Successful climate change adaptation measures need to be appropriately adapted to local contexts – a challenging task that can be made easier through peer support. That is why national workshops organised by the Covenant of Mayor’s Policy Support Facility (PSF) are bringing together local municipalities, regional authorities and practitioners to support them to tailor and implement adaptation measures. Peer exchange on nationally-relevant climate change threats, barriers to implementing adaptation measures, and best practices for how to move forward are all key to workshop success.

While the context in each European country is unique, a common takeaway that emerged across workshops is that local governments are the first line of defence against climate change, and thus need to be properly equipped to tackle this crisis. Increasing capacity, developing financing schemes, incorporating expert experience, and utilising nature-based solutions are key tools for local authorities to achieve this goal.

In a recent workshop for Croatian stakeholders in ICLEI Member Zagreb (Croatia), discussions centred around how to best incorporate adaptation measures into the development of Sustainable Energy and Climate Action Plans (SECAP). For Nikola Dobroslavić, Prefect of Dubrovnik-Neretva County and Ambassador of the Covenant of Mayors for Croatia, successful measure implementation lies in collaboration across local and regional governments. “We want the Green Deal to succeed, and to achieve that we must rely on millions of regional politicians,” Dobroslavić explained. “Local and regional authorities in the Committee of the Regions are fully committed to a green transition after COVID. We call for cooperation with other mayors, businesses, representatives of regions and seek innovative solutions. To mitigate climate change, we need to commit to change.”

The series of national workshops are part of the PSF’s strategy to build local resilience to climate change. The most recent workshops have taken place in Croatia, Czechia, Romania, Bulgaria, and Slovakia. Specific threats discussed in these sessions ranged from drought, to flooding, heatwaves, and extreme weather patterns.

The Policy Support Facility, of which ICLEI is a coordinating partner under the Covenant of Mayors - Europe, was launched by the European Commission following the publication of the EU Strategy of Adaptation to Climate Change in 2021, to assist local and regional authorities implement adaptation strategies.

For more information on the Policy Support Facility, click here. Learn more about the Covenant of Mayors here.