Our first visit to Vathy, Ithaca, was successfully carried out from 2nd to 4th February as part of the implementation of the ‘SMILE’ project, a sub-project of the Pathways2Resilience (P2R) Programme (Horizon Europe).
The agenda of our visit included meetings with the Mayor, Mr Dionysis Stanitsas, and the Deputy Mayor, Ms Rania Louka, who provided us with an overview of the projects and actions implemented and planned by the municipality over the past few years, as well as their vision for Ithaca. Additionally, our visit involved collecting the views of Ithaca’s residents, gathered through a preparatory questionnaire distributed by the Mayor offering valuable material for the design of the first interactive workshop. The interactive workshop was conducted with the participation of local stakeholders and residents.
The first workshop of the programme was designed and implemented by the Climate Change Hub and ELIAMEP, with the support of the Resilient Cities Catalyst and the active contribution of the Municipality of Ithaca. More than 30 members of the local community participated, all of whom had completed the preparatory questionnaire aimed at exploring chronic pressures and identifying needs for improving daily life in Ithaca. The aim of the workshop was to help participants develop a framework for designing resilience strategies for their island, using a shared language and understanding in an interactive manner.
The workshop began with an introduction by the Deputy Mayor, Ms Rania Louka, about the municipality’s participation in the programme and a presentation of the Pathways2Resilience (P2R) programme by the organisers. This was followed by a series of interactive exercises. The aim of these exercises was to introduce participants to methods and tools for understanding the concept of resilience. They also laid the foundations for a holistic assessment of the current situation in Ithaca, with the ultimate goal of developing a resilience strategy and its corresponding investment plan for implementation.
Overall, the Pathways2Resilience (P2R) programme aims to develop resilience strategies and long-term planning skills across 100 regions and municipalities in Europe. To achieve this, it provides, among other things, access to a wide range of technical tools for creating climate resilience strategies, action plans, and investments.
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Pathways2Resilience has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon Europe research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 101093942. The European Commission is not responsible for any use that may be made of the information it contains.
