on “Training Academies for politicians on climate adaptation”. The action is led by the Council of European Municipalities and Regions (CEMR) in collaboration with other partners. Three Political Training Academies are organized under the Action, as well as various local trainings in cities. The purpose of these academies is to provide information to politicians to assist them in their decision-making on issues related to adaptation. The Second Political Training Academy will be held during the European Week of Regions and Cities(ERWC).

The goal of the session is to create awareness and knowledge of climate adaptation strategies for (local) politicians. The training will:

• Provide general information on what adaptation means for cities
• Raise awareness of the costs of inaction
• Inform about the risks of maladaptation
• Provide knowledge of the co-benefits of adaptation actions

The session targets local politicians (Mayors, Deputy Mayors, elected Councillors) from all over Europe.

The training will cover the following topics:

1. How climate change already affects European cities. Evidence from latest events and their impact (casualties, economic losses).
2. How will climate change affect European cities, the physics of climate change, evolution of temperatures and precipitations, evidence from latest science
3. Mitigation cannot free us from the necessity of adaptation. Will climate change quickly halt if we decrease emissions? (Emissions in Europe vs. emissions in the rest of the world)
4. What does adaptation mean? From understanding the risks and the vulnerability of your people and your infrastructure to climate hazards, to prioritizing critical facilities.
5. If we do not act, or do not take sufficient measures, what will happen?
6. Other benefits of adaptation, long-term economic benefits, immediate quality of life/job creation benefits
7. What tools exist to concretely adapt? Covenant of Mayors initiative, climate-Adapt, funding for adaptation

The training will take place in Brussels on 9 October 2019 from 11:30 to 13:00. It is organized by EUROCITIES, the political platform for major European cities. One of the session’s speakers will be energy and climate expertJean-Marc Jancovici. Furthermore, a Mayor will share his or her experiences regarding climate adaptation in the city.

Agenda 

• Welcoming words by EUROCITIES (Anna Lisa Boni or Dorthe Nielsen)

• Keynote talk by climate expert Jean-Marc Jancovici (tbc), addressing challenges, facts, impacts, supporting by eye-opening slides and visual support

• Presentation by a frontrunner Mayor: why I decided to take action on climate adaptation

• Q&A from the audience to the speakers, moderated by EUROCITIES

• Conclusions: by DG CLIMA, European Commission

The EWRC is an annual four-day event during which cities and regions showcase their capacity to create growth and jobs, implement European Union cohesion policy, and prove the importance of the local and regional level for good European governance. The session builds on the  first Political Training Academy was held in Oslo last Mayduring the Urban Future Global Conference and thelocal academy held in Glasgow.

Please find more information about the event here. 

You can register here before the 27th of September.