The LIFE SHARA project coordinated by the Biodiversity Foundation of the Ministry for Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge (MITECO) publishes 15 new climate change adaptation initiatives with the aim of disseminating real experiences that illustrate both the impact and adaptation to climate change in different geographical areas, living environments and productive and economic sectors.
These new narratives join the 15 already available that make up the exhibition “Sharing solutions” of the National Center for Environmental Education (CENEAM), a traveling exhibition that aims to show governance through concrete stories to increase resilience to climate change in Spain.
The materials are dissemination and awareness-raising resources that seek to be useful for any entity, institution or person that promotes action against climate change and are part of the actions of the LIFE SHARA project, which aims to strengthen the governance of adaptation to climate change and increase resilience to climate change in Spain and Portugal.
The narratives are presented in three formats: video interview, written report and exhibition panel. They address different initiatives in various fields, from natural to urban environments, including agriculture, livestock, citizen science or the industrial sector.
SUCCESSFUL INITIATIVES IN RIVER ADAPTATION
The Arga River, in Navarre, is the scene of a pioneering initiative included in one of the narratives, focused on the analysis and adaptation of the territory to the increasingly frequent river floods as a result of climate change. The initiative has improved the environmental quality of the area, in addition to reducing the risk of flooding in the riverside towns.
Also in a fluvial environment, in this case that of the Júcar and Moscas rivers as they pass through Cuenca, a project has been developed within the framework of PIMA-Adapta
and led by the Júcar Hydrographic Confederation. The initiative was launched in 2018, in order to reduce the risk of flooding, aggravated by climate change.
PROJECTS IN AGRICULTURE AND LIVESTOCK
Agriculture is also strongly affected by climate change. The Setos Operational Group initiative, presented in another of the narratives, has aimed to improve the adaptation and resilience of agriculture in Murcia, thanks to the planting of hedges, which, among other benefits, facilitate the protection of farms against extreme weather events, especially heavy rains.
In this same area and with the aim of helping to overcome the impacts of climate change on agriculture and livestock, the partners of the LIFE AgriAdapt project developed a methodology to assess climate risk at farm scale, using meteorological data and climate projections, as well as the information available and that provided by the producers themselves on the yields achieved.
INITIATIVES IN OTHER AREAS
Another of the projects that collect the narratives is developed in the park of La Marjal, in Alicante, an innovative example to reduce the risks of flooding in the urban environment. Another example of an urban initiative is the one that addresses green infrastructure in Vitoria-Gasteiz, offering a comprehensive approach to improve the city and its surroundings by betting on solutions that respond to the challenges posed by climate change, especially with regard to temperature rises and the increase in the frequency and intensity of heat waves.
As an example of adaptation to climate change on the Mediterranean coast, another narrative addresses a project for the restoration and conservation of dune systems in La Pletera, in the Montgrí Natural Park, the Medes Islands and the Baix Ter, in the province of Girona. This initiative focuses on adaptation to the effects of climate change on the coast, as a result of rising sea levels.
With an innovative character, the LIFE Reusing Posidonia project has made it possible to build a housing complex on the island of Formentera with strict attention to the principles of sustainability and energy efficiency criteria. As a novelty, local and traditional materials have been used, some of which were no longer in use. This is the case of the use of posidonia that reaches the beaches for the insulation of buildings.
LIFE SHARA
The LIFE SHARA project “Awareness and knowledge for adaptation to climate change” aims to collaborate in the construction of a society better adapted to climate change, cooperating with all the actors involved, generating knowledge and increasing social awareness. It has a budget of more than 1.5 million euros, 57% co-financed through the LIFE funds.
Among its objectives is to train, communicate and raise awareness about adaptation to climate change, a task to which these narratives of adaptation experiences contribute.
