ClairCity in practice

Transcription

1 ClairCity in practice Our future with clean air 1

2 ClairCity Citizen-led air pollution reduction in cities ClairCity will model citizens behaviour and activities to enrich public engagement with city, national and EU level policy-making about air quality, carbon emissions and health. The resulting policy scenarios will allow cities to work towards improved air quality, reduced carbon emissions, improved public health outcomes and greater citizen awareness. Welcome to ClairCity Since our beginning in May 2016, the project consortium of 16 partners across ten European countries have been working hard on the innovative data modelling, best practice public engagement and creative game and app development that are at the heart of ClairCity. Much progress has been made since our last newsletter in January, and we are proud to share our updates, successes and learning so far. In this edition you can find a report of our first annual conference, learn out about engagement activities in Bristol, initial findings from our policy team, an insight into our regional partner in Italy, background on some of our team members and more. This autumn we look forward to rolling out engagement activities across our other five pilot cities and regions, as well as seeing the first tests of our game and app. Our quantitative modelling of scenarios that can be applied across European towns and cities - as well as internationally - is at the heart of the project s bright future, and we are excited to share more on these topics in the next edition of the newsletter in early In the meantime, if you have any questions or comments about our work or our future plans, don t hesitate to get in touch. Project director, Hans Bolscher Technical director, Enda Hayes #ClairCity ClairCity runs from and has received funding from the European Union s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No This newsletter is produced by the ClairCity Communications team. Articles can be republished with the editors permission. ClairCity and External Advisory Board,

3 ClairCity Conference Representatives from 18 countries came together for the annual ClairCity conference in Hungary, May 2017 The Regional Environmental Center for Central and Eastern Europe hosted the first ClairCity Annual Conference in Szentendre on 24th May 2017, in Hungary. The conference theme Tackling urban air quality: citizen led approaches focused on behaviour and citizen engagement, to deliver information on the activities of the project linked to the conceptual sociological and environmental research. Future annual conferences will highlight other relevant themes, such as scenario modelling and data use. The future visioning process and work on the city/ region scenarios towards 2050 were important topics at our first conference. The opening keynote, Air quality, carbon management and public health challenges in European cities, delivered by Dorota Jarosinska (WHO Europe) and the closing words by Jim Longhurst (UWE Bristol) showed the importance of horizon scanning and future thinking on sustainable and healthy lifestyles for European cities and citizens. Alongside the public conference, we took the opportunity to bring together the ClairCity External Advisory Board (EAB) for a productive day of problem and theory based presentations. The EAB comprises of 12 experts in the fields of air quality, citizen engagement, energy and the environment each from different developed and developing countries. All presentations from the public conference are available on our website annual-conference/ Eva Csobod (work package leader WP4, engagement) Vera Rodrigues from University of Aveiro speaking at the ClairCity conference

4 Jo Barnes from UWE Bristol showing children the air pollution in their area ClairCity Bristol in action Widespread engagement across communities has begun in Bristol with events across the city The first pilot city to launch the ClairCity activities is Bristol, UK. In this intial engagement round starting in May, the team visited local groups, festivals, meetings and community centres to reach as wide a range of residents as possible for the Delphi process of ClairCity - two separate surveys, and community workshops. We are collecting resident views on what they want for the future of their city. Over 500 people responded to the first survey, with 200 completing the second. The range of events and festivals was intentionally broad - from a community group for transgender people, to a neighbourhood celebration, the annual 10k run and a charity group for people who suffer from severe lung conditions. We raised awareness for thousands more via interviews and collaborations with local radio, television and newspapers. Bristol engagement in numbers Events attended: 13 Street survey days: 4 Twitter like/retweets: 661 Twitter impressions: 85.3k Facebook reach: 7,790 Survey 1: over 500 responses Survey 2: over 200 responses 4

5 ClairCity research Policy research delivering results To generate change, we must first understand where we stand. We are analysing the current status of policy in each of our partner cities, with Amsterdam and Bristol already completed, Ljubljana and Sosnowiec following in autumn 2017, and Liguria and the Aveiro region following in early All completed policy status-quo reports will be published on the ClairCity website. policy options. These measures involve to a varying degree infrastructural and behavioural changes that directly affect citizens. If confirmed by examination of the other cities, it might therefore be possible to develop in further ClairCity policy research a menu of policy options from which policymakers in other cities can choose if they want to address all key fields of citizen-inclusive air quality and carbon policy making in their city. The political frame of ambition Air quality and carbon policies in Amsterdam and Bristol were found to be quite differently motivated and advertised or framed, dependent on the different political contexts in the two cities. In Amsterdam, the presently social-liberal dominated city council focuses in its communications on an energetic society with independent and active citizens as main drivers for change together with business. In Bristol, a Labour mayor directs his communication in particular at reducing inequality between different communities in the city. Comparison of policies in the first two cities, Amsterdam and Bristol, already gives some interesting results to shares. Supplements to national modelling In Amsterdam as well as in Bristol, local measurements as a complement to national modelling were found to be very important in underpinning specific local policy ambitions. In some cases, local measurements found street level exceedances of limit values that were not visible in more general national air quality models. Furthermore, there was an emergent trend of citizen science in air pollution residents using DIY kits to take their own measurements. Integrating such action into city policymaking appears a main challenge for citizeninclusive policymaking in the future. Menu of key measures City level measures to improve air quality and reduce carbon emissions in Amsterdam and Bristol were found to be similar. In the field of transport, the promotion of biking and walking, stimulation of electric transport, inner city clean air zones and improvement of public transport seem the main options available. In the energy field, promotion of district heating and renewable energies as well as stimulation of energy efficient housing and living are the most prominent However, whereas the communication of policies was found quite different and other groups of citizens seem to be in the middle of political attention in the two cities, this did not preclude ambitious city level air quality and carbon policies in Amsterdam as well as Bristol. Hence, future policy research in ClairCity will further examine the importance of different political contexts for citizen-inclusive city policymaking. This will be part of the work to formulate recommendations for successfully communicating and performing policies across in diverse political circumstances. Stephan Slingerland (work package leader WP6, policies) 5

6 Facts and figures Liguria is a narrow strip of fertile land between the Mediterranean and the Alps and Apennines. The region has a population of over 1.5 million, a third of whom live in the capital, Genoa. The port of Genoa is the busiest in Italy, moving around 52 million tonnes a year. Industry in the region is the main source of the region s carbon footprint. Italian connection In each edition we introduce one of our six pilot areas. This time, the Italian region of Liguria Air pollution Liguria is breaking EU regulations on the annual mean of nitrogen dioxide, and also breaking rules for levels of ozone across Genoa. Preliminary 2016 data on PM10 showed a worrying increase, potentially exceeding permitted levels. Why is this happening? Sources of air pollution and carbon emissions in Liguria are varied. Transport is a significant cause, including urban traffic, a large motorway connecting France and Italy, and shipping emissions from Genoa s port. High summer temperatures increase ozone levels and the consequent health effects. What are the health impacts? A study of Genoa showed an increased number of deaths due to air quality problems. Across Italy, 60,000 deaths a year are linked to air pollution, including heart attacks, strokes, respiratory conditions and cancers. Carlo Trozzi & Corra Boushel ClairCity networks Eva Csobod, senior expert of the Regional Environmental Center (REC), presented the ClairCity project at the the Environment & Health Ministerial Conference in Ostrava, Czech Republic, on June The presentation was part of a conference side event focusing the attention more closely on vulnerable groups, such as children and elderly, in the context of health, air quality and climate change. The Conference was coordinated by the World Health Organization Regional Office for Europe (WHO/ Europe), the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UN Environment) to call upon European leaders to scale up action to prevent environment-related deaths and diseases affecting their populations. The WHO European Healthy Cities Network and the Regions for Health Network are strategic platforms for action at the local level; they provide an opportunity to strengthen joint approaches and integrate environmental, social, economic and political dimensions for improved health and well-being for all. Eva Csobod (work package leader WP4, engagement) 6

7 Meet the team We share profiles of collaborators from our sixteen consortium partner organisations we breathe is so poor, and this is as a direct consequence of the attitudes and behaviours of citizens. I care about my family living in a healthy environment. What do like about your city? Ewa Karaban, Sosnowiec External Funds and Cooperation Department, Sosnowiec City Hall Where in Europe do you live? I live in Sosnowiec, a city of 200,000 in southwestern Poland. What is your role in ClairCity? I deal with exchange projects between ourselves and partner cites, and also the participation of different groups of citizens in Sosnowiec. This will be my role in ClairCity, reaching out to the widest possible audience. What interests you in the project? ClairCity is particularly relevant here because the quality of the air 7 I am not native to Sosnowiec, but I chose to stay here because it is part of a dynamically developing agglomeration, offering interesting work and other opportunities. I like the character of the city and of the whole region, which has retained its unique postindustrial character. I hope in the future that the city appreciates its environment more, revitalising the city and making it a more friendly and inviting place to live. Trond Husby, The Hague Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency (PBL) Where in Europe do you live? I am originally from Norway, but I did a Masters in Environmental Policy at Cambridge, UK and I worked for a year at the Norwegian Embassy in Lisbon before coming to The Netherlands to do my PhD and settle here. What is your role in ClairCity and what interests you in the project? Modelling data! I am fascinated by how individual-level responses translate into aggregate phenomena. For example, temporal and spatial patterns of air pollution are partly shaped by lots of drivers happening to be roughly at the same place at the same time. I m also very curious about how such mechanisms differ from place to place, what the main problems are and how they are being addressed.

8 Consortium partners Trinomics B.V. (Project Coordinator, Netherlands) University of the West of England, Bristol (Technical Lead, UK) PBL Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency (Netherlands) Statistics Netherlands CBS (Netherlands) Technical University of Denmark (Denmark) Norwegian Institute for Air Research (Norway) Regional Environmental Center for Central and Eastern Europe (REC) (Hungary) TECHNE Consulting (Italy) Transport & Mobility Leuven (Belgium) University of Aveiro (Portugal) Municipality of Amsterdam (Netherlands) Bristol City Council (UK) Intermunicipal Community of Aveiro Region (Portugal) Liguria Region (Italy) Municipality of Ljubljana (Slovenia) Sosnowiec City Council (Poland) Horizon 2020 This project has received funding from the European Union s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No Next issue: Project update Photos, news and stories about our engagement activities across all six pilot cities and regions in the project. New research We report on the similarities that affect many European policy makers, as well as differences that make each city and region unique. Game time Find out more about the ClairCity game - our method to engage citizens in serious play to think about the future of cities and regions. Meet the team Two more of our ClairCity team will answer our questions and share their interests in the ClairCity project. Newsletter acknowledgements: Graphics by Line Industries Content by Science Communication Unit at UWE Bristol 8