Regions of Finland, Sweden and Norway worked together to figure out how to best take advantage of predicted climate change.
- 27 January 2016
The Northern Network on Climate Change (NNCC) brought together over 2 000 people in training events, constructive workshops and conferences in order to work out how to best adapt to predicted climate change in Sweden, Finland and Norway.
65 trainings, conferences or seminars were held and, in addition to the 2 000 adults who took part, a further 1 997 young people participated in the events.
The Northern countries are likely to be amongst those most affected by climate change, due to their closeness to the Arctic. Average annual temperatures in the Arctic have increased twice as much as average annual temperatures globally and will continue to do so. Therefore, the Northern countries need effective and efficient strategies to deal with climate change and to adapt to new living conditions.
Positive effects of climate change
The effects of climate change won’t all be negative for the Northern countries, however. For example, it’s expected that water inflow will increase, and this make it possible to increase hydropower production. Energy efficiency will contribute to create more jobs, because the money not spent on energy can be invested in other, more labour-intensive sectors of the economy. Added to that, a warmer climate could bring advantages for farming to these northern countries.
Working together to find innovative solutions
Climate change will have a big impact on indigenous people of the Northern countries, and the NNCC conferences brought representatives from indigenous communities together with policy makers, young entrepreneurs and decision-makers to discuss how best to tackle the issue, taking into consideration the effects that climate change will have on all.
A tool was developed which helped leaders and policy officials to go through scenarios and see what poses the biggest threats to their businesses and communities. A catalogue was set up which aimed at providing participants with food for thought on what measures would be most appropriate for their regions, and how they could implement them.
A website was set up for all partner regions (www.nncc.se), a bicycle campaign was launched for European Mobility Week and various events for Earth Hour were held. Resources and materials for teachers were put together to make it easier for them to bring the message about climate change into the classroom and educate more young people.
Total Investment and EU funding
Total investment for the project “NNCC-Climate Change, sustainable energy and sustainable development in the North Calotte region – small steps big impacts” is EUR 622 662, of which the EU’s European Regional Development Fund is contributing EUR 277 510 from the Operational Programme “Interreg IV A North” for the 2007 to 2013 programming period.