The Climate Resilient City

Under the patronage of Holger Becker, Member of the Bundestag (SPD), the Parliamentary Evening on “The Climate-Resilient City” was held with nearly 70 participants from federal and state politics (23), business (9), municipalities (3), associations and foundations (6), and science (28). The event took place on November 8, 2022.

The program began with welcoming remarks from the host and from Helmholtz Vice President Katja Matthes, followed by short inputs from Peer Seipold (HEREON), Dirk Hebel (KIT), and Roland Müller (UFZ). A central element of the evening was the panel discussion on the question “How can federal policy support the climate-resilient transformation of cities?” with contributions from Ortwin Renn (IASS/RIFS), Carolin Süß (Vattenfall), Johannes Orphal (KIT), Katrin Zschau (Member of the Bundestag, SPD), and Katharina Schätz (City of Regensburg). The program was moderated by Prof. Christian Kuhlicke (UFZ).

After concluding remarks by Oda Keppler (Head of Subdivision 72, BMBF), the discussions continued at moderated theme tables. The event was accompanied by a detailed impact assessment, including qualitative interviews with members of parliament. As a direct outcome, numerous new connections between politics and science were established. Among these were follow-up discussions in the Bundestag, initiated by SynCom, on sustainable construction, climate-resilient cities, and carbon capture and storage (CCS).