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LIFE ASTI project's topics through the eyes of Professor Mat Santamouris: a live discussion

A live interview with prominent scientist and built environment expert, Dr. Mat Santamouris, Professor of the Anita Lawrence Chair of High-Performance Architecture in the University of New South Wales in Australia, was held online on 3 June 2021. During the interview, Thanos Belalidis from Sympraxis Team, representing LIFE ASTI project partners, had the opportunity to discuss with him, focusing specifically on topics related to LIFE ASTI project’s thematic scope, namely the UHI effect and the energy performance of buildings. You may watch the interview, in the Greek language, HERE.

Participation of LIFE ASTI project in the 3^rd ADAPTtoCLIMATE Conference

The LIFE UrbanProof project team organised on 19-20 of April 2021 an international virtual conference focusing on climate change impacts and adaptation strategies in the urban environment. This is the 3rd ADAPTtoCLIMATE Conference organised in the framework of a series of LIFE projects on adaptation. 50 speakers from Greece, Italy and Cyprus and other EU countries participated, while the number of attendees exceeded 400. The presence of other LIFE projects on climate action was significant, as 26 projects presented their actions and their results so far, enabling the creation of numerous synergies. The LIFE ASTI project was represented by Dr Stavros Keppas, Scientific Researcher at the Laboratory of Atmospheric Physics, School of Physics, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. His presentation, titled “LIFE ASTI: Thermal Perception of the Urban Heat Island effect and Future Projections”, focused on issues related to the Urban Heat Island effect, its influence on the lives and health especially of people belonging to vulnerable groups and on ways to handle this problem. You may find here the AGENDA and PRESENTATIONS of the Conference.

Public bioclimatic buildings in Thessaloniki

The Municipality of Thessaloniki is committed to designing and implementing pilot projects of urban regeneration based on the local bioclimatic characteristics, in order to adapt to climate change impacts. The construction of green roofs in public buildings is among the priorities of the Municipality. The biggest green roof has already been constructed in the school complex of the 26^th High School of Thessaloniki, while similar projects on three more schools are still ongoing. Bearing in mind the structural capacity of the 26^th High School building and the need for reducing its energy consumption, the project entailed the construction of an extensive green roof covering an area of 1,510 sq. m. on the existing roof of the building with a 10 cm thickness of planting medium. Approximately 95% of the roof is covered with vegetation, including more than 16,000 plants. The installation of a green roof has many benefits of economic, ecological and societal nature. A green roof provides a rainwater buffer, purifies the air, reduces the ambient temperature, regulates the indoor temperature, saves energy, extends the life of the roof and encourages biodiversity in the city. The project’s budget amounts to 408,000 euros and is financed by the National Strategic Reference Framework 2014-2020 in the context of the Regional Operational Programme of Central Macedonia. You can read the full article HERE.

The LIFE ASTI Future Climate Impact Assessment Report is now available

The Aristotle University of Thessaloniki has published an interesting LIFE ASTI report, titled “Implementation of a forecAsting System for urban heaT Island effect for the development of urban adaptation strategies”. The report has a two-fold objective: a) to provide an assessment of the impact of future climate change scenarios in relation to the Urban Heat Island (UHI) effect for the two Mediterranean cities of Thessaloniki and Rome and b) to assess and quantify the outcome of promoting adaptation plans in the cities mentioned above to combat the UHI effect. Preliminary results were presented during the online conference EnviroRISKS on 29 September 2020. You may find the Report HERE.

Climate change has become a climate crisis

Climate change is not anymore a slow process with mild effects that is expected to cause problems in the distant future. Rather, its consequences are already being witnessed. According to scientific data, the Mediterranean area is one of the most vulnerable climatic regions. In an important article from the Greek newspaper Kathimerini, the disturbing figures taken from scientific studies conducted by research teams of the National Observatory of Athens, the Bank of Greece’s Climate Change Impacts Study Committee and Universities portray the situation in the region. According to the scientific data, the Mediterranean area is one of the most vulnerable climatic regions. It is estimated that there will be 35-40 more days per year with a maximum temperature above 35 degrees Celsius (95 Fahrenheit) in the period 2071-2100. Likewise, the number of nights when the temperature does not fall below 20 Celsius will increase by 50. In the near future (2031-2050), the number of heatwave days in Attica will increase by 10-20. The maximum temperature during this period is also expected to rise between 1.4°C and 2°C. You can read the full article in Greek HERE and a summary of it in English HERE

LIFE Awards 2021: ADAPT2CLIMA among the 15 finalists for the LIFE Citizens’ Prize

The LIFE Awards recognise the most innovative, inspirational and effective LIFE projects in three categories: climate action, environment and nature protection. Among the 15 finalists chosen by the European Commission, the Greek project ADAPT2CLIMA is to be found. The overall aim of the LIFE ADAPT2CLIMA project is to increase the awareness on the vulnerability of the EU Mediterranean agriculture to climate change and to support decision making for adaptation planning. Extreme weather events, like droughts and storms, are having a devastating impact on European agriculture. For many farmers, the damage and losses can threaten their very existence. LIFE ADAPT2CLIMA showed how vulnerable agriculture in Crete, Sicily, and Cyprus is to climate change and suggested adaptation measures. The project team came up with a set of climate, water and crop simulations to assess the sector’s future climate change challenges. These were integrated into the ADAPT2CLIMA tool that helps the islanders make the right climate adaptation decisions. The ADAPT2CLIMA tool was implemented by GET, a LIFE ASTI partner. The work culminated in tailor-made agricultural adaptation strategies for the three islands. Watch the ADAPT2CLIMA video HERE.

ECCA 2021 – 5^th European Climate Change Adaptation Conference – 22 June 2021

The 5^th European Climate Change Adaptation Conference ECCA 2021, will take place on 22 June. 2021 is the year of climate adaptation. The goal of the conference is to foster adaptation actions by showcasing solutions, exchanging knowledge, creating connections and encouraging dialogue on how to accelerate and multiply actions. ECCA 2021 is a virtual conference, co-organised by the European Commission, JPI Climate and three Horizon 2020 projects (SINCERE, CASCADES and RECEIPT). You can find more info and register HERE.

During summer, explore the LIFE ASTI UHI Forecasting System Platform

As the hot Mediterranean summer has arrived, and the first unavoidable heat waves are expected, do not forget to explore the LIFE ASTI UHI Forecasting System Platform! Its user-friendly interface allows everyone (both experts and non-experts) to benefit from the outputs of the model's results and the heat health warning alerts. The information is displayed as interactive maps or charts in three Mediterranean cities: Thessaloniki, Rome and Heraklion. A city dashboard is available for each city in order to provide aggregated information at city district level, while the map view page provides access to hourly thematic maps of all UHI-related parameters. Explore the LIFE ASTI platform HERE.

The LIFE ASTI (Implementation of a forecAstingSystem for urban heaT Island effect for the development of urban adaptation strategies) project focuses on addressing the impact of the Urban Heat Island Effect (UHIE) on human mortality, by developing and evaluating a system of numerical models that will lead to the short-term forecasting and future projection of the UHIE phenomenon in two Mediterranean cities: Thessaloniki and Rome.The project is co-funded by the LIFE 2014-2020 Programme, with a 36-month implementation period.

Project Partners

The LIFE ASTI partnership has established networks at the EU level, including Institutions, Organisations, Municipalities and other local/regional authorities. All partners have been involved in previous and current EU projects and are fully committed to the successful implementation of the Project.

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