EU Missions Climate Neutral and Smart Cities and Adaptation to Climate Change hosted the first cross-mission joint workshop exploring climate change in urban environments on 6th September 2023.

Attended by representatives of 41 cities that are Signatories of both EU Missions, the workshop facilitated the exchange of ideas, experiences, and best practices to address the impacts of climate change in urban settings among participating cities.

The event aimed to:

• Assist cities in identifying and capitalising on co-benefits between climate change mitigation and adaptation strategies.
• Enhance urban resilience by sharing best practices, innovative solutions, and resources for cities to be better prepared for and respond to climate impacts while planning and implementing climate action strategies.
• Promote the integration of digital solutions and tools into climate adaptation and mitigation planning and implementation.

The online workshop kicked off with a keynote address from Adaptation Mission Manager Elina Bardram (Director of DG CLIMA) and Cities Mission Manager Patrick Child (Deputy Director General of DG Environment).  Several expert speakers then presented on various topics, including an overall introduction to the Mitigation-Adaptation Nexus, Urban Heat Island Effect (UHIE), Urban Flooding, and Leveraging Smart Synergies to foster Urban Planning.

The attendees then broke off into groups based on the themes explored in the initial presentations, where they continued to discuss how the two Missions can work together to foster an integrated approach to climate change mitigation and adaptation.

Creating synergies between these two EU Missions is vital for holistically addressing climate change in urban settings, and there is a solid foundation to promote cross-sectoral and joint action towards climate change.

You can catch up on the workshop via the recording on the MIP4Adapt YouTube channel.