Final International ASTRA conference in Espoo, Finland, 10-11 December 2007
The BSR INTERREG IIIB project ASTRA "Developing Policies & Adaptation Strategies to Climate Change in the Baltic Sea Region" concluded with the Final International ASTRA Conference at the Geological Survey of Finland in Espoo. The conference presentations reflected climate change adaptation processes developed in the Baltic Sea Region focusing on concrete examples of how climate change adaptation strategies were integrated into local planning processes. The conference served further as a discussion platform on how climate change adaptation processes can benefit from regional development.
Kimmo Tiilikainen, The Finnish Minister of Environment, opens the conference. (photo: Jari Väätäinen)
Main Topics of the Final International ASTRA Conference
- How does climate change affect the Baltic Sea Region?
- Setting climate change on the political agenda
- Strategies for adaptation in the Baltic Sea Region
- Examples of climate change adaptation on the local and regional level
- The costs of climate change in the Baltic Sea Region
All presentations of the conference are available as pdf-files. The titles of the presentations in the programme below are linked to the repsective files.
Keijo Nenonen, Research Director of the Geological Survey of Finland, welcomes the participants of the conference. (photo: Jari Väätäinen)
Philipp Schmidt-Thomé, co-ordinator of the ASTRA Project, gives an introduction to the conference programme. (photo: Jari Väätäinen)
Conference programme
Monday, December 10
| 8.30-9.00 | Registration | |
| 9.00-9.30 | Opening of the conference |
Chair: Philip Schmidt-Thomé, Geological Survey of Finland (GTK) |
| 9.00-9.10 | Welcome note, Finnish Minister of Environment | Kimmo Tiilikainen, Finnish Ministry of Environment |
| 9:10-9.20 | Welcome note and introduction, Research Director, GTK |
Keijo Nenonen, Research Director, GTK |
| 09.20-9.30 | Welcome by the project coordinator | Philip Schmidt-Thomé, Geological Survey of Finland (GTK) |
| 9.30-11.10 | Session 1: Climate Change Adaptation and Policy | Chair: Michael Staudt, Geological Survey of Finland (GTK) |
| 9.30-10.00 | Climate Change - What are we talking about? | Jürgen Kropp, PIK |
| 10.00-10.20 | Planning in a changing climate - ESPACE project | Invited speaker: Bryan Boult, Hampshire County Council |
| 10.20-10.50 | Towards Climate Change Adaptation - Strategies in the Baltic Sea Region: ASTRA Policy Document | Jörg Knieling, Katrin Hilpert, HafenCity University Hamburg |
| 10.50-11.10 | Coffee break | |
| 10.10-11.30 | Spatial planning and adaptation in the BSR - reducing risks or raising vulnerabilities? | Simo Haanpää, Center for Urban and Regional Studies, Technical University Helsinki |
| 11.30-12.30 | Session II: Best practice examples from Finland | Chair: Simo Haanpää |
| 11.30-11.50 | Planning in Kokkola: From land uplift to sea level rise | Juhani Hannila, City of Kokkola |
| 11.50-12.10 | Espoo: How to take flood risk into account in new development areas | Merja Kiviluoto, City of Espoo |
| 12.10-12.30 | Nutrient load and Climate Change in the Kokemäenjoki catchment area | Tom Frisk, Ämer Bilaletdin, Heikki Kaipainen, Pirkanmaa Regional Environment Centre |
| 12.30-13.30 | Lunch | |
| 13.30-14.50 | Session III: Climate Change Impacts and Adaptation Strategies in the BSR | Chair: Lasse Peltonen |
| 13.30-13.50 | Climate change impacts on city of Gdansk and its vicinity (Poland, Vistula Delta) | Zbigniew Kordalski, Dorota Kaulbarsz, Wojciech Jeglinski, Polish Geological Institute |
| 13.50-14.10 | Climate change and the Oder Estuary: Benefits and threats | Holger Janssen, Gerald Schernewski, IOW |
| 14.10-14.30 | The River Salaca - How a Biosphere Reserve reacts to Climate Change/ Riga - a flood prone city? | Laila Kule, MarisKlavins, Agrita Briede, University of Latvia |
| 14.30-14.50 | Climate Change Adaptation in Sweden & Stockhom | Anna Gustafsson, Stockholm City Planning Administration |
| 15.20-17.00 | Session IV: Climate Change Assessment in the BSR | Chair: Johannes Klein |
| 15.20-15.50 | The BALTEX assessment of climate change for the Baltic Sea Basin | Hans-Jörg Isemer, GKSS |
| 15.50-16.10 | Adaptation to climate change options in Lithuanian Baltic Sea coast region | Egidijus Rimkus, Vilnius University |
| 16.10-16.30 | Land-use Scenarios and Sea level Rise - Danish Experiences | Henning Sten Hansen, Neri & Aalborg University |
| 16.30-17.00 | Interaction of Climate Change and Estonian Geology: The West Estonian Archipelago Tallinn and Pärnu |
Are Kont, Tallinn University Valter Petersell, Estonian Geological Survey |
| 17.00-18.00 | Time for networking, recreation, exploring Otaniemi | |
| 18.00 | Cocktail Diner at GTK | |
Tuesday, December 11
| 9.00-10.00 | Session IV: Looking Further: New Approaches to Deal with Climate Change | Chair: Philip Schmidt-Thomé, Geological Survey of Finland (GTK) |
| 9.00-9.30 | Keynote: Climate Change and Insurances | Silvio Tschudi, Swiss Re |
| 9.30-10.00 | Calculating costs of climate change adaptation - first approaches | Luis Costa, Klaus Eisenack, Jürgen Kropp, PIK |
| 10.00-10.30 | Adapting Synthetic Precipitation Time Series Generation to a Changing Climate | Ferdinand Beck, University of Stuttgart |
| 10.30-11.00 | Coffee break | |
| 11.00-12.15 | Session V: | Chair: Elena Talockaite |
| 11.00-11.20 | Climate Change Adaptation in Germany | Clemens Haße, Federal Environment Agency, Germany |
| 11.20-11.40 | Climate change adaptation on the policy agenda - how did we get here and what are the next steps? | Lasse Peltonen, Center for Urban and Regional Studies, Technical University Helsinki |
| 11.40-12.20 | Panel discussion/ Summary Country coordinators and WP Leaders, selected key note speakers , stakeholders and politicians | Chair: Philipp Schmidt-Thomé/Lasse Peltonen |
| 12.20-13.00 | Lunch | |
| 13.00-13.30 | Press conference (Graniitti room) | |
| 13.30-17.0 | Field trip | Underground wastewater management in Helsinki |
The programme is also available as pdf-file.
An interested audience at the Final International ASTRA Conference (photo: Jari Väätäinen)