LEARNING ALLIANCE ON CLIMATE RESILIENT CITIES

MAKING CITIES MORE RESILIENT TO CLIMATE CHANGE

...an exploration of good practices and policy examples from Latin America, and an exchange of experiences from other countries, in relation to making cities more resilient to climate change.

An ELLA Learning Alliance: Brings together experts and interested individuals from Latin America, Africa, Asia and other regions to engage in a structured programme of exchange and learning Promotes networking between individuals and organisations facing common development challenges, encouraging the initiation of collaborative efforts Works through an interactive online platform with a learning space and a dedicated networking space, email updates, and a first-hand visit to Latin America for the most active, quality, contributors Aims to result in ELLA knowledge being put to use in decision making, practice and publications

Learning goal:
Participants will share experiences and learn about different approaches to urban development in the context of a changing climate, identifying best practices and methodologies for making cities more resilient, with a particular focus on mechanisms and actions that reduce vulnerability.

This Learning Alliance is designed for:

People that have an interest in sharing practices from their regions, learning from other regions, networking with a group of professionals working in the area of Resilient Cities, and who have the time to engage actively in a series of discussions that aim to help enhance sustainable development actions in urban areas. Ideal candidates are those who are interested in putting change into practical action as a result of the learning exchange. Participants may come from: Government ministries and agencies working on urban planning, urban environmental management, housing, infrastructure, sanitation, waste and water, and social development Institutions working on climate adaptation, climate mitigation and development in cities Academic courses related to urban development and town planning Civil society organisations working on environmental management, urban planning, urban governance and social inclusion Private sector working on green initiatives and sustainability projects Donors or funding organisations that support sustainable urban development Applications to join the Learning Alliance are welcome from all, particularly those from Latin America, sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia.

Content of the Learning Alliance:

As the Word Bank defines it, a resilient city is one that is able to sustain itself through its systems by dealing with issues and events that threaten, damage, or try to destroy it.1 For the purposes of this ELLA Learning Alliance, we will focus on how to improve the resilience of cities through a climate change lens. Accordingly, we will examine good practices in managing climate risks and realities in cities, considering how to adapt to climate change, reduce disaster risk and move towards a low carbon economy. We define a resilient city as one that addresses short, medium and long-term challenges. The Learning Alliance will promote analysis and discussion of a range of strategies used to develop and put into action climate change adaptation, disaster risk management and low carbon development plans in cities. Good practices and case studies from Latin America will be shared with the community, and participants will be encouraged to provide the same from their own countries. Together we will draw out critical success factors and identify barriers and constraints to climate resilient development in the urban setting. The aim is to achieve an improved and shared understanding of how to make cities more resilient to climate change challenges.

Modular approach:
The learning and exchange programme will be structured into three modules: Framework for Addressing Climate Threats to Cities Reducing Climate Related Disaster Risk Making the Built Environment More Resilient The Learning Alliance will last approximately three months and will include an introductory and closing discussion in addition to the three modules.

Module 1: Framework for Addressing Climate Threats to Cities

Participants will become familiar with Latin American approaches to identifying and planning to address the impacts of climate change in cities. Participants will be invited to share experiences from their regions, and together we will explore the different approaches, where progress is being made and the factors that make these approaches successful. We will consider similarities and differences between the regions in terms of transferability. The module will broadly cover the following themes and likely case studies: Climate change adaptation and low carbon development plans, policies and investments - the importance of centralised support in order to make these plans a priority and make putting them into action a reality, and the involvement of players from all levels of society to make these more effective (Case studies: Mexico Citys Climate Action Programme, Mexico; Quitos Climate Change Strategy, Ecuador) Vulnerability mapping looking at a range of methodologies to identify social, environmental and economic risk heightened by climate variability, and planning for how to reduce vulnerability (Case study: Vulnerability Mapping for Climate Change in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) Land-use and spatial planning considering how to reduce the effects of climate change and improve adaptive capacity in the short, medium and long-term (Case studies: Rosario, Argentina; Rio de Janeiro, Brazil)

Prasad, N. et al. 2009. Climate Resilient Cities: A Primer on Reducing Vulnerabilities to Disasters . World Bank, Washington, DC.

Module 2: Reducing Climate Related Disaster Risk

An analysis of mechanisms used to improve the preparedness of cities to respond to both rapidonset extreme climatic events and incremental climatic change. We will consider a range of means to reduce disaster risk and improve capacities to deal with the effects of climate change by improving awareness and developing efficient contingency plans. We will likley look at the following: Early warning systems (EWS) analysing the necessary integration of risk mapping, monitoring, communication and effective response, looking at the design and implementation of such systems (Case studies: EWS for heavy rain and landslides in the Serrana Region, Brazil; Cubas national EWS) Institutional and local capacity building the importance of making communities aware of climate change risks and enabling them to be ready to respond, with the support of institutions with strong capacity (Case Studies: Capacity building in Cochabamba, Bolivia; Building institutional capacity in Cuba) The natural environment and disaster risk reduction focusing on how to reduce the human and economic costs of extreme weather events, particularly considering hillsides, valleys, riverbanks and coastal regions (Case studies: Manizales Slope Guardians, Colombia; Disaster prevention in the mountainous Andean region)

Module 3: Making the Built Environment More Resilient

The resilience of buildings and infrastructure directly affects the resilience of city dwellers and economic stability. Improving infrastructure can result in a more robust, healthy society with a higher quality of living. Improvements in the built environment can result in reduced emissions, improved adaptive capacity and reduced disaster risk. The module will likely cover the following themes and case studies: Improving infrastructure a consideration of how and why to improve water access and quality, sanitation, power, roads and transportation (Case studies: Puerto Alegres Water Rights Programme, Brazil; Waste recycling in Puebla, Mexico) Resilient buildings, land-tenure and upgrading informal settlements focusing on means to improve adaptive capacity, reduce disaster risk and mitigate further emissions (Eco-building policies in Belo Horizonte, Brazil; Urban upgrading, Villa Tranquila, Argentina) Low carbon development strategies looking at means to reduce energy consumption and harmful emissions through renewable energy sources and sustainable transportation systems (Case studies: Sustainable Transportation Networks in Curitiba, Brazil; Bogot, Columbia; and Santiago, Chile; Renewable energy in Belo Horizonte and So Paulo, Brazil)

REDEH (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) will lead and moderate the Learning Alliance:
The Learning Alliance on Resilient Cities will be led and moderated by REDEH, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil with support from CentroClima and a range of institutions working to improve the resilience of cities in Latin America. REDEH, the Human Development Network, is an NGO that promotes sustainable human development with conservation and environmental protection. CentroClima is a climate change and environmental research institution at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, created by the Brazilian Ministry of Environment. Both REDEH and CentroClima are part of the SouthSouthNorth (SSN) network, that works on climate change and social development projects around the world.

The Learning Alliance will be moderated by Charlotte Heffer and Thais Corral, from REDEH, with inputs from a range of Latin American experts working on improving city resilience, including: Alejandro Litovsky, founder and director of the Earth Security Initiative; Emilio La Rovere, coordinator of the Environmental Laboratory and CentroClima at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro; Fabio Feldmann, former secretary of Environment for the State of So Paulo, current environmental and sustainability consultant; and Itzel Alcrreca Corte, director of ICLEI Mexico and coordinator of the national Municipal Climate Action Plans programme.

Alejandro Litovski

Charlotte Heffer

Emilio La Rovere

Fabio Feldmann

Thais Corral

Experts from Latin American city governments, local institutions, civil society and academia will collaborate in order to present good practices and lessons from within the region. Additionally, individuals from the following organisations will contribute directly:

Local Governments for Sustainability ICLEI Latin America and Caribbean Climate and Development Knowledge Network - CDKN Latin America Earth Security Initiative - ESI United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction ISDR Practical Action Latin America PA Cooperative for Assistance and Relief Everywhere CARE Brazil Brazils National Centre for Monitoring and Warning Systems for Natural Disasters CEMADEN Mexicos National Centre for Disaster Prevention CENAPRED

Methodology of the Learning Alliance:

Applications to join the Learning Alliance are open until 14 December 2012. We will do our best to accommodate all applicants, but limits on total numbers mean that a place cannot be guaranteed to all. The Learning Alliance itself will start the week beginning 14 January 2013 and will last a total of 14 weeks, concluding around mid to late April 2013. Those accepted into the Learning Alliance will receive their online platform login and password details in early January. Week One During the first week, the Moderator will set the scene for the Learning Alliance, clarifying the overall goals, structure and process, and posting the ground rules for participation in the Alliance. Members will be asked to share their main interests and areas of expertise with the online community. In addition to this, members will be able to start networking with fellow members on the dedicated Networking Page. Weeks Two to Fourteen In week two, we will begin the exchange and learning phase of the Alliance. Over the course of the three months, the Alliance will work through three modules the draft of which is provided above. The learning and exchange will take place via an online platform designed specifically for the programme. Each module will consist of three thematic weekly discussions. Each week the Moderator will introduce a set of issues and questions to be addressed, providing supporting reference material on Latin American experiences to stimulate discussion. Members of the Alliance will be asked to comment on these issues, and contribute with their own examples and analysis from different countries, either as posts or by attaching documents or other material. At the end of each week, the Moderator will post a short analytical document reviewing some of the key issues and commonalities raised in the interactive discussion. Participants will have the opportunity to discuss and comment upon this analysis as well. Overall, the objective will be to gain an improved understanding of good practices and policies, and how these might be relevant and applicable in members countries. Participants will receive periodic email notifications of the discussions but will need to sign in weekly to the ELLA site to make their personal contributions. The fourth week of each Module will allow time for conclusions to be assembled, and a short conclusions document will be circulated. At the end of the three modules, there will be time and space for a final debriefing. Weeks Fifteen onwards After the exchange and learning phase, the focus of the Learning Alliance will shift to support for continued networking among members of the Alliance. The Moderator will continue to oversee the Learning Alliance interactive space, and support networking between members. The site will house a members directory and supply technology for easy communication between members. Decisions will be taken on sustaining the Learning Alliance into the longer term, in the light of the degree to which members are continuing to benefit from this networking.

Study Tour to Latin America. In addition to support for continued networking, a small group of Learning Alliance members will be selected to participate in a study tour to Latin America to witness, first-hand, some good practices from the region and gain a deeper understanding of the enabling factors for certain achievements. This experience will provide an opportunity for participants to engage in direct exchange with their counterparts from Latin America and other regions. Participants will be chosen on a competitive basis, and will be expected to provide feedback on their experiences and learning on the online platform.

Benefits for Participants:

Learning the expectation is that all participants will gain practical knowledge from Latin American and other countries and be able to think about how this knowledge could be transformed and applied in their own countries. Networking participants will be connected to individuals and organisations across Latin America, Africa, Asia and elsewhere who face similar challenges, providing an opportunity to exchange ideas and even initiate collaborative efforts. Certificate a certificate will be awarded to those who contribute to each of the Learning Alliance exchange and learning modules. Visit to Latin America an opportunity for learning through interaction and observation, for selected active members of the Alliance.

Commitment from Participants:

Membership of the Learning Alliance is free of charge. However, ELLA management would like participants to be active members of the Alliance - the greater the participation, the richer the experience will be for all members. Participants should plan on committing an average of one to two hours per week during the modular phase of the Learning Alliance.

JOIN THE CLIMATE RESILIENT CITIES LEARNING ALLIANCE:

By completing the online application form at http://ella.practicalaction.org/learning-alliances-6 Applications are open until 14 December 2012. There are a limited number of places available.