After three days of debates and thematic sessions in which 90 speakers and more than 2,000 people participated, the First Iberian Conference for Adaptation to Climate Change, Adaptes, came to an end today, marking a milestone in the Spanish-Portuguese cooperation path to transfer and share knowledge, experiences and good practices to strengthen climate resilience in both countries.
The closing of this Conference was attended by Claudia Guerrini, from the LIFE programme of the European Commission, Nuno Lacasta, president of the Portuguese Environment Agency and Elena Pita, director of the MITECO Biodiversity Foundation, who thanked the high participation and interest that this Conference has aroused and insisted on the need to “take action and move towards a model of prosperity that takes into account the aspects discussed during the conference”. these three days, a model that must be low in emissions, that avoids the loss of biodiversity and that is socially inclusive”.
The Conference, organised by the Biodiversity Foundation and the Spanish Office for Climate Change, both of the Ministry for the Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge, in collaboration with the Portuguese Environment Agency, highlighted the need to adopt coordinated measures between countries so that adaptation to climate change is an opportunity and a lever that supports recovery and transformation both in the present and in the future.
10 THEMATIC SESSIONS
The more than 2,000 participants have worked on 10 thematic sessions focused on the fields of cities, tourism, education, health, water, agriculture, biodiversity, coasts, islands and disaster risk reduction. An average of 200 people have participated in each of the sessions. This event is one of the milestones of the LIFE SHARA project, “Awareness and knowledge for adaptation to climate change”, whose general objective is to improve the governance of adaptation to climate change in Spain and Portugal, and which is co-financed by the European Commission.
The Vice-President and Minister for the Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge, Teresa Ribera, was in charge of opening the Conference last Wednesday and during her speech she stressed the importance of working together with Portugal on adaptation issues and underlined the transversality of the climate change phenomenon. In addition, he stressed that nature-based solutions are key to reducing the risks associated with climate change and strengthening adaptation capacities.
On the conclusions adopted in the 10 thematic sessions, aspects such as the involvement of local actors, the structural function of ecological infrastructure and the recognition of good practices have been addressed. In addition, the importance of the local vision regarding the phenomena derived from climate change and the need to strengthen green infrastructures in cities was insisted upon.
The challenges and solutions of the agricultural sector to adapt to climate change, the management of water resources and the importance of both countries developing coordinated actions in this field were also discussed. In the session on climate change and water, the participants agreed on the need to understand water not only as a resource but also in its territorial and multifunctional dimension and to commit to nature-based solutions for its management.
The conclusions of the session on the management of coastal spaces have addressed the retreat and surveillance of the coastline as one of the greatest challenges as well as betting on a multilevel governance model. Health has been another of the axes discussed, giving importance to the food risks caused by climate alterations.
Adaptation to climate change on the Mediterranean and Macaronesian islands has been the focus of block six. With regard to the importance of information, education and training on climate change, the need to promote citizen participation, covering all audiences, and to activate specific training jointly in environmental education for adaptation to climate change, has become clear.
FLOOD AND DROUGHT RISKS
With regard to disaster risk reduction and adaptation to climate change, there has been a commitment to deepen the integration of the effects of climate change in the planning of flood and drought risks, phenomena to which both countries are very vulnerable. Tourism and how to turn challenges into opportunities was the focus of block 9, in which one of the main conclusions was that sustainable tourism holds the key to achieving this conversion and is committed to green recovery.
The last thematic session, number 10, focused on the role of biodiversity as a protector against climate change. The need to prioritise adaptation measures to avoid losing ecosystem services and to increase resilience has been one of the solutions provided, in addition to considering protected natural areas as optimal spaces for adaptation. All this in a scenario in which scientific knowledge is incorporated into decision-making and the involvement of citizens, especially young people.
PREVENTING BIODIVERSITY LOSS
Fernando Valladares, researcher at the Spanish National Research Council; Cristina Monge, political scientist and executive advisor of ECODES; Joana Balsemão, Executive Councillor for the Environment and Citizenship of the Municipality of Cascais, and Sofía Santos, specialist in sustainable climate finance, took part in a roundtable discussion to highlight the importance of conserving ecosystems as a shield against the effects of climate change.
In this session, future challenges were raised and the role of the financial sector in achieving the objectives and adapting our economy to climate changes was addressed. The role of climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution as the main obstacles to achieving these goals has been addressed.
