Language: English
This session consists of 3 presentations
10:45 - 11:45 URBAN GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE
In the Netherlands systemic risks are increasing due to urbanization, an increasing and aging population, increasing climate change impacts, and a lag in implementing climate adaptation measures. Two policies for addressing climate issues are: the Climate Agreement to reduce CO2 by 95% in 2050, and the Delta Plan Spatial Adaptation to protect the Netherlands against floods, drought, and heatwaves. Urban green infrastructure (UGI) can play a key role in achieving these policy goals simultaneously through its benefits on these, and other policies (e.g. health, biodiversity, social cohesion). However, UGI also comes at a cost in water and energy resources, which is currently not well researched.
This presentation show examples of existing UGI in Enschede and planned UGI at the Living Innovation Lab (LILa) at the University Twente. Research at this site measures the performance of UGI and thereby addresses the research gaps in life cycle analysis and required energy and water resources for UGI.
Supporting midsize cities towards climate resilience
This presentation provides insights from the CATCH-project, which has been implemented within the Interreg North Sea Region (NSR) programme between 2017 and 2022. The CATCH-project aims to support midsize cities in advancing towards climate resilience. When managing climate-related risks, midsize cities often struggle due to their limited resources and capacities. Despite the awareness in the NSR of the climate crisis, many midsize cities need support in developing and executing strategies. This motivation brought together the team of local and regional authorities and knowledge institutes that have been collaborating within the scope of the CATCH-project. The project team developed a decision support tool that guides midsize cities in assessing their current situation and identifying measures and pathways towards climate resilience. As the partners focused on water-related risks and strived for a systematic approach, the “Urban Water Transitions” framework, which was developed in Australia, has been used as the theoretical foundation and tailored according to the climate and water conditions of the NSR. The tool was tested in the formulation, execution and evaluation of seven pilots in the Netherlands, Belgium, Denmark, Germany, Sweden and the UK. These pilots provide good practices that can be taken up by other midsize cities in the NSR and beyond.
Climate adaptation in Enschede
Because of its location on a lateral moraine, the city of Enschede is vulnerable to extreme weather events. In 2010 and 2013, the city experienced widespread flooding. In recent years, the city has faced the effects of drought and heat stress. Due to the changing climate, the risk of flooding, heat stress and desiccation these will increase in the coming years. How is Enschede reducing this risk and preparing for the more extreme weather of the future?
The city has been taking measures to improve the situation for decades. With the construction of wadis in Ruwenbos (1993) and the water square in Roombeek (2006), we led the way with innovative solutions.
With climate adaptation projects praised by water and climate specialists, we are making Enschede resilient to climate change. We are making space for water and replacing pavement with plants and trees to combat flooding, heat stress and desiccation now and in the future.
This year Enschede has a new Water and Climate Adaptation Plan that describes how the city is working towards climate resilience in 2050.