Spanish politicians and experts agree on the need to change the current economic model to fight Climate Change throughout Mediterranean basin

The debate took place in Valencia in a conference about climate change in the Mediterranean basin on the 6^th and 7^th of November.

• The meetingis framedout in advance ofthe next globalsummit on climatechange inParis in December,organized bytheUnited Nations, COP21
• The Mediterranean environmental policymakers point out to a coordinate and cross-wise policy throughout the basin.
• Environmental Regional Ministers from Catalonia, Balearic Islands, Andalusia and Valencian Region, signed the ” Mediterranean Declaration on Climate Change “

This lecture, debate and reflection, brought together experts in climatology, geography and ecology, and regional and local authorities responsible for environmental policy of the Spanish Mediterranean area. This debate will continue with other activities and complementary debates in Valencia, Alicante and Castellón from 19th November to 2nd December, matching with the beginning of the celebration of the Summit COP21.

At the first panel, it was done a illustrative world review about climate  since the Industrial Revolution until today. Then, Jose Manuel Moreno, member of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), said “Warming of the climate system is unequivocal”, as a message to scientists and politicians, and so is manifesting itself with increasing temperatures, less rainfall and increased climate risks and extreme events.

The problems of the Mediterranean Basin

The solutions in this area go through to make a change in water policy, including a new National Hydrological Plan according to the available resources and a rearrangement of land use were said by the other speakers. In this regard the damage that the megafires have in the Valencian Region (55% of the total in Spain) during the last decade is one of the main causes for  shifting the plant species habitats to higher ground and to the north, leaving behind semi-arid areas, such as in the south of Alicante. In view of this situation and its evolution, it was raised to create carbon sinks, increasing forest area with fire resistant species, and also of crops resistant to the effects of erosion species, preventing their loss or abandonment. Regarding the water issue, the speakers were agreed to manage demand rather than put in the same package desalination and diversions, as far they have an environmentally impact, so it might be search innovative solutions such fog water collecting.

EU leadership in the last 20 years in the fight against climate change

The economist and climate change expert, Antxon Olabe, recognized “the leadership in the last 20 years that EU has kept virtually alone in the containment and minimization of CO2 emissions, when other large emitting countries, like China or the US, “seems to focus their attention elsewhere”. But it has been Obama’s second term, where the US agreement with China, ended this international blockade, reach this tipping point ahead of the summit.

Olabe was hopeful with the upcoming summit as it seems a priori able to build trust among countries, unlike the Kyoto model protected by the UN devoted itself to failure, as each country chooses its model but with external oversight mechanisms and independent. Furthermore, the model also foresees financial assistance from 2020 to developing countries to enable them to carry out their strategies along with holding a key meeting at least every five years with a meeting at the highest level, makes all these factors presage more agreements the binding Kyoto.

Regarding the European leadership on the fight against climate change, there are good examples of this, such as the creation of the Climate-KIC by the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT) a body of the European Union, that has its Spanish headquarters in Valencia. Its Co-Director, Jose-Luis Muñoz, said that “Europe has the opportunity to lead the socio-technological innovation that responds to changing economic model that all countries should implement” and where “Climate-KIC, the EU´s largest public private partnership addressing climate change, is seizing that opportunity for Europe by connecting both public and private sectors with climate-focused education, research and innovation”.

The Climate-KIC Spanish Office has been key in recent months to boost some actions of the new regional government of Valencia. Among them is the joining of Valencian Region to the ”Compact of States and Regions” as an observer region. The Compact of States and Regions, provides the first ever single, global account of greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction targets made by state and regional governments and is supported by the UN. The first Compact of States and Regions disclosure report will be released ahead of the COP21 in Paris, December 2015.

Signing of the “Mediterranean Declaration on Climate Change ” from Catalonia, Balearic Islands, Andalusia and Valencian Region.

According to the IPCC, the Mediterranean basin is one of the regions hardest hit by its effects, among them: the reduction of water resources, increased risks in the territory -of erosion, desertification, flooding, and the rise of the sea level. Taking into account this scenario, the Valencian Regional Ministry for Agriculture, Environment and Climate Change, has led the “Mediterranean Declaration on Climate Change” jointly with the Spanish Mediterranean Regions of Andalucía, Balearics Islands and Catalonia.

As a proof of this commitment, this manifesto was read by the Valencian Regional Minister for Agriculture, Environment and Climate Change, Elena Cebrián, with the presence of Environmental Regional Ministers from these Spanish Regions.

The “Mediterranean Declaration on Climate Change” highlights the commitment for driving a coordinated policy throughout the Mediterranean basin that guarantees, controls and curbs global warming. After reading it, these Spanish Environmental Regional Ministers explained the strategies that have been implemented in their territories and which ones they are going to boost and develop, explaining the goals they wanted to achieve.

The Co-Director of Climate-KIC Valencia, held a meeting with the political representatives of these regions, where it was talking how Climate-KIC, as one of the best European partnership addressing climate change, can lead the building of a zero carbon economy in the Mediterranean area through innovation, helping these regions to create and develop specific solutions and boost low-carbon economy.

Other speaker, Joaquin Nieto, director of the Office of International Labor Organization, is working since early October with governments, trade unions and companies, to produce a guideline to overcome the global warming issue. The document they prepared underlined three main aspects: 1) public investment in macroeconomic policies that creates jobs and should be a stimulus for other investments; 2) a tax policy that encourages employment and discourage the use of natural resources; 3) social protection policies that accompany these situations of transition.

The day ended with an interesting panel discussion on the socioeconomic impacts of climate change. Experts and politicians agreed once again to the need for change in the economic and energy model, in order to promote renewables energy.