The 20th edition of the European Week of Regions and Cities (EWRC), the biggest annual Brussels-based event dedicated to cohesion policy, is drawing near. This year’s EWRC will take place in-person on 10-13 October 2022.
Event sessions sit under the overarching theme “New challenges for Europe’s cohesion”. This provides the opportunity to debate and exchange best practices and ideas across four themes: green transition, territorial cohesion, digital transition, and youth empowerment.
Join us on 12 October 2022 9:30 to 11:00 (Europe/Brussels) for an enlightening session, “The EU Nature Restoration Law and its urban greening targets: implications for local policy makers”.
Organised by DG Env, Committee of the Regions, ICLEI Europe and NetworkNature, this workshop will shed light on the recently launched proposal for an EU Nature Restoration Law from the European, regional and city perspective. The objective is to make city-and regional level decision-makers and practitioners aware of the EU Nature Restoration Law, local policy implications of the binding restoration targets and help restore ecosystems in urban and rural areas across Europe.
The European Commission will begin by presenting its proposal - outlining how it fits within the framework of the EU Biodiversity Strategy to 2030; how it forms a key part of the EUs contribution to the post-2020 global biodiversity framework; and then describing the main elements of the legal proposal and its urban greening targets.
The workshop will then see experts in sustainable regional and local policy and planning reflect on the implications of the Nature Restoration Law for local and sub-national authorities, and for decision makers in terms of planning, governance, management and monitoring mechanisms. From the city perspective, the workshop will also explore options and good practices for decoupling urban development from urban nature loss.
The links and synergies to the crises of biodiversity loss, climate change and land use will be discussed, highlighting the need to work across multiple governance levels and streamline (policy) action to tackle them.
This workshop is additionally an opportunity for participants to contribute to the discussions on nature restoration at the urban level - to share their experiences and views as to how best to approach sustainable urban development, and how to protect and enhance urban ecosystems into the future.
To learn more and to register for the workshop, click here.
Speakers
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Stefan Leiner – Head of Unit Biodiversity, DG Environment, European Commission
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Roby Biwer - Rapporteur on Biodiversity, European Committee of the Regions
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Bettina Wilk - Senior Officer nature-based solutions and biodiversity, ICLEI Europe
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Ana Oregi, Deputy Mayor, Vitoria-Gasteiz, Basque Country