We are very happy to share with all of you the latest newsletter from the EU Project CHAMP – Life Programme in which SES become a new Partner (National Training Hub) for Spain.
As a new member, we also been invited to write the following GUEST article with focus on how the project will help local authorities in Spain:
Guest article: Local Climate Work in Spanish Cities and Regions
What kind of support and capacities are needed and how can the European Partnership for Integrated Sustainability Management be beneficial?
In the current scenario of scarce resources, it seems necessary for regional and local authorities to achieve more with less. Infrastructure and other projects or initiatives that will have a significant impact on the sustainability of urban areas are currently put on hold in Spain, including some concrete actions from the Local Agenda 21 strategic plans.
Different from Northern European Countries, Spain has gone through a much slower LA21 implementation process. However, Spain has experienced a strong implementation process in recent years.
LA21 implementation in Spain getting off the ground
Nowadays, most governments of the Spanish Autonomous Communities give incentives to town councils for implementing the programme
This is often complemented with technical and methodological support. Even the regional governments of Navarra and Catalonia have carried out their own LA21 implementation plans for the whole of their territory.
On the other hand, mistakes have been made in environmental diagnosis and integration processes when implementing action plans and in decision making processes.
However, it should also be pointed out that there have been really successful LA21s with a strong and well articulated involvement of social, political and economic stakeholders, particularly in Catalonia, the Balearics, Valencia and Andalucia.
Source: Vázquez and Otón Report of Agenda 21 implementation in Spain
Integrated Sustainability Management as the key
In the years ahead, we are sure that the European Partnership for Integrated Sustainability Management will provide a solid base for Spanish local authorities to adopt a more integrated approach in their local sustainability and climate work.
This will be done by:
- Promoting new partnerships and a set of tools to support and encourage change of attitude and behaviour towards sustainable development.
- Successfully engaging the different stakeholders and promoting the real participation of citizens.
- Developing a common base of sustainable indicators.
- Offering appropriate training as another key point to the success.
- Getting funding for the initial deployment of the programme.
- Providing adequate support in all the phases involved for the deployment (localised training materials, support during and after the implementation, etc.).
- Facilitating, in a timely way, the integration of all the municipal sectors that will be involved in the deployment.
All of that, promoting an open and integrated system that will enable all municipalities to improve their current management structures in the benefit of their populations through the right balance between social, ecology and economic indicators for development.
In the Editorial article you can have more information about the launching event organizing by the Union of Baltic Cities (Finland) as the organisation who lead the Deployment of this Project in Europe.
SES is very proud of been part of this initiative who will provide an Integrated Management System to the Regional and Local Authorities, to be able to improve their local sustainability among other benefits.
