Interreg IPA Adrion

INTERREG icons B3

Priority 2
Supporting a smarter Adriatic-Ionian region

 

2.1

Promoting climate change adaptation and disaster risk prevention, resilience taking into account eco-system based approaches.

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2.2

Promoting the transition to a circular and resource efficient economy.

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2.3

Enhancing protection and preservation of nature, biodiversity and green infrastructure, including in urban areas, and reducing all forms of pollution.

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2.4

Promoting sustainable multimodal urban mobility, as part of transition to a net zero carbon economy.

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Specific objective:
2.1 Promoting climate change adaptation and disaster risk prevention, resilience taking into account eco-system based approaches

Projections confirm that the area is a climate change hotspot. Temperatures have repeatedly broken long-term records in recent years. The effects of climate change are clearly evident by the rising sea level, the reduction of glaciers and water reserves, long heatwaves, droughts, as well as extreme weather events with negative consequences on eco-systems, population health, and cultural heritage.

This complex situation urgently requires a stronger awareness and more effective policy making towards climate change, as well as the adoption of effective management and emergency actions for adaptation, resilience, natural and man-made disaster prevention.

IPA ADRION will support actions in the following thematic fields:

Climate change

Natural and man-made disasters

Granted actions will contribute to the implementation of the relevant EU framework policies, like the European Green Deal, the EU strategy on adaptation to climate change and maritime spatial planning, the Recommendation on the implementation of Integrated Coastal Zone Management in Europe and EU solidarity initiatives (e.g.: RescEU, and the European Union’s Programme on Civil Protection Cooperation with the Candidate Countries and Potential Candidates).

Proposed indicative actions (non-exhaustive list):

Develop, implement, and promote transnational climate change adaptation strategies, plans and test solutions with a focus on people’s health, preservation of natural and cultural heritage and urban areas.

Develop and implement integrated joint transnational strategies and measures aimed at enhancing the resilience to climate change of coastal, river basins, rural and mountainous areas.

In the framework of Maritime Spatial Planning activities, develop transnational joint plans and pilot actions to boost resilience to climate change in marine ecosystems.

Develop and implement transnational joint action plans to coordinate measures addressed to natural and man-made disaster prevention and standardized responses by prioritising nature based solutions.

Collect compelling information to develop advocacy material to strengthen synergies and increase preparedness among local/regional/national civil protection bodies on natural and man-made risks.

Design and implement strategies and action plans at local, regional and national level for the safeguard of water resources

Implement pilot actions for a shared and coordinated use of big data for modelling, early forecasting and warning systems to reduce climate change risks.

Expected results 

Through the support of strategies, action plans and testing solutions for the adaptation to climate change and risks prevention, IPA ADRION will contribute to establish shared transnational and macro-regional actions to face climate change and prevent natural and man-made disasters, boost policy learning, improve awareness and strengthen transnational dialogue.

Specific objective:
2.2 Promoting the transition to a circular and resource efficient economy

Circular economy implies a change of mindset: products and materials are used and reused as long as possible; exploitation of new resources is minimized, waste and second-life used material are considered as valuable resources. The advantages of this approach are manifold: from the creation of new job opportunities to the improvement of the population’s health (e.g.: landfilling reduction), to the price reduction of goods, etc. 

Transnational cooperation can help Adriatic-Ionian participating countries to scale up circular economy, by facilitating the spread of front-runners’ experiences and practices towards mainstream economic players in the following domains: exchange of knowledge, practice, and development of skills on integrated and systemic approaches for recycling municipal and marine waste to increase the rate and quality of recycled materials.

Transnational cooperation contribution IPA ADRION supports actions in the following thematic fields:

Circular and resource efficient economy

Waste management

Consumers and buyers’ empowerment and behavioural changes Granted actions will contribute to the implementation of the relevant EU framework policies, i.e.: the European Green Deal, the EU Circular Economy Action Plan, and the Communication on Blue Economy for a sustainable future.

Proposed indicative actions (non-exhaustive list):

Collect compelling information, implement exchange of experience, and test actions to develop advocacy material to increase knowledge and preparedness among policy makers and public administrators 

Identify and implement transnational action plans and strategies to enhance and/or scale up circular economy at regional/national/macro-regional level 

Enhance cooperation between the public and the private sector and establish networks for waste prevention, processing and recycling, and test them through pilot initiatives.

Develop and test solutions for the recovery and repairing of second-hand products involving local handcrafts and citizens. 

Develop and implement transnational frameworks and test pilot actions to drive public waste policies towards circularity (e.g.: through integrated and systemic approaches in waste management systems).
Set in place joint actions and innovation networks to test science-based solutions aimed at collecting and recycling marine litter (e.g.:plastic litter, plastic fishing gear etc.).
Expected results 

Through the support of transnational strategies, action plans, testing solutions and innovative networks, IPA ADRION will result in increasing awareness, changing the behaviour of citizens , consumers and policy makers as well as in improving the related policy framework. Granted outcomes will also act as leverage for potential further actions at cross-border and national/regional/local level affecting both public and private stakeholders.

Specific objective:
2.3 Enhancing protection and preservation of nature, biodiversity and green infrastructure, including in urban areas, and reducing all forms of pollution

The protection and preservation of nature requires innovative solutions to enhance the safeguard of terrestrial and marine wildlife, including  measures such as the setting up of ecological corridors to prevent genetic isolation, allowing the migration of species, maintaining and enhancing healthy ecosystems.

Moreover, measures to reduce marine pollution, in particular plastic, marine microplastic and litter which affect not only the environment, but also people’s health.

To support actions aiming to protect nature and biodiversity,
IPA ADRION will support actions in the following thematic fields:

Biodiversity protection and preservation, including protected areas and areas under Habitat and Birds Directives

Green and blue infrastructures, and ecosystem services

Sustainable soil, fishery, and aquaculture management

Environmental pollution reduction and impacts on health population

Tourism environmental impact

Granted actions will contribute to the implementation of relevant EU framework policies, i.e.: the Just Transition Fund, the European Green Deal, the EU Forest Strategy, the EU Soil Strategy for 2030, the Farm to Fork Strategy, the EU Adaptation strategy, Blue Economy, Maritime Spatial Planning, the Recommendation on the implementation of Integrated Coastal Zone Management in Europe, the EU zero pollution action plan.

Proposed indicative actions (non-exhaustive list):

Define and implement policy frameworks, strategies and related implementation to protect and enhance natural terrestrial and sea habitats, including protected areas and areas under Habitat and Birds Directives
Test solutions to protect and restore flora and fauna (with particular attention to algae/poseidonia oceanica, large carnivores, pollinating insects, migrators, fishes), also envisaging the use of blue and green infrastructure.
Identify and transfer good practices and innovative solutions addressing the presence of alien marine species and the preservation of native flora and fauna in terrestrial environments.
Collect compelling information and use it to develop advocacy material to strengthen synergies and increase preparedness among local/regional/national policy makers and administrators to set in place actions aimed at improving policy frameworks, governance and management schemes of existing or underway marine/natural protected areas.

Define of action plans to reinforce the implementation of existing/new Integrated Coastal Zone Management, Maritime Spatial Planning and the MSFD (EU Marine Strategy Framework Directive) as well as the implementation of the UN Barcelona Convention. 

Define and implement legally binding agreements with key actors to reduce plastic discharge into the sea.
Identify and test joint action to ensure sustainable food and traditional agricultural products (e.g.: old seeds safeguard, traditional animal breeding etc.) to support the zero-km food chain, food safety and quality.
Contribute to the generation of positive impacts on the Adriatic-Ionian population’s health through the identification of good practices and the implementation of pilot actions aimed at reducing air, water and soil pollution.
Define joint actions to enhance soil and water preservation by ensuring data collection and their public availability (e.g.: feeding EU networks like Data Network – EMODnet, agriculture data space).

Develop and implement joint strategies to safeguard biodiversity also taking into account the conflicting sea exploitation: tourism, commercial and recreational shipping, aquaculture plants, settlements of offshore wind parks, oil and gas extraction etc.

Exchange of good practices and testing of solutions for sustainable tourism through participatory approaches and multi-level governance.

Expected results 

Through the support of strategies, action plans and testing solutions, IPA ADRION will contribute to set the frame for shared transnational and macro-regional actions by repositioning protection and preservation of nature in its central role. Granted outcomes will also act as leverage for potential further actions at cross-border and national/regional/local level.

Specific objective:
2.4 Promoting sustainable multimodal urban mobility, as part of transition to a net zero carbon economy

To face the challenges of the transition towards zero-carbon transport emissions, a wide range of transnational mobility solutions and initiatives can be adopted to promote a modal shift towards public transport, as well as forms of active mobility (e.g.: cycling). Shared mobility should be perceived as part of a multimodal transport system with the preeminent role of enlarging the catchment area of mass rapid transit (e.g. railways, metro, tram systems) serving functional urban areas. Moreover, interchange points (i.e. stations) would serve as interfaces between long distance and local transport services, providing higher levels of accessibility also to regional and national businesses and to tourist destinations.
This mobility scheme would ensure a relevant role to intelligent transport systems, on the one hand, by facilitating operators to create seamless interchanges from one type of transport mode to another. Actions to promote integrated and multimodal mobility services should incorporate communities’ real and perceived needs. To this aim, an active involvement of citizens and stakeholders is desirable, particularly directed to those travellers who could be shifted towards public transport and active mobility forms (e.g.: cycling) such as residents that do not own a private vehicle or “city users”, tourists or visitors coming from outside the urban area (regional or national mobility).

IPA ADRION will support actions in the following thematic fields:

Intelligent transport system solutions for multi-modal urban mobility

Transition towards a zero-carbon urban private/public fleet

Mobility as a Service (MaaS)

Granted actions will contribute to the implementation of the relevant EU framework policies, i.e.: the European Green Deal, the Joint Transition Fund, the EU Action Plan on EU Urban Initiative.

Proposed indicative actions (non-exhaustive list):

Elaborate joint actions to develop and implement intelligent transport system solutions devoted to a better infrastructure use and new mobility services to improve sustainable, clean and smart mobility systems and smart management of traffic flows for cities and functional urban areas.
Set in place joint actions aimed at promoting the active involvement of citizens, tourism actors and economic operators in the development of sustainable urban mobility plans (SUMPs) both in cities and in functional urban areas.
Support the shift towards sustainable and accessible urban public transport and active modes (e.g.: cycling, walking) through the implementation of joint pilot actions, by also taking advantage of the opportunities offered by the electro-mobility revolution.

Expected results 

Through the development and implementation of joint actions, transnational cooperation will lead to a broader deployment and testing of novel solutions to promote multimodality, adopt integrated travel solutions, and make public transport seamless and attractive for different segments of the population, in particularly for elderly people and citizens living in the cities ‘peripheral areas and in functional urban areas.

Proposed actions shall also contribute to increase awareness and knowledge among cities’ administrations on how to manage the transition towards the zero-carbon mobility target and which strategies should be adopted to contribute to the EU Green Deal goals. Granted outcomes will also act as leverage for potential further actions at cross-border and national/regional/local level.