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Engagement for climate partnerships

Germany and Latin America

A group ist looking in the direction of the camera, in the background are tropical trees ans bushes.
Two new climate partnerships: Hannover - Belén de los Andaquíes, and Oldenburg - Solano together with the German embassador in Costa Rica, Dr. Ernst Martens (with red tie). Photo: LAG 21

La Fortuna, Costa Rica, 26 to 28 November 2012. German-Latin American climate partnerships received a further boost from a meeting in Costa Rica. Delegates from municipal administrations and civil society organisations in 26 local authorities and nine countries met in La Fortuna for the international kick-off workshop. The workshop, which took place from 26 to 28 November 2012, is part of the project '50 Municipal Climate Partnerships by 2015'.

In his speech to open the event, the German ambassador to Costa Rica, Dr. Ernst Martens, emphasised the importance of city-to-city and project-based partnerships for intercultural and professional exchange between Germany and countries in Latin America. The climate partnerships can add an important dimension that extends these relationships, and can prompt new partnerships, he explained.

Three men are sitting at a podium.
Dr. Ernst Martens, Dr. Stefan Wilhelmy and Roberto Thompson (from left) at the opening. Photo: LAG 21

Dr. Stefan Wilhelmy of Engagement Global / Service Agency Communities in One World outlined in his welcome address the history of the project '50 Municipal Climate Partnerships by 2015'. The Mayor of Alajuela (Costa Rica), Roberto Thompson, also addressed the participants. Sabine Drees of the Association of German Cities spoke about the contributions made by municipal associations to the climate partnerships project, and welcomed the presence of delegates from municipal associations in Costa Rica and Brazil. By 2015, the project aims to achieve a total of 50 German municipalities that will develop, together with their partners in the South, joint programmes of action for climate change mitigation and adaptation. Currently a total of 21 partnerships are in the process of doing so. The project is being implemented by Engagement Global / the Service Agency in cooperation with the North Rhine-Westphalian Working Party on Agenda 21 (LAG 21 NRW), on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).

A group is in a conference room, a few of them is showing affirmatively their hands.
Participants from nine countries are attending the kick-off workshop. Photo: LAG 21

The agenda for the three-day workshop focused on dialogue among the respective partner municipalities. They formulated their expectations of the project and drew up a first overview of the key stakeholders in the context of their climate partnership. The partners presented each other with their respective plans and ongoing projects in the field of climate change mitigation and adaptation in their municipalities. This brought to light first joint areas of activity such as energy efficiency/ renewable energy or flood protection. Another topic of cooperation is raising awareness of the causes and impacts of climate change.

Participants were also provided with background information on climate change and the role of municipalities, and were familiarised with the lessons learned with local climate change mitigation in Lahr (Germany) and Rio de Janeiro (Brazil). The Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) in Costa Rica – the Service Agency's partner in organising the workshop –  presented its programmes for adapting to climate change along coastlines, and for supporting Costa Rica in becoming carbon-neutral. On day two the group took part in a special excursion. This included a visit to a company that manufactures biodiesel from used oil and grease for its fleet of vehicles, and a small enterprise for collecting recyclable materials run by women.

Two men are talking to each other.
Mayors engaged in a conversation. Photo: LAG 21

The feedback at the end of the workshop was very positive indeed. Participants were highly appreciative of the opportunity to get to know the different situations and experiences of the other municipalities attending. Engagement for the climate partnerships, which was in any case already high, received a further boost from the meeting in Costa Rica. Over the next 18 months the partners will now devote all their energies to developing their joint programmes of action for climate change mitigation and adaptation.

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