What was the goal of your trip to Athens, Eva?

REACHOUT follows the triple-A adaptation approach: Analysis, Ambition, and Action. This years’ theme was: ambition. REACHOUT’s cities, tool developers and knowledge brokers discussed what ambitions European cities have for climate adaptation. And how climate services can help cities to also set new ambitions. Participating cities also shared how far they were with climate adaptation and how they were already using REACHOUT’s tools and services. The meeting was hosted by the Chief Heat Officer of the city of Athens, Elissavet Bargianni. She focuses on combating the dangers of extreme heat in the city.’

And how have you experienced these two days in Athens?

‘We had a full programme. The tool developers presented their new tools and the knowledge brokers discussed how to further tailor the data and tools for the cities. I myself organised a working session with colleagues on how to monitor and evaluate the success of the climate stories for each city. It was great to see all project partners again in person. I also enjoyed speaking to a few people from the city of Athens in real life about the climate story we are developing together. While we have been working effectively through online meetings, the yearly in-person meeting is of great value for our work. There is time and space for more in-depth discussion on what cities really need and what the project should focus on.’

What were the main outcomes?

Based on the discussions in Athens, the participating cities identified their needs for climate services for the coming year. Another important topic we addressed was the legacy of the project: how will the services support the cities after the project? And how can the services be available and usable for all European cities? For example, for the climate stories we explored how the story website can be transferred to the cities and how they can build the capacity to maintain it and build new stories.’

Will there be another General Assembly?

‘Yes, the next and last General Assembly will be held in the Polish city of Gdynia at the end of this year. At the moment, it is still uncertain when exactly the General Assembly will take place. For those who are interested, I can recommend following CAS and REACHOUT on LinkedIn.’

Would you like to know more about REACHOUT? Then visit the project page.