On 12-14 May, scientists, politicians, businesspeople and decision-makers will gather in Copenhagen for a European conference on climate adaptation that is expected to attract 1,000 participants from all over Europe. Aarhus University heads the conference’s local organising committee.

2015.04.29 | Camilla Schrøder

At the European Conference on Climate Adaptation in Copenhagen, scientists, decision-makers and businesspeople from all over Europe will discuss how we can adapt to the climate changes that will inevitably take place. (Photo: Colourbox)

Climate change is already happening, and we have reached the point where it is no longer sufficient to discuss how we can reduce the emissions of the greenhouse gasses responsible for global warming 

So when scientists, decision-makers and businesspeople meet in Bella Center in May for a European conference on climate adaptation, they will be discussing how we can adapt to the changes that will unavoidably take place. The conference is called ECCA 2015 (European Climate Change Adaptation), and Hans Sanderson, senior researcher at the Department of Environmental Science at Aarhus University, is chairing the local organising committee.

“At ECCA 2015, we’ll be addressing many aspects of climate adaptation, but what’s unique about the conference is that we’re also inviting business and industry and discussing business opportunities. We’ll be taking a particularly close look at the practical implementation of solutions and discussing best practice across Europe’s borders,” says Sanderson.

Aarhus University research is also represented at the conference, for example in the areas of climate change adaptation in agriculture, among home-owners and in relation to public health.

The overall themes of the programme include:

• Climate adaptation in cities
• Climate adaptation in connection with flooding
• Climate adaptation and public health
• Adaptation to extreme climate events
• Economics and politics in relation to climate adaptation

Participants from all over Europe will join the conference, including the Danish Minister for the Environment Kirsten Brosbøl, Director Kurt Vandenberghe and Claus Kondrup from the European Commission, the  former EU Commissioner for Climate Action Connie Hedegaard, Professor Frans Berkhout, director of the global research platform Future Earth, Professor Jens Hesselbjerg Christensen from the Niels Bohr Institute and Professor Hans Bruyninckx from the European Environment Agency.

The European Climate Adaptation Conference - ECCA 2015

ECCA 2015 will take place 12-14 May 2015 in Bella Center, Copenhagen. The conference is a joint initiative of BASE, RAMSES and ToPDAd,three research projects funded by the European Commission’s 7th Framework Programme. The European Commission is one of the conference sponsors. Under the theme ‘Integrating climate adaptation action in science, policy, practice and business’, ECCA will provide a unique forum for discussion of the latest research on climate adaptation and its relevance for politics, industry and society. Read more on the conference website www.ecca2015.eu or @ECCA2015 / #ECCA2015