Vítor Aleixo was elected as the first president of the Coordinating Council of the Network of Municipalities for Local Adaptation to Climate Change, on Friday, March 31, in Guimarães.
The body of this platform created at the end of 2016, for which the mayor of Loulé was elected, will "ensure the external representation of the network and define the best strategies to pursue to achieve the mission and objectives", according to the Municipality of Loulé . The Algarve municipality will also integrate the Management Secretariat.
During the meeting, the General Council was also elected, chaired by Guimarães, and the 2017-2019 Action Program was approved.
The main mission of this network is to «increase the capacity of Portuguese municipalities to incorporate adaptation to climate change in their policies, in their planning instruments and in their local interventions».
This involves “promoting the exchange of knowledge and experiences between municipalities, higher education institutions and the scientific and technological system, companies and the associative fabric, strengthening current practices and the development of innovative solutions, broadening the experiences of local adaptation to more municipalities'.
The platform also intends to "promote international cooperation relations with other networks and structures, contribute to the adoption of policies, programs and measures that facilitate adaptation at the local level and to create financing instruments that support the implementation of municipal strategies" , among other goals.
In his presentation of Loulé's main motivations for leading this network, Vítor Aleixo highlighted the «initiatives related to the promotion of Adaptation to Climate Change that the Chamber will promote until the end of the year, with emphasis on the International Conference on Climate Change, to be held on the 7th of April, and the meeting with national and international journalists on this matter, in June».
The mayor of Loulé has embraced the cause of adapting to climate change, through projects implemented in the municipality, but also by attending international events related to the topic, such as the "Climate Chance 2016" Summit, held in Nantes, França, during which Vítor Aleixo presented the experience of the municipality of Loulé.
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