Category: Cities and climate change

Municipal Energy Efficiency Projects Workshop in MENA

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The international community of practice for sustainable urban development, Connective Cities in the MENA region, organized a virtual projects workshop under the topic “Municipal Energy Efficiency Projects in the MENA Region” on the 14 and 15 September 2021. The workshop was preceded by a day on financial advisory services for municipal energy efficiency projects in the MENA region.

The workshop has been a follow-up to the dialogue event held virtually in May 2021. This project workshop aimed at facilitating exchange of know-how and experience through peer learning among urban practitioners in MENA and Germany, supporting the project owners to define a roadmap and appropriate measures to progress with the development of the project ideas into bankable project proposals (technical advisory), as well as supporting consensus building among different stakeholders engaged in the planning and implementation of the project ideas, and determining future support needed to implement project ideas, which includes support from the Connective Cities network and German municipalities.

Nine Municipalities from Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine, and Tunisia presented their project ideas and had a chance to further develop them in the fields of: improving energy efficiency in municipal buildings, energy efficiency via reduction of fuel consumption in waste management and energy efficient street lighting.

A new normality: unforeseen climate-related risks

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As part of the virtual series Insight Sessions: (Post) COVID Urban Futures, the event “The importance of disaster preparedness in cities and municipalities: experiences and lessons learned” took place on September, 1st 2021. The series facilitates a recurring exchange on various topics of sustainable urban development in the (Post) COVID-19 era between urban practitioners and interested parties worldwide. In the exchange formats, space is created for impulses and reflection and good practices are presented.

Considering the recent flood events in Germany in July, the session discussed global challenges and lessons learned from devastating flood events around the globe. Practitioners and experts from the field of urban planning exchanged ideas on how cities can better prepare for extreme weather events, improve early warning systems and increase public awareness of disaster risks.

Programme

In the first keynote speech “Cities and Flooding – Integrated urban flood risk management”, Abhas K. Jha, Practice Manager, Climate Change and Disaster Risk Management, South Asia Region at World Bank, discussed the challenges and possible courses of action in dealing with climate related risks of unprecedented and therefore unpredictable magnitude – so-called Black Swan Events. He stressed the importance of functioning (early) warning systems and their continuous further development as well as interdepartmental agreements within the authorities so that they can react appropriately in the event of a disaster.

In her keynote address “Reducing vulnerability and increasing resilience of cities to climate change impacts”, Dr. Koko Warner, UNFCC, spoke about the increasing risks worldwide due to global warming of more than 1.5 °C, which the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) predicts. The importance of adaptation measures in municipalities and regions was particularly emphasized.

Both emphasized the importance of green infrastructure solutions in contrast to the expansion of grey infrastructure such as floodwalls and dikes. Sponge cities in Bangladesh were presented as an exemplary good practice, in which falling or inflowing water masses are absorbed by unsealed surfaces.

The two presentations were followed by a panel discussion of the experts William Mazibuko, Director of Disaster Management, City of Johannesburg, South Africa, Markus Sulk, Team Leader, Vocational Rescue Service, Fire Brigade Dortmund, Germany and Karma Dupchu, Director of the National Centre for Hydrology and Meteorology, Royal Government of Buthan on the topic “Good Practices and challenges in municipal flood risk management worldwide”.

Recording

You can find the recording of the event here: Insight Session: The importance of disaster preparedness in cities and municipalities | Connective Cities Network 

Support for more bike lanes in cities

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On 8 September 2021 the event “Pop-up bike lanes: long-term opportunities for green urban development after the COVID-19 pandemic?” took place as part of the virtual event series Insight Sessions: (Post) COVID Urban Futures. The series facilitates a recurring exchange on various topics of sustainable urban development in the (post) COVID-19 era between urban practitioners and interested participants worldwide. In entertaining exchange formats, space is created for impulses and reflection, and innovative solutions are presented.

The current event focused on pop-up bike lanes and changes in urban mobility during the pandemic. Over 30 participants from Bangladesh, Georgia, Tunisia, Egypt, Japan and Germany, among others, took part in the event. Representatives of cities worldwide discussed the possibilities and opportunities that arise from the long-term maintenance of the newly created cycle paths.

Programme

After a brief insight into this year’s Connective Cities COVID-19 programme, Sebastián Posada Garcia of the Bicycle and Pedestrian Department at the Secretariat of Mobility of the City of Bogotá, Colombia, presented the concept of pop-up bike lanes and good practice in Bogotá. At peak times in April and May 2020, the city installed more than 80km of additional temporary bike lanes, some of which have already been converted into permanent new bike lanes. In his presentation, Mr. Posada Garcia also addressed some frequently mentioned criticisms against pop-up bike lanes, such as increased numbers of accidents or increased congestion for motorists. He emphasised, based on statistical analyses, that the speed of car traffic did not decrease during the pandemic. However, many more citizens used bicycles to get around the city of Bogotá during COVID-19.

Afterwards, Thomas Kiel d’Aragon, Head of the Transport and Civil Engineering Department at the German Association of Cities in Berlin, presented examples of pop-up cycle paths in German cities. He also discussed the legal basis for the construction of additional cycle paths, as well as the financing of sustainable urban projects. Mr. Kiel d’Aragon also highlighted the enormous knowledge in the private sector compared to cities and pleaded for a close cooperation between the municipal administration with cycling initiatives or sustainability movements and private institutions.

Finally, Seçil Öznur Yakan, co-founder of the Women on Bicycle Initiative in Istanbul, Turkey, gave insights into the work of her initiative. In an impressive way, she showed how women around the world are working for more equity in bicycle mobility and networking with each other as well as with urban actors. Ms Öznur Yakan also presented the film My Bicycle My City, which was released in 2019 as part of World Bicycle Day. The film is available on YouTube: Benim Bisikletim Benim Şehrim Film – 2019 – YouTube

The presentations were followed by a lively discussion in which further questions could be answered, for example on the political promotion of increasing bicycle mobility in the different cities and countries. Finally, the Connective Cities working groups “Gender responsive urban mobility” and “Smart Mobility” were presented in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. You want to be part of the working groups? You can find more information and register here: Platform COVID-19 | Connective Cities Network

Recording

You can find the recording of the event here: Insight Session: Pop-up bike lanes - Long-term opportunities for green urban development?

Presentation

Good Practice Bogotá, Colombia

Pop-Up Bikelanes in German Cities

Insights Women on Bicycles

Call for participants: Risk informed urban development

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Are you an urban representative, employee of a municipality or an urban practitioner from a NGO, university, research unity, or other working directly with cities administrations in a low- or middle-income country? You want to work towards a flood risk informed urban development and would like to apply for the City Climate Finance Gap Fund?

Join our working group and:

  • Get introduced to the City Climate Finance Gap Fund and what it offers
  • Profit from peer-to-peer consultations and jointly work on challenges, project ideas and expressions of interest with your peers
  • Learn from good practice examples of international cities working on risk management
  • Receive individual expert’s advice on your ideas
  • Benefit from a strong cooperation with UNFCCC, UNDRR and the WorldBank
  • Profit from different capacity building measure to improve your skills and understanding of risk informed urban development

European cities have experienced flooding many times in history, however, the scale and numbers of losses of life from the flooding in July 2021 have been devastating. Hitting the long safely imagined temperate zone, the events reveal the importance and urgency of discussing measures to enhance disaster preparedness, strengthen resilience and enhancing preparedness in cities around the globe. The need of cities worldwide to adapt to a changing climate and an increasing number of extreme weather events is more prominent than ever to save lives, reduce economic losses and protect critical infrastructure. The competences and institutional capacities of policy- and decision-makers need to be strengthened to address risks.

Within the working group on risked informed urban development, which will be hosted jointly by the Global Initiative Disaster Risk Management (GIDRM) and Connective Cities, cities will work together towards handing in their expressions of interest for the City Climate Finance Gap Fund by peer-to-peer exchanges, learning from good practice examples and profiting from individual experts’ advice. Specific topics of the project ideas may include public sensitization for disaster management, risk assessment and communication, risk governance, as well as other scopes depending on the participating cities’ needs.

You are interested in becoming part of the joint GIDRM and Connective Cities working group on risk informed urban development? Please consider the following steps:

Join the working group online: Risk informed urban development | Connective Cities Network

Join the first meeting: 12 October 2021, 14:00-15:00 CET

For further requests, do not hesitate to contact Karl-Heinz Gaudry (karl-heinz.gaudrysada@giz.de) or Ricarda Meissner (ricarda.meissner@giz.de).

Cities Challenge: 2030 Agenda meets Urban Climate Action

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What does a climate-friendly, inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable city look like in practice? In 2019, GIZ’s CitiesChallenge 2030 ideas competition set out to showcase and support examples for this all over the world. More than 30 projects replied to the calls for application. GIZ and BMZ selected four winning projects to be Urban Living Labs:

  • In Portoviejo, Ecuador, women in a poor peri-urban settlement acted as guardians to support the vulnerable and the sick, working together with the municipal disaster management department. With the help of students and experts from universities and professional organisations, they managed to secure paths and public spaces from landslides.
  • In Jordan’s capital Amman, an NGO created microforests in high-density, precarious neighbourhoods. This triggered cross-sectoral cooperation between stakeholders, who together tested novel planting methods to improve air quality, combat heat islands and create rainwater storage.
  • In Windhoek, Namibia, slum dwellers on the outskirts of the city created a neighbourhood park that invites people to stay and play while protecting their homes from seasonal flooding. They also planned the future development of their own settlement through a participatory process, supported by the municipality.
  • In the Serbian capital Belgrade, food service operators and digital start-ups in the Serbian capital Belgrade saved food from being destroyed. Instead, they made it available to families in need while improving urban food security and reducing the burden on landfills.

These four Urban Living Labs show some of the many ways that interventions in cities bring local governments, experts, communities and entrepreneurs together. By working together with local partners, they improved the resilience and quality of life for vulnerable groups, ensured access to public services, used resources more sustainably, and promoted climate change mitigation and adaptation.

Tianjin Daqiuzhuang Eco-City: green, ecological and low carbon

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Daqiuzhuang has traditionally been an important industrial site, especially for the steel industry.

The Sino-German Tianjin Daqiuzhuang Eco-City has developed an overarching indicator system with 20 ecological indicators, 50 percent of which are from the areas of energy saving and emission reduction. Modern concepts and technologies from Germany serve as a reference and the Energy and Climate Protection Management System (EKM) of the German Energy Agency (DENA) as a basis. The modern indicator systems for regional development of the China-Singapore Tianjin Eco-City, the Xiong’an New District and the Beijing Municipal Administrative Centre are also used as a basis. The Eco-City indicator system is divided into three areas: green ecology, liveable life and innovative production; of which 11 are control indicators and 9 are leading indicators. The indicator system thus guides the construction and development of the Eco-City throughout its life cycle.

Early warning systems and disaster preparedness to protect against forest fires and preserve biodiversity

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The virtual kick-off event of the Biodiversity and Environmental Protection Working Group of the Connective Cities network in MENA was held on the 9th August 2021. The event aimed at initiating a practice–oriented knowledge exchange between urban practitioners in the field of biodiversity and environmental protection, facilitating peer learning on state-of-the-art technology to increase resilience and improve disaster preparedness related to forest fires, fostering development of concrete projects ideas related to forest fires prevention and raising awareness of the importance of biodiversity and the value of ecosystem protection, risk factors, and the protection and preparedness tools.

Two examples on the deployment of early warning systems for forest fires from Lebanon (SBR experience in forest fires prevention in Shouf Biosphere Reserve, by Mr. Nizar Hani) and Germany (Early warning system of forest fires in Lower Saxony, by Mr. Helmut Beuke) were presented. The event was attended by 20 municipalities joining from Jordan, Palestine, Lebanon, Algeria, Tunisia, and Germany. The participants showcased the progress achieved by local disaster management offices and engaged in peer learning for additional improvement of the local and national capacities. In addition, the participants shared practice-oriented experience, which facilitated transferring, sustaining and innovating effectively applied solutions.

A second virtual session for this working group will be held on the 8th September 2021, showcasing good practice examples from Hannover-Germany and Menjez-Lebanon on municipal leadership and commitment to improve biodiversity protection and successful local actions in the field of biodiversity management.

Pop-up bike lanes: long-term opportunities for green urban development after the Covid-19 pandemic?

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The event series “Insight Sessions: Post-COVID Urban Futures” is part of this year’s Connective Cities COVID programme and facilitates a regular, open exchange on relevant topics of the post-COVID-19 era for municipal practitioners and relevant experts worldwide. Different topics of sustainable urban development during and after the COVID-19 pandemic will be discussed and innovative approaches in this regard will be shared in brief and concise virtual exchange formats. The aim of these events is to provide impulses that encourage participants to reflect on their progress so far and think about innovative solutions. The open discussion rounds will take place on Wednesdays once every three weeks. 

We are pleased to invite you to the fourth event in the series on “Pop-up bike lanes: long-term opportunities for green urban development after the Covid-19 pandemic?” on Wednesday, September 8th, 2021, from 15:30 to 17:00 CEST.

They appeared suddenly: bike lanes separated by yellow markings and conspicuous warning bars, replacing parking lanes, parts of the roadways or even the entire right lanes on busy roads. Following the example of the Colombian capital Bogotá, dozens of kilometers of new bike lanes have been built in cities around the world after the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. The bike lanes allow urban residents to get more physical activity and offer hope for a shift towards a more sustainable urban mobility and transportation and a reduction of CO2 emissions in cities. As a result, many users want the pop-up bike lanes to remain in place after the pandemic and urban researchers and practitioners value them as a great opportunity for a more climate friendly and healthy urban development and a paradigm shift in urban mobility in the post-COVID era.

However, there is also criticism on the new bike lanes. Motorists fear more congestion and longer travel times with increased traffic after the COVID-19 pandemic, as the pop-up bike lanes lead to fewer lanes are available for cars. This would also contradict the plan to improve air quality. This would also contradict the plan to improve air quality. There are also fears of more accidents when cars and bicyclists meet in close quarters. As a result, the cities of Berlin and Munich, for example, have had to contend with lawsuits against the preservation of pop-up bike lanes.

In this session insights into good practices of cities and the challenges they are facing will be presented. Discussions on the pop-up bike lanes and their long-term preservation will be stimulated and urban practitioners worldwide will exchange and be made aware of the opportunities of more bike lanes for green urban development in the post-COVID era.

To register for the event and stay updated on the agenda, the announcement of speakers and further details of the session please follow:  

Insight Session: Pop-up bike lanes - Long-term opportunities for green urban development? | Connective Cities Network (connective-cities.net)  

Date: Wednesday, September 8th

Time: 15:30-17:00 CEST

Event language: English (translation tba)

If you have any further questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Contact: angela.beckmann-wuebbelt@giz.de

Beyond Climate

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When planning and investing in infrastructure projects, innovative cities bundle together a larger set of overarching objectives in the social, economic, environmental, health and governance realms. Integrating multiple benefits in climate infrastructure projects tends to enhance their political and financial/ fiscal viability, scalability, and replicability. Identifying and planning for benefits during early project development stages increase the project’s success, both in delivering positive environment and human-centred impacts, as well as in mobilising political buy-in and connecting with finance.

This report aims to show that project preparation facilities (PPFs) can and should aid in integrating climate action with other, highly synergetic development and cooperation objectives.

Sustainable Urban Energy Planning – Road to Energy Efficient and Renewable Energy powered municipalities

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Approximately 90 experts and urban practitioners from more than 30 municipalities within 9 countries of Southeast Europe, gathered to discuss major opportunities and challenges convoked by the shift towards greener energy consumption around the world. As major countries of the world come out with bod statements of reaching climate neutrality by 2050, all of us need to keep up the pace and start acting on the promised shift. The Dialogue event held during the week of 17-21 May focused on discussions of energy efficient solutions, innovative renewable energy sources as well as on getting some new insights into the EU Green Deal.

This event offered a virtual platform to discuss these challenges and supported municipalities in developing locally adapted solutions for climate challenges, specifically those related to energy efficiency and renewable energy sources.

During these 5 days of asynchronous and synchronous digital meetings participants listened to inspiring Keynote presentations from leading European scientists and shared insights with peers.

This report is the detailed documentation of the event.