One hundred European cities signed up for a climate change adaptation initiative led by Ecofys at a ceremony in Brussels last week.
“The recent devastating floods in central and south east Europe demonstrate the dramatic economic and social consequences extreme weather can have on our cities and citizens,” Thorpe writes. Almost 6,000 European cities and towns have already signed covenants to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions, and under the Mayors Adapt initiative, they can now commit to boosting their climate resilience.
“While no direct project financing is available under the initiative, the EU’s decision to dedicate at least 20% of its entire budget for 2014-2020 to climate-related action means that projects focusing on urban adaptation can apply for co-financing,” Thorpe notes.
