Conference “Alpine Partnership for Local Climate Action”

The mountains of the Alps are threatened by climate change in various ways. This habitat is very sensitive and particularly exposed to climate changes: average temperatures are rising twice as fast as the global average. Whether vegetation period, water balance, snow line or glacier, the whole system gets out of sync. In October 2015 the conference “„Klimaschutz jetzt! Alpengemeinden setzen um!” brought together representatives from all Alpine countries to discuss challenges, instruments, strategies and success factors for climate action at the municipal level. One of the most important results was the publication of a joint appeal to the UN Climate Change Conference.

Launch of „Alpine Partnership for Local Climate Action (ALPACA)“ in Innsbruck November 2018. ©Caroline Begle

The main aim of the Follow-Up Conference in 2018 was to kickstart the initiative “Alpine Partnership for Local Climate Action (ALPACA)“, which was conceptualised in a different project by the “International Commission for the Protection of the Alps” (CIPRA), “Allianz in den Alpen” (AidA) and “Alpine Town of the Year Association” (AsdJ). ALPACA supports cities, municipalities and local stakeholders to take concrete action for climate action in 7 Alpine countries. Work-plan and financial table for activities of the following year were prepared in a follow-on workshop in Grenoble in May 2019. BMU and BMNT (Austria) provided financing for partnership activities.

• Network establishment: The project facilitated the organisation of the Alpine Partnership for Local Climate Action conference in Innsbruck in November 2018, which was attended by 43 representatives from politics, municipalities, science, education and civil society. The ALPACA partnership was established. It is supported by 11 regional, national and transnational umbrella organisations, networks and collaborations from all the Alpine countries and assists municipalities to implement measures aimed at reducing emissions and promoting adaptation to climate change impacts.
• Continuous support: Since then, ALPACA has continuously strengthened Alpine municipalities’ capacities to deal with the impacts of climate change. This includes promoting networks and umbrella organisations, translating research results into practice, engaging in targeted lobbying for funding public relations for successful local climate action, and raising public awareness.

ALPACA – The Alpine Partnership for Local Climate Action | EUSALP (alpine-region.eu)