Summary

Under the title "Bridging science, services and standards for a climate-resilient future," the Climateurope2 Festival was held in Venice, Italy, from March 11-13, 2024. This innovative on-site event, organized by the project, differed from traditional scientific conferences by incorporating artistic, capacity-building and participatory activities. It included a combination of plenary sessions and interactive formats such as World Cafés. In addition, a marketplace allowed visitors to network and learn about other projects and initiatives.
The festival served as an ideal platform to foster discussion and knowledge sharing among people from various sectors related to climate services. With a large attendance, many participants stayed for the entire event. The collected input will be invaluable in expanding the community network and identifying experiences to inform standardization recommendations.

The central themes of the festival revolve around these overarching themes, particularly selected to encourage the mingling of different types of audiences:

Advancing climate services: from vision to progress

The session focused on the value chain of climate data, from production to local application, incorporating technologies like Destination Earth's Digital Twin. The Digital Twin enables interactive engagement with climate data, enhancing the connection between models and decision-makers. National coordination and local action are crucial for effective user engagement. Scaling the Digital Twin to local levels will allow the improvement of risk reduction measures, particularly in sectors like early warning systems and agriculture.

EU Mission on Climate Change

Focused on how climate services support the EU Mission on Climate Change Adaptation, contributing to the efforts of EU regions, cities, and local authorities in increasing resilience against climate change impacts. This session featured speakers involved in climate change adaptation at various scales of action, with a particular focus on nature-based solutions. The EU Mission Adaptation offers a platform to integrate regional and local authorities with Europe's best knowledge, combating fragmentation and fostering transformative change. It also emphasized the need for the modernisation of codes and norms to facilitate adaptive solution design. Standardisation of risk assessments and the use of climate data in these assessments are part of this challenge.

Urban Challenges

Focused on sustainable urban development and local applicaiton of climate services to urban contexts. Municipal administrations are key partners in co-designing resilient and sustainable pathways, but engaging citizens is also crucial. Mobilising citizens to co-design their needs and providing innovative tools for engagement are essential. Prioritising citizen awareness and participation is fundamental for sustainable and resilient urban planning, necessitating a citizen-first approach in project development.

Water Management Challenges

Water is a fundamental resource for life on the planet that will be severely affected by climate change, particularly in the Mediterranean region. This session discussed how climate services can play a crucial role in supporting the reduction of adverse impacts associated with water-related disasters and in supporting water resource management decisions. Participants agreed on the need for stronger cooperation and collaboration among scientists, public authorities, decision-makers, the private sector, and citizens as well as for comprehensive Early Warning Systems.

Participatory deep dives with climate services users

This session was dedicated to engage all participants in exploring the key messages produced by Climateurope2 so far. During this session it was emphasized the importance of robust user engagement in shaping climate services. To ensure quality and comparability, we must standardize key components and include all stakeholders' perspectives in selecting and evaluating climate data.

Communicating climate knowledge - Bridging the gap

The session discussed the importance of effective climate communication, emphasising the need for collaboration between scientists and communication professionals. It also highlighted the challenge of communicating uncertainty and stressed the importance of embracing it as a fundamental aspect of scientific research. Additionally, it underscored the collaborative nature between science and journalism, focusing on their shared goal of finding common ground and creating compelling narratives that showcase climate science's achievements and impact on society.

Closing and looking forward

The Festival concluded with an announcement about the next event, scheduled for Belgrade. It promises engaging content, art, and a platform for community voices, aiming to attract new members and promote climate services, with the ultimate goal of fostering an equitable Climateurope2 community. Speakers offered diverse perspectives on topics such as communicating climate change, the importance of open data and knowledge, building trust, the value of collaboration, and the necessity for usable climate services.

This first Climateurope2 Festival was a significant success, with participants from various countries and backgrounds, representing diverse sectors. They shared perspectives, ideas, and, most importantly, exchanged knowledge. The Festival featured diverse content, including presentations, workshops, art, networking opportunities, and discussions closely linked to climate services and our community.

You can revisit the sessions from the festival in our YouTube playlist.