Rising global temperatures are leading to climate change, manifesting in more frequent and extreme weather events, rising sea levels, and disrupted ecosystems. The effects of these changes are global, yet the manifestations are often local as are the specific consequences.
In response to these pressing challenges, the I-CHANGE Project is fostering a groundbreaking collaboration between scientists and citizens. By collecting data from areas often beyond the reach of traditional research and raising awareness of climate change at the local level, the project is paving the way for innovative solutions to a global problem by means of Citizen Science.
Now the time has come for us to bring what we have learned from the local level through collaboration with citizens across our 8 Living Labs in and beyond the EU to those who can enable cross-cutting support for citizen-centred pathways to change. The time has come to bring our insights to European experts and decisionmakers.
Partnering with the MAIA Project to Ensure Impact
In a time marked by unprecedented environmental breakdown, the urgency to act on all levels of European democracy cannot be overstated.
While traditional models of governance have developed tangible roadmaps for our institutions, the role of European citizens in the sustainable transition remains to be clearly defined. This is the aim of the Policy Dialogue Event that a collection of partners in the I-CHANGE project will host in Brussels in the spring of 2025, inviting relevant commissioners and Directorates Generals (DGs) within the European Commision. The Event will be co-hosted with the MAIA Project, an organisation dedicated to “connect[ing] communities, platforms, knowledge and research on climate change.”
We are confident that this sort of partnership will be crucial in ensuring the development and appropriation of citizen-centred pathways to behavioural change.
The Policy Dialogue Event will consist of two activities:
- Keynote speech by PhD, Member of Danish Parliament Theresa Scavenius
- Panel debates on the future role of behavioural science and citizen-driven transitions