PROJECT DESCRIPTION
BACKGROUND
The LIFE Co-Clima project aims to demonstrate a sustainable and resource-effective model to increase the adaptive capacity of small rural villages to climate change. It will boost community resilience in a just and fair way by improving the population’s knowledge, incentivising more autonomous livelihood strategies, enhancing networks of mutual support and reframing indigenous knowledge to reduce vulnerability and strengthen self-sustainability, especially in the field of food security.
The historic drought of 2022 and other climate impacts in Hungary and Europe such as changes in rainfall patterns and extreme temperatures, together with the recent economic crisis and rising food and energy prices, dramatically highlight the vulnerability of small rural settlements. Their vulnerability is further exacerbated by their greater dependence on agriculture and natural resources, lack of sufficient resources and neglect by policy-makers. Climate extremes such as heatwaves, droughts and floods have become more frequent in Hungary due to global warming. Since 2000, the average rate of warming in Hungary has been higher (0.0570°C per year) than the global average (0.0318°C per year). Hungary's temperature change is linked to a decrease in the number of frost days and an increase in hot days. Due to its geographical location, water scarcity is also a particular issue: the fact that 95% of the surface water arrives from neighbouring countries has a huge influence on Hungary.
In line with this, LIFE Co-Clima intends to tackle the following climate impacts: droughts, extreme temperatures and water scarcity. In addition, LIFE Co-Clima intends to focus on food security as a climate change impact as according to the Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC, 2014) focusing on rural areas, food security and thus agricultural incomes are also endangered, with a potentially significant impact in rural areas.
The project will centre around Püspökszilágy, a village with ca. 750 inhabitants at the edge of the Budapest agglomeration. The village is a pioneer of climate change adaptation in Hungary in terms of water retention in rural areas. Neighbouring Penc (ca. 1460 inhabitants) with similar socio-economic characteristics, and Terény (ca. 370 inhabitants), a more traditional and remote rural village from the same region, are also involved in the project.
OBJECTIVES
The project aims to demonstrate a model to increase the adaptive capacity of small rural villages to climate change by 1. improving participatory learning methods to achieve community resilience; 2. Systematising institutional support to incentivise more autonomous livelihood strategies and networks of mutual support; and 3. reframing indigenous knowledge to reduce vulnerability and strengthen self-sustainability, especially in the field of food security. The main aim is the creation of small-scale eco farms and Community Adaptation and Demonstration Centres in Püspökszilágy and Penc (WP2) and their use as demonstration sites or laboratories to improve community resilience against climate change effects (WP3).
The first specific objective (SO1) is to improve the local population’s knowledge and skills regarding climate change adaptation and to guide them to become more resilient to the impacts of climate change (with a focus on droughts, extreme temperatures, water scarcity and food security). The first step towards resilience is to make use of cultivable land despite the negative effects of climate change, and for this reason, ecological farms will be set up in Püspökszilágy and Penc together with Community Adaptation and Demonstration Centres.
The project also aims (SO2) to develop and test ways to incentivise local people to take up nature-based solutions and thus make use of their small-scale gardens to produce organic food. Financing for ecosystem services (PES)-based incentives will encourage transformational adaptation by supporting the local population to learn through capacity building, ongoing mentoring and financing the purchasing of equipment needed for adaptation. In Püspökszilágy, a Community Climate Fund will be created.
The project aims to build the local community by strengthening existing networks of mutual support and establishing new ones (SO3).
Informal institutions for risk, cost and benefit sharing (SO4) will be set up.
RESULTS
Improve the local population’s knowledge and skills regarding climate change adaptation.
Develop and test ways to incentivise the local population to take up nature-based solutions in their households to improve their resilience.
Build the local community, strengthen existing networks of mutual support and establish new ones.
Empower informal institutions for risk, cost and benefit sharing.
Encourage and assist the replication of the model in other similar settlements.
The project expects an annual increase in plant species and biodiversity on the eco-farms (baseline is 0, estimated value at project end is 25/5/5 respectively). Similarly, to increase in the number of fruit trees on municipal land from 0 to 20 by the end of the project.
Expect an increase in the ratio of composting households in Püspökszilágy, Penc and Terény (baseline is 36%, estimated value at project end is 50%, a 40% increase in the number of composting households compared to the starting year due to the community resilience programme). The project expects an increase to 60% 3-5 years after project end.
The project expects a reduction in the volume of green waste removed from households in Püspökszilágy and Penc (baseline is 24 m3/month, target is 10m3/month 3-5 years after project end due to the sustainable model of the community resilience programme).
The project foresees an increase in rainwater storage (from baseline 10 m3 to 13 m3 by project end), and the project expects an increase in the value to 20 m3 3-5 years after project end.
The increase of use of local organic food in communal catering (baseline is 0, estimated value at project end is 12%).
