Category: Cities and climate change

Climate-positive construction with circular materials

Posted on by erik

Demand for living space is growing around the world, particularly within cities, which makes the construction industry a major sector in every economy. However, producing and processing raw materials for construction are significant contributors to environmental damage and carbon emissions. The construction sector also uses a lot of energy (sometimes known as “grey energy”) not only when producing construction materials and during the building phase itself, but also while the building is operated for heating, cooling and electricity use. Organic materials such as wood and bamboo could play a vital role in decarbonising the construction industry.

More than 30 representatives of municipalities, academia, business and civil society gathered at the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research from 13 to 15 November 2023 for an event hosted by Connective Cities and the city of Potsdam to share ideas and experiences about the transformation to climate-friendly construction. They presented their experiences from Bhutan, Germany, Indonesia, Nepal, South Africa and Tanzania, and developed ideas for specific local projects. While in Potsdam they visited examples of good practice, such as a wood-built nursery school and the construction site of a pavilion which is being built with organic and recycled materials.

This documentation provides insights into the conference content and results.

Further impressions can also be found on the conference website “Climate-friendly construction with organic and recycled materials“

Banepa preserves traditional construction methods using bio-based materials

Posted on by erik

This good practice describes how the town of Banepa is restoring its historic centre and a retirement home using traditional building methods. Bio-based building materials such as wood, bamboo, brick and clay are much more sustainable and earthquake-resistant than cement or concrete.

Learning Process: Renewable Energy Options on the Municipal Level

Posted on by erik

The Connective Cities Kick-off Dialogue Event, held from 10 to 12 October 2023, brought together municipalities from various countries to discuss and share insights on “Renewable Energy Options on the Municipal Level.” Key participating municipalities were represented from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Germany, Georgia, Moldova, Montenegro, Serbia, and Ukraine.

During the event, innovative strategies in renewable energy were showcased, with participating municipalities engaging in collaborative learning and group deliberations to delve into the nuances impacting their renewable energy endeavors. Utilizing a design thinking approach, the Dialogue Event sought to uncover and address gaps and obstacles within current municipal strategies by scrutinizing the unique circumstances of each participating city.

With a diverse attendance of over 35 individuals representing 19 municipalities across 8 countries in Southeast Europe and Germany, the event featured presentations of successful practices and projects from 9 municipalities, aimed at sparking interactive discussions among attendees. Many participants encountered similar challenges in advancing renewable energy initiatives, highlighting the necessity to bolster knowledge and expertise to progress in this area.

This event is the starting point for a learning process in which project ideas are developed over the course of approximately one year until they are ready for realisation.
This documentation shows the promising initial results.

All presentations and a photo gallery of the dialog event can be found on our Connective Cities Community: Group Topics | Connective Cities Network (connective-cities.net)

Banepa preserves traditional construction methods using bio-based materials

Posted on by erik

The historic town centre of Banepa in Nepal extends along a road for a distance of around 1.2 kilometres. Many of the houses have been in poor condition, making the town less attractive.

This good practice describes how the town of Banepa is restoring its historic centre and a retirement home using traditional construction methods. Bio-based building materials such as wood, bamboo, brick and clay are significantly more sustainable and earthquake-resistant than cement or concrete.

In order to allay the concerns of the local population, the municipality is first refurbishing one building to provide an example of the methods that will be applied to the others. It is working together with the Nepalese RP Foundation, which has over 25 years of experience in the renovation of historical buildings.

This good practice was presented at the Connective Cities dialogue event on climate-friendly construction with organic and recycled materials in Potsdam.

Developing a climate change strategy in-house

Posted on by erik

External consultants often develop climate protection strategies for municipalities, which then end up in the shelf because their implementation does not match the capabilities of the municipality, the measures are too costly or there is little ownership in the departments of the municipality. Kouga municipality was able to successfully conduct the in-house development of a climate strategy. They followed a cross-sectoral and multi-stakeholder approach, including various departments of the municipal administration. This was supported by a development advisor funded by the “Experts fund for Municipal Partnerships worldwide” between 2021 and 2023. It was a challenge to bring together and activate all these players and at the same time gain political support, but eventually this approach enabled an integrated and therefore feasible strategy.

The climate change strategy consists of three implementation lines. The first line focuses on mainstreaming climate change into the municipal management, the second line talks to responses to main climate change vulnerabilities and the third line lists short-term measures that were identified through the process. Several of these are already being implemented now such as tree planting and dune rehabilitation.

City-to-city collaboration is key to streamlining climate neutrality and decentralized energy production

Posted on by erik

Together with the Connective Cities, the Association of German Cities organized a side event in the German Pavilion at the COP28 World Climate Conference in Dubai on the question of “What solutions are there for sustainable and decentralized energy generation and supply at local level”. On 6 December at 2 p.m. local time, representatives from German and African cities (Cologne, Bonn, eThekwini and Abuja) discussed their local innovations for climate-friendly energy solutions.

In her keynote speech, Katja Dörner, Vice-President of the German Association of Cities, Mayor of Bonn, and ICLEI Co-Chair for Climate Action, emphasized the importance of a socially just and participatory approach to a climate and energy transition. She emphasized that the voice of cities in climate negotiations is essential to achieve global goals.

She showed how the city of Bonn can achieve climate neutrality by 2035 and called on the federal level to make swift changes to support the local level. The EU and the German federal level must create the framework for a climate-friendly energy transition. She again emphasized the importance of making climate protection and adaptation a mandatory task for local authorities.

Rebuilding, but better!

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From the German participants, the urban planning offices of the cities of Münster and Munich presented current examples of integrated urban development. It became clear that “integrated” encompasses all levels, from spatial planning to the participatory design of a square. To link these levels, Munich relies on the development of specialist guidelines (climate change adaptation/sponge city, avoidance of heat islands, mobility, strong residential districts) and the definition of action areas. Münster relies above all on the instrument of center funds (smaller sums to promote new ideas for redesign, simple application) and, upgrading the city center as a leisure and recreation area.

Climate-friendly construction with organic and recycled materials

Posted on by erik

Steel and concrete are the most widely-used construction materials around the world, but producing and using them in construction produces high levels of carbon emissions. So how can we build the cities of the future in a more climate-friendly way? In this, using organic materials or recycling and reusing materials are promising approaches. This was the outcome of an international event held by Connective Cities in Potsdam from 13 to 15 November 2023 in partnership with the City of Potsdam as State Capital of Brandenburg, Bauhaus Erde and the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK).

“Action for Cool Cities”

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As part of the session organised by CitiesAdapt at the Adaptation Futures conference, the representative of the Kisumu county in Kenya (James Nyagol) participated in a panel discussion on nature-based solutions and involvement of the indigenous people for the sustainability of climate adaptation solutions. Mr. Nyagol, who holds the position of the Senior Climate Change Officer at Kisumu county, has shared his experience in developing solution to employ green infrastructure for inducing urban cooling and reducing risks of flooding along the Auji creek in Kisumu. The solution was developed as part of Connective Cities learning process “Action for Cool Cities”.

Furthermore, some of the outcomes of the learning process “Action for Cool Cities” were presented at 59th ISOCARP World Planning Congress. Under the title “Inclusive Climate Action in Cities: An elusive goal for local authorities?”, examples of the solutions developed were presented and discussed including the aspect of financing. Similarly, some insights from the learning process and the developed solutions were also presented at the Urban Thinkers Campus “Heat Stress Resilience: Translating Strategy into Urban Climate Actions” in Cairo.  

Similarly, the municipalities of Irbid, Bab Amman and Kufranja presented and discussed with their peers’ solutions developed on green infrastructure during the Green Action Workshop in Amman organised by “Cash for Work” project at GiZ Jordan in cooperation with the Ministry of Environment and Greater Amman municipality.

Renewable Energy Options on the Municipal Level

Posted on by erik

Discover the highlights of the Connective Cities Dialogue Event held from 10 – 12 October 2023, focusing on ‘Renewable Energy Options at the Municipal Level.’ In this insightful gathering in Tbilisi, Georgia, 35 urban practitioners from 19 municipalities across 8 countries convened to exchange experiences. Representatives from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Germany, Moldova, Montenegro, Serbia, and Ukraine collaborated, sharing valuable insights and collectively crafting innovative solutions for sustainable energy practices at the municipal level. Dive into the dynamic discussions and collaborative efforts that unfolded during this event, driving positive change in the realm of renewable energy within diverse urban settings.

Watch video at YouTube:

https://youtu.be/uc1SMXGdHvs