The AMARE-eu project is getting to the heart of the activities with the four pilot cities who presented their candidacy to work together with AMARE-eu partners towards the building of a resilience that includes the most vulnerable people, particularly non-native citizens.
Keeping in mind the specific characteristics of each city, both in terms of the specific emergency risks they are exposed to and the cultural diversity of the cities’ residents, the project’s partners are supporting and mentoring the four cities in the elaboration of the action plans including the activities and measures they will implement in the coming months.
The vast diversity of the four cities is stimulating the selection and definition of relevant material and indications that would respond to different needs and address a variety of key aspects that may be common to other cities as well. In particular, given the centrality of tourism, Heraklion has to be capable of communicating with a wide range of tourists in case of emergency during the summer season. Skopje is in need of securing a large group of non-native citizens, some of whom are only there in transit. Rotterdam and Catanzaro are defined by a great diversity of non-native communities: more than 50% of the population of Rotterdam is non-native, while Catanzaro has a numerous gypsy community.
Cities’ representatives are meeting in Bonn on June 24-26, for a training session, where the project partners will formally introduce them to the AMARE-eu toolkit and provide them with key information and guidelines to use in the definition and implementation of their action plan to build resilience in their municipality.
After the training, the cities’ representatives and AMARE-eu partners will take part in the ICLEI Forum which will take place in Bonn on June 26-28. ICLEI-Local Governments for Sustainability “is a global network of more than 1,750 local and regional governments committed to sustainable urban development.” This will be the chance for the AMARE-eu project participants and partners to network with other resilient cities and actors, to present their experience and share expertise and best practices.
On Thursday June 27, to the AMARE-eu project will be dedicated a panel in the forum entitled Multicultural Approaches to Resilience of Urban Areas, in which will be discussed experiences from several cities and experts on how to best integrate non-native population into resilience building and response preparedness. This will also be the chance for the project to highlight the sustainability and applicability of its results both in Europe and world-wide.