Bilbao, one of the largest cities in the Basque Country, has seen heavier rainfall, warmer winters and a heightened flood risk as a result of climate change. Bilbao is addressing these risks through participation in the international research project, ‘RESIN – Climate Resilience Cities and Infrastructures’, in which the city works with researchers to find ways to adapt to climate-related challenges.

Since the 1970s, Zorrotzaurre to the north of Bilbao had been on a continuous social and industrial decline, with only 500 people living on the peninsula at its lowest point. Today, it is the city’s biggest regeneration project. This started with the re-designation of land use in the area from ‘industrial’ to ‘residential’ in 1995. The Zorrotzaurre Master Plan was then drawn up to open the Deusto Canal, making the Zorrotzaurre peninsula into an island. The open canal and green banks will let river water flow through, reducing the water level by one metre and significantly reducing the risk of flooding. Three storm water tanks and a new flood protection wall along both riverbanks are also planned, which will help protect riverside housing.

A study conducted by the RESIN partners from the Basque Centre for Climate Change (BC3) found that as a result of the new waterway the 10-year return period for expected flood events will no longer apply, resulting in a 100 percent reduction in expected costs. For the 100-year return period, the estimated damages will be reduced by €162.72 million. Excavation works are already underway and expected to be completed by spring 2017.

For more information, visit resin-cities.eu. [This article is also available in Spanish.]

ICLEI Member City Glasgow (UK) is set to create Scotland’s largest urban heritage and Nature Park, investing £6.8 million to create a green area that will encompass 16km² of lochs (lakes), parks, nature reserves and woodlands. The project will also see the development of walking and cycling routes and improvements to paths and signage within the park, allowing people to better experience the natural and cultural heritage of the area.

"The Seven Lochs Wetland Park is an exemplar of Green Network planning and delivery. It is a place with an abundance of natural resources; important natural habitats, historic sites and established places for recreation. This major new urban wildlife park will be the jewel in the crown of the wider Green Network and bring a host of benefits for local people and visitors alike,” said Max Hislop, Programme Manager for the Glasgow & Clyde Valley Green Network Partnership.

Glasgow is a core city of Smart Mature Resilience, a multi-disciplinary research project working for more resilient cities in Europe. The city works closely together with scientists to develop Glasgow’s resilience against hazards and challenges brought on by climate change. Glasgow is particularly working on addressing flood risk management, water issues and drainage. Urban wildlife areas provide cities with a wide variety of environmental, social and economic benefits. Making the most of the park to meet, learn and exercise together will help to strengthen communities and improve Glaswegians’ health. The natural wetlands and open green spaces can also help to absorb excess water in the case of flooding, taking Glasgow a step further on its path towards resilience.

For more information, visit sevenlochs.org.

The European Environment Agency (EEA) has published a new report entitled ‘Urban adaptation to climate change in Europe 2016 – transforming cities in a changing climate’. The report provides an in-depth overview of the actions that urban planners and policymakers can take to reduce the impact of climate change, and stresses the benefits of investing in long-term preventive measures. ICLEI Europe is a co-author of the report and also supported the EEA in coordinating its production.

European cities are increasingly susceptible to the negative aspects of climate change, which are expected to increase in frequency and intensity with extreme events such as heatwaves, flooding, water scarcity and droughts. At the same time, social, economic and demographic changes can make cities more vulnerable. These can greatly impact a wide range of city functions, infrastructure and services such as energy, transport and water, and will affect urban quality of life.

The report recommends that to meet these challenges, cities must take a wider systemic approach that addresses the root causes of vulnerability to climate change. This includes better urban planning, with more green areas that can retain excess rainwater or cool dense city centres in hot weather, or by preventing the construction of houses in flood-prone areas. This approach can transform cities into much more attractive, climate-resilient and sustainable places to live and work.

For more information and to read the report, visit eea.europa.eu

Jose Julio Gonzalez delivered a plenary presentation on the SMR project entitled "Stalking resilience: Making cities vertebrae in society's resilience backbone" as an invited speaker for the first plenary session of the International Joint Conference - CIO-ICIEOM-IISE-AIM (IJC2016). The conference focussed on co-creation, taking as its motto "Building bridges between researchers and practitioners”.

The conference took place at TECNUN-School of Engineering (San Sebastián, Spain) on July 13th-15th, 2016. It aimed to provide a forum to disseminate, to all branches of industry, information on the most recent and relevant research, theories and practices in Industrial Engineering, Management and Operations. The joint conference is a result of an agreement between ADINGOR (Asociación para el Desarrollo de la Ingeniería de Organización), ABEPRO (Associação Brasileira de Engenharia de Produção), AIM (European Academy for Industrial Management) and IISE (Institute of Industrial and Systems Engineers), and it will take place at TECNUN-School of Engineering (San Sebastián, Spain) from July 13th-15th, 2016.

Representatives from European cities met in Bonn (Germany) on 5 July to discuss their experiences and successful strategies for adapting to climate change at the 3rd Open European Day at Bonn Resilient Cities. The event was attended by over 120 cities and climate change adaptation experts. As resilience development is not only a response to the challenges caused by climate change but also an opportunity to mitigate climate change and reduce risk, the importance of taking a holistic approach was a recurring theme. As noted by Jerry Velasquez of UNISDR, while cities are engines of growth, they are also driving increases in risk.

Amongst many first-hand contributions by cities, Marie Gantois shared Paris’ (France) successful experience with refurbishing and retrofitting buildings to save energy and improve thermal comfort. Jonathan Sadler demonstrated how green infrastructure has been the key to driving green growth in the City of Manchester (UK). Thessaloniki (Greece) gained the public’s support for resilience measures by communicating the relationship between resilience and the issues most affecting citizens: employment and the economy. Further examples of cities’ input are included in an animated video from the day. The event report will be published after the summer break.

The closing session of the event saw the launch of the European Environment Agency report Urban adaptation to climate change in Europe 2016. The 3rd Open European Day was organised by ICLEI and the European Environment Agency and co-organised by the Placard and RESIN projects, and supported by the European Commission - DG CLIMA and DG Research, and the European Investment Bank.

For more information, visit the Open European Day website.

The Smart Mature Resilience project partners met in Rome in February 2016 for a workshop on the topic of social problems organised by the University of Strathclyde. The meeting included testing and use of the Group Explorer tool, which has been developed by Strathclyde. In use, the Group Support System allows participants to interact directly with the developing model (shown on a ‘public’ screen) via networked consoles.

The system uses a ‘Transitional Object’, which is a continuously changing causal map on the screen that can be seen by all. It allows anonymity, high levels of productivity, the exploration of consensus and differences of view, and it produces a real-time log of all interactions for exploration off-line.

The meeting was organised by the University of Strathclyde and hosted by the City of Rome. Watch the video about the workshop produced by the City of Rome.

The Smart Mature Resilience project was presented at a number of international conferences in recent months. Iker Zubizarreta, Tecnun, presented the project Euconcip final conference in Brussels from 8-9 June 2016. Click here to download the conference agenda.

The project was further presented at the CIPRNet International Symposium in The University of British Columbia (Vancouver, Canada). Click here to download the programme.

Project partners also represented SMR at the 4th Community of Users meeting on Natural Hazards, 22nd June 2016, in Brussels in addition to the other four projects funded under the same call.

ICLEI Member Glasgow (United Kingdom) is cutting emissions while saving money through installing solar technology on a number of its schools. The move is part of the council's Energy & Carbon Masterplan, which has identified 33 actions that would help Glasgow to achieve its carbon emissions reduction target of 30 percent by 2020.

The installation will provide a saving of £60,000 per year over 13 years due to a Feed-in Tariffs scheme which encourages the uptake of a range of small-scale renewable and low-carbon electricity generation technologies. The amount of carbon saved will be around 130 tons annually.

The leader of Glasgow City Council and chair of Sustainable Glasgow, Councillor Frank McAveety said: “By saving money on our electricity we can ensure more money is going to frontline services. This is Sustainable Glasgow in action. We are using the potential in greener technologies, like these solar panels on schools, to not only cut our emissions but also our energy bills.”

For further information, visit Glasgow.gov.uk.

The new Open European Day (OED) programme has been released, providing details of how the event will facilitate discussion and exchange of experience on climate resilience between cities. Set to take place in Bonn (Germany) on 5 July, the event will precede the opening of the Resilient Cities conference. Cities contributing to the Open Day include London (United Kingdom), Paris (France), Madrid (Spain), Thessaloniki (Greece), Edinburgh and Newcastle upon Tyne (United Kingdom), Bologna (Italy) and many more.

The OED is supported by key EU projects on climate resilience such as RESIN and PLACARD and by European institutions including the European Investment Bank, DG CLIMA and DG Research. These institutions, together with other key adaptation players, will share information on climate support opportunities for cities and will be available for discussion during the Marketplace session.

Topics to be discussed during the event include climate services, nature-based solutions, mainstreaming adaptation and financing adaptation. The European Environment Agency Report "Urban adaptation to climate change in Europe 2016” will be launched at the evening reception. The event is free of charge and online registration is now available. Places are limited, so early registration is recommended

For more information and to register, click here.

The Smart Mature Resilience project meets in Vejle from 9-12 May 2016 to proceed with validation of the tools under development by the project: the maturity model, the systemic risk assessment questionnaire and the engagement tool.

Each of the seven project cities have been able to analyse and assess their resilience engagement and development in relation to the resilience maturity model schema of "S, M, A, R and T". The cities share their experience as part of the Circle of Sharing and Learning as to their progress through the various stages of resilience development by presenting their experiences and best practices in Vejle and also as part of 2-tier webinars.