Mediterranean Cities and climate change: making the urban transport sector more resilient and less impactful

On December 14th, 2022 // 10:00 – 11:30 am CET, UNIMED, in collaboration with Area Science Park and MedCities, is organising the event on Mediterranean Cities and climate change, involving experts that have worked on the latest Policy Brief of the Community on the impacts of Climate Change on Mediterranean Cities, as well as academics and local authorities from the Southern Shore of the Mediterranean.

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The Mediterranean region warms 20% faster than other regions in the world, and local authorities are at the forefront of the actions for adapting to and mitigating the multiple impacts of climate change. More specifically, cities should on one side implement mobility-related measures to tackle the unprecedented challenges they are facing and on the other side they should try to reduce transportation-related emissions that strongly influence climate change.

Extreme weather events, some of which are increasing in intensity and frequency, as well as slower but inexorable changes (for example, sea level rise), are deeply affecting the economic and social system of the Mediterranean cities, all of them. For this reason, we gather international experts (city planners, scholars, and policymakers) from North and South of the Mediterranean Sea to discuss the impact of climate change on Mediterranean cities and the possible measures to make the transport system more resilient to its negative effects and to mitigate the change by decarbonising the transport sector.

To spark a real debate, the conference is divided into two different moments:

1/ Two keynote speakers will open the conference: Margaretha Breil (CMCC) will present a global overview of climate change’s multiple impacts on Mediterranean cities, while Area Science Park will put forward some recommendations addressed to local, national and European authorities published in the Urban Transports Community’s Policy Brief #4.

2/ In the second part, a panel of four experts from local authorities and academia from Southern Mediterranean countries will discuss, in ten minutes each, the main points put forward in the two keynote speeches and present how adaptation and mitigation measures are implemented in their countries.

Draft Agenda

10:00 // Welcome & Introduction, Josep Canals, MedCities

10:05 // Keynote speech: Impact of climate change on cities and their transport systems, Margaretha Breil, CMCC

10:20 // Keynote speech: Making mobility more resilient to climate change. Presentation of the Urban Transports Community’s Policy Brief #4, Fabio Tomasi, Area Science Park

10:35 // Introduction to the second panel, Marcello Scalisi, UNIMED

10:40 // Leila Youssef, Mobility department of Greater Irbid Municipality, Jordan

10:50 // Prof. Ghazi Magableh, University of Yarmouk, Jordan

11:00 // Danial Ziouziou, Vice-Mayor, Municipality of Tetouan, Morocco

11:10 // Prof. Adil Salhi, Abdelmalek Essaadi University, Morocco

11:20 // Q&A

11:30 // Closing

The event will be held on Zoom and recorded. Interpretation English <> French will be available. 

REGISTER HERE