Slovak municipalities on the study tour in Norway - "UrbanClima Study Tour”
The Ministry of the Environment of the Slovak Republic, as a Programme Operator of the “Climate change mitigation and adaptation“ Programme, with a close cooperation with the Donor Programme Partners from the contributing states, organized a bilateral activity for the municipalities called "UrbanClima Study Tour" for the sustainable development of the bilateral partnership. The main goal was to develop and maintain a sustainable bilateral partnership, to exchange experience and know-how in the field of mitigation and adaptation to the climate change, between Slovak cities and cities from Norway.
The target group of the event were representatives of Slovak municipalities with a population of over 15,000 inhabitants according to the current data of the Statistical Office of the Slovak Republic, except recipients of projects within the Calls No. ACC01 and ACC02. Based on the completed registration form, in the order below, and especially after proceeding a successful selection, the following municipalities from Slovakia participated in the study trip as it follows:
Municipality of Komárno, Municipality of Nitra, Municipality of Lučenec, Municipality of Sereď, Bratislava - M.Č. Petržalka, Municipality of Pezinok, Municipality of Košice, Municipality of Michalovce, Municipality of Martin and Municipality of Levice.
On the first day of the event (September 18), the Program Operator organized the arrival of the participants at the airport of the capital Oslo. After arrival, then a joint transfer to the premises of the Norwegian Directorate for Water Resources and Energy was carried out, where after welcoming the participants at a coordination meeting about the next program of the study trip, a conference followed in accordance with the established program. After the presentation of the Donor Programme Partners the Program Operator of the SK-Climate Programme, the representatives of the selected Slovak municipalities continued with their presentations, in the above mentioned order. The representatives of individual municipalities spoke about applied and planned measures on the topic of mitigation and adaptation to climate change, entitled: "Our city is resistant to climate change" for a duration of approx. 5-10 minutes in English. The presentations were very informative and the individual participants spoke convincingly about their active approach, especially about the involvement of municipalities in the given area.
On the second day of the study trip (September 19), a visit to the administrative center of the city of Bærum, called Sandvika was proceeded. Directly at the city office the presentations by employees and local experts on the city's green policy, especially on the topic of mitigation and adaptation to climate change, directly in the green, low-energy premises took place. The theoretical demonstration was followed by a live demonstration of the adaptation measures in the city of Bærum, in the location of the reopened stream. This visit was an educational tour, next to the reconstructed stream, with several stops and explanations on the importance of maintaining ecosystem wetlands, springs, rivers and water aries. Our hosts from Bærum City Hall illustrated and justified directly in the field the re-opening stream its revitalization within each location and pointed out the need to include water areas in modern urban solutions within the framework of urban planning. This visit was followed by a part of the municipality with modern architecture and a low-energy "green" approach to building management, including a green roof, a community garden and rainwater harvesting, for the benefit of the target groups of children and seniors in particular.
The third day (September 20) of the study stay was marked by a visit to another municipality, near the Capital city of Oslo, which is Lørenskog. Alternative solutions for adaptation and mitigation measures were shown to the visitors not only in the interactive hall of the city office, but also directly in the field, specifically on the construction site, during the placement of absorbent retention containers, with the aim of absorbing and recycling rainwater. The demonstration in question was highly inspiring for the participants of individual municipalities, after the end of the visit there was a transfer to the airport.
We are convinced that the study trips organized from the Bilateral Fund to Norway called “UrbanClima Study Tour” more than met our expectations. We can state that we managed to fulfil our main goal, i.e. to develop and support sustainable bilateral partnerships between Slovak and Norwegian municipalities in the field of mitigation and adaptation to climate change. In case of further questions, contact the participants of the event.
WORKING TOGETHER FOR A GREEN EUROPE!
Presentations with contacts for (pdf, 20,4 MB)