Societal Local and Regional Resiliency Spurred by Contextualized Climate Services

The role of culture in co-production

Publication: Article
Citation: Martinez, G., Celliers, L., Collard, M., de Jong, F., Huang-Lachmann, J.-T., Manez Costa, M., Rubio-Martin, A., Ozier-Lafontaine, H., Garcia Prats, A., Stelljes, N., Swart, R., Wimmermann, T., Llario, F., Pulido-Velazquez, M. (2022). Societal local and regional resiliency spurred by contextualized climate services: The role of culture in co-production. Climate Services, 26, 100300. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cliser.2022.100300

This article emphasizes the significant role of culture in shaping and utilizing climate services, which are crucial for achieving climate resilience and sustainable development in various regions. By incorporating cultural perspectives, the development of climate services can be tailored to meet the specific needs and values of local communities, enhancing their effectiveness and relevance.

Case Studies and Methodological Approaches

Analyzing case studies from different global regions, the research underscores how cultural values influence perceptions of vulnerability and resilience to climate changes. Methods such as semi-structured interviews, workshops, and narrative analysis reveal that cultural dimensions deeply impact the co-design of climate services, ensuring they resonate well with local stakeholders' socio-cultural and ecological contexts.

Implications for Policy and Practice

The findings advocate for the integration of cultural insights into the planning and implementation of climate services to ensure they are contextually relevant and effectively support local adaptation strategies. This approach not only aids in addressing climate risks but also supports broader sustainability goals by aligning with the cultural and social dynamics of the communities involved.

Integrating cultural dimensions into the design and implementation of climate services not only enhances their relevance and effectiveness but also ensures they align with the values and expectations of local communities.

Reframing Climate Services to Support Municipal and Regional Planning

Year 2021

Publication:Article

Cover of publication with text and logos

Recent and historic high-impact events have demonstrated significant flood risks to many coastal areas in Europe and across the globe. Understanding the behavior of humans in relation to risk management poses grand challenges for both natural and social sciences and humanities. The study analyzes the cultural aspects of coastal risk management and illustrates path-dependencies of concrete disaster risk reduction measures in relation to local contexts in European coastal regions in Northern and South Western Europe. Dr. Grit Martinez from Ecologic Institute co-authored the journal article.

The Role of Culture and Informal Aspects for Coastal Disaster Risk Reduction Measures

Empirical Evidence from Northern and Southern Europe, Advances in Climate Change Research

Year 2020

Publication:Fact Sheet

This fact sheet for the project INNOVA illustrates a literature review on the effects of climate change on beach wrack landing on the German Baltic Shore. Beach wrack consists mainly of bladderwrack and seagrass and it is likely that climate change will have various effects on these plants. Aspects like rising water temperature, erosion, changes in salinity, eutrophication or oxygen deficiency are all affected by climate change. This will have direct effects on the composition and amount of beach wrack landing on the Baltic Sea shores.

INNOVA Beach Wrack Fact Sheet

Kiel Bay: Projected Climate Changes and Impacts on Beach Wrack

Year 2021

Publication:Article

This article gives an example of how to use Segrass in a sustainable way. "Using Seagrass as Insulation Material" by Nico Stelljes is published in the "Baltic Stories Magazine" that is devoted to promoting cooperation around the Baltic Sea, joint initiatives and projects of the European Union Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region (EUSBSR). The article is available online.

Using Seagrass as Insulation Material

Year 2021

Presentation:Speech

The concept of climate services is rapidly climbing research-funding agendas word-wide. Initially climate services focused on improving access to climate data but have since evolved into user informed activities. Still, there is a long way to go to make climate services not only usable but also useful for regional and local decision maker. Paying attention to this matter, the sixth International Climate Service Conference in Pune, India focused among others on the architecture of user participation, contextualization of climate services and ethical question on its provision. Dr. Grit Martinez of Ecologic Institute presented the Institute's recent research results from the European research project Innovation in Climate Service Provision.

On the Way to Demand Driven Climate Services

12 February 2020
Dr. Grit Martinez

Publication:Article

Profound societal transformations are needed to move society from unsustainability to greater sustainability under continually changing social and environmental conditions. A key challenge is to understand the influences on and the dynamics of collective behavior change toward sustainability. In this paper, the authors of whom Grit Martinez of Ecologic Institute is one, demonstrate how affective narrative expressions influence transitions to more sustainable collective behaviors.

Influence of Narratives of Vision and Identity on Collective Behavior Change

Year 2019

Presentation:Panel discussion

From 11 until 14 June 2018 transitions scholars and stakeholders from around the world met for the 9th International Sustainability Transitions (IST) conference in Manchester (United Kingdom). Dr. Grit Martinez of Ecologic Institute spoke in a dialogue session about cultural conventions, system reconfigurations and transitions.

Sustainability Transitions: What is the stake of cultural conventions?

13 June 2018
Dr. Grit Martinez

Presentation:Speech

From 26 to 28 April 2018, the Global Forum on Urban Resilience and Adaptation took place in Bonn (Germany), just after the March Cities IPCC Conference, a few days ahead of the midyear Bonn climate talks and a few months before nations review SDG 11 on cities and human settlements. For the INNOVA project, Dr. Grit Martinez of Ecologic Institute presented INNOVA's approach to risk assessment in the session "Assessing urban risk and vulnerability and prioritizing action." The presentation slides are available for download.

Assessing Urban Risk and Vulnerability and Prioritizing Action

26 - 28 April 2018
Dr. Grit Martinez

Project

The research project INNOVA will consolidate key factors from adaptive management strategies from leading earlier and on-going European initiatives in Spain (Valencia), Germany (Bay of Kiel) and the Netherlands (Nijmegen) and France’ overseas territories in Guadeloupe and Martinique. INNOVA intends to provide prototypes of climate services including business models, practical frameworks, and recommendations for creating and up-scaling opportunities while adapting to a changing climate.

Innovation in Climate Services Provision (INNOVA)

Oct 2017 - Sep 2020

Language: English
Authorship: Dr. Grit Martinez

Dr. Nico Stelljes
Funding: Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF), Germany
Published in: Climate Services Volume 26, April 2022, 100300
Published by: Elsevier, International
Year: 2022
ISSN: 2405-8807
DOI: 10.1016/j.cliser.2022.100300
Project: Innovation in Climate Services Provision (INNOVA)
Project ID: 2294
Table of contents: Click to show full table of contents

    Abstract
    Keywords
    1. Introduction
    2. Methods and approach
    3. Introduction of hubs
    4. Results from semi-structured interviews
    5. Discussion
    6. Conclusion
    Declaration of Competing Interest
    Acknowledgements
    Author contributions
    Financial support
    Conflicts of interest declarations in manuscripts
    Appendix A. Supplementary data
    References
Keywords: Adaptation

Climate

Culture + Ecology

resilience, sustainability, climate services, culture, values, risk perception, user needs

Europe, Asia