Facing acute climate risks driven by dense urbanisation and economic pressures, Greece’s Attica region is emerging as a potential model for how European regions can integrate climate adaptation into sustainable development.
The Partnerships for Regional Innovation (PRI) initiative offers a framework that integrates climate adaptation into regional economic planning. Through cross-sectoral cooperation, targeted investment, and science-based strategy, the Attica case demonstrates how smart specialisation can drive resilience, sustainability, and inclusive growth—serving as a blueprint for climate-vulnerable areas across Europe.
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Impact, risks and challenges
Climate risk and vulnerability entail significant adverse socioeconomic impacts, especially in regions like Attica, severely affecting everyday life for citizens. Critical services like healthcare, education, and transportation may face frequent disruptions. Furthermore, property values may decrease due to heightened risk, affecting citizens’ wealth and limiting opportunities for economic mobility.
Economically disadvantaged populations are often disproportionately affected, facing amplified challenges such as health risks, reduced productivity, and increased energy expenses due to extreme temperatures and adverse weather events.
These socio-economic risks exacerbate existing inequalities, reinforcing climate and economic vulnerabilities that undermine social cohesion and economic stability. Adapting to these challenges requires proactive policies aimed at equitable resource distribution and robust infrastructure investments. Targeted social protections are essential to mitigate risks and enhance resilience at the community level.
Strengthening resilience through succinct climate adaptation actions, with a focus on transformational adaptation, is inextricably linked to regional development. Concrete adaptation actions are not merely defensive responses to environmental threats; they are active investments in a region’s future. By protecting critical assets, improving human wellbeing, building adaptive capacity and resilience, driving innovation and human capital formation, and strengthening governance and local agency, these actions directly and indirectly contribute to the core components of robust and sustainable regional development.
Importance of climate adaptation
The multidimensional concept of resilience extends across natural, social, economic, and infrastructure systems. Resilience means being able to recover from disruptions, anticipate risks, learn from past events, and adapt to minimise future threats.
The importance of resilience is increasingly recognised on a global scale, especially as societies confront rising risks from climate change, pandemics, and economic shocks. The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) place resilience at the heart of sustainable development, emphasising its role in poverty reduction, food security, health, and disaster risk management.
A pan-European effort
The Partnerships for Regional Innovation (PRI) initiative is a pan-European effort supporting regions across the continent in aligning Smart Specialisation (S3) strategies with climate adaptation policies. The collective aim is to address local challenges by integrating the Smart Specialisation Strategy (S3) with climate change adaptation policies.
The initiative for the Attica region is implemented in collaboration with the Athens University of Economics and Business (AUEB), EIT Climate-KIC, and the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre (JRC).
Step-by-step approach
As part of the PRI initiative, Attica’s adaptation capacity was assessed through the 3A and T approach (Adapt, Anticipate, Absorb, Transform), identifying areas of strength and vulnerability. Attica has a high adaptive capacity in terms of infrastructure and human resources, but faces challenges in commercialising innovation and diffusing technology.
The AUEB/AE4RIA team led the thorough and in-depth analysis for selecting the strategic pillars of PRI Attica, starting with the elaboration of the Region’s strategic objectives as reflected in the Regional Climate Change Adaptation Plan (RePACC). These objectives were then aligned with the 2021-27 Smart Specialisation Strategy of Attica.
To ensure clarity and applicability, the focus was narrowed to three main pillars: tourism, digital technologies, and transport. These sectors were considered key to the Region’s development path, as they combine Attica’s comparative advantages with significant potential for sustainable and resilient growth. These proposals were systematically mapped and aligned with the selected smart specialisation pillars, leading to specific actions with immediate applicability.
For instance, the priority of microclimate management and combating urban heat islands was found to have high relevance with the Digital Technologies pillar. This connection enables the implementation of innovative solutions such as the use of Internet of Things (IoT) sensors, remote sensing, and Geographic Information System (GIS) technologies, allowing real-time monitoring and more effective intervention in urban microclimates.
The priority of protecting historic sites and facilities through coordinated planning was mapped with high relevance to the Tourism, Culture and Creative Industries pillar. This alignment underscores the importance of integrated actions for natural and cultural heritage protection, supporting coordinated management strategies that are essential for the resilience and sustainability of Attica’s unique assets.
These actions respond substantially to both the priorities of the Region and the requirements of a sustainable and resilient climate transition.
Mobilising partnerships and funding
The PRI Attica initiative has highlighted the importance of strengthening cross-sectoral cooperation and continuous communication between actors to create effective clusters. These schemes will use a range of European financial instruments, such as Horizon Europe, Interreg Europe and the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), to implement the proposed actions. Depending on the focus and maturity of the project, other sources of finance may also be leveraged, including InvestEU, the LIFE Programme, national and regional funds, and private investment.
The strategic roadmap provides a detailed framework for action that directly links the region’s needs to European funding opportunities. Through this initiative, a mechanism has been put in place to facilitate cooperation, tailored on the needs and priorities.
This results in a targeted approach to funding and a more effective implementation of specific actions for the region. It promotes the continuous updating of the roadmap and the monitoring of developments so that actions remain relevant in the face of Attica’s ever-changing needs.
Anticipate, absorb, and adapt
By supporting participation, innovation, and targeted investments, resilience-focused policies help communities and regions thrive, empowering them to anticipate, absorb, and adapt to change. This approach is vital in today’s interconnected world, where risks are often complex and unpredictable.
The PRI initiative offers a valuable model demonstrating how coordinated efforts, cooperation, and innovation can enhance economic resilience, sustainable development, and social cohesion.
Attica’s paradigm can be an incentive for other European regions to develop participatory processes and strategic planning. Such processes lead to targeted and implementable solutions and make local communities better prepared to meet the challenges of the future.
Dr Anna Triantafyllidou is a Post-Doctoral Researcher at the Sustainable Development Unit of the Athena Research Centre. Dr Kostas Dellis is a Post-Doctoral Researcher at ATHENA RC SDU and the Athens University of Economics and Business. Maria Chourdaki is a researcher at the Sustainable Development Unit of the Athena Research Center. Dr Phoebe Koundouri is a Professor at the Athens University of Economics and Business and the Technical University of Denmark. The article appeared first on 360.