This event will take place during COP26, as part of Chatham House’s Climate Risk and Security Pavilion.
Cities in the Middle East and North Africa region are already suffering from climate impacts, including heat stress, flooding and the pressures of rural-to-urban migration. Weak urban regulation, ineffective climate policies, limited decentralization and insufficient empowerment of local authorities decrease urban resilience, creating conditions for inter-communal tensions, political unrest and/or humanitarian crises. Future climate scenarios and projected urban growth threaten the stability of the region which can have negative knock-on effects on Europe.
CASCADES engages a diverse range of stakeholders to support the design of a coherent European policy framework which addresses these risks. A new CASCADES “Spotlight Study” examines climate vulnerabilities in intermediary cities in the EU’s Southern Neighborhood and wider MENA region. The study advocates for systemic approaches to increasing urban climate resilience by strengthening the Water Energy Food (WEF) nexus, as well as other enabling factors such as decentralization. It also provides recommendations on how the external dimension of the European Green Deal can help cities in the region adapt to climate impacts, based on a WEF nexus approach.
This session will feature EU, civil society and urban experts sharing their perspectives on how North-South partnerships can boost WEF nexus approaches in cities of the region, engage local actors and optimize potential for socioeconomic and municipal co-benefits.
This session featuring EU, civil society and urban experts will share perspectives on:
- How North-South partnerships can boost WEF nexus approaches in cities of the region.
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Engaging local actors and optimizing potential for socioeconomic and municipal co-benefits.
Speakers
Hannah Abdullah, Senior Research Fellow, Barcelona Centre for International Affairs (CIDOB)
Karim Elgendy, Associate Fellow, Environment and Society Programme, Chatham House
Omar Abu Eid, Energy, Environment & Climate Change Programme Manager, Delegation of the European Union to the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan
Sarah Arbez, Project Officer, United Cities Lebanon
Hajar Khamlichi, President and Co-founder, Mediterranean Youth Climate Network
Chair
Glada Lahn, Senior Research Fellow, Environment and Society Programme, Chatham House
Partners: CASCADES funded by the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No. 821010, Barcelona Center for International Affairs (CIDOB), European Centre for Development Policy Management (ECDPM)
