Mitigation and adaptation are inseparable aspects in addressing the issue of climate change: mitigation actions produce their effects on the medium to long term timeline (decades, centuries), while adaptation actions involve interventions and policies on a shorter timescale to resist, coexist, and in some cases even derive benefits, until mitigation produces its effects.
The Adaptation Plan is the necessary document to complete the initiatives on climate change within the University, in relation to the impacts expected over the coming decades as well as those already occurring. An Adaptation Plan, at any spatial scale, must be based on climate vulnerability, the cornerstones of which are the analysis of the historical situation and future projections for the relevant area, in order to assess and reduce risks to infrastructure.
These risks include, in particular: flooding of buildings, severe weather events, water scarcity due to exceptional drought periods, power supply issues for staff and students, health risks from high temperatures, heatwaves, and air quality and impacts on physical and psychological well-being.
The University has already identified several actions to add to the currently under drafting 2023 Adaptation Plan.
For more in-depth information:
The Network of Italian Universities for Sustainable Development has also been working on this topic and has developed specific guidelines available on this page: