Week of 2nd – 8th November 2020

Energy modelling confirms: 100% renewable energy is possible. The role of training and education in rebuilding better. Blockchain for climate action and the governance challenge. Engineering with nature. The European Green Deal and sustainable agriculture. Delivering a resilient, net zero economy: how do we transition infrastructure at pace in the race to zero? Find out about these and more online events of the week!

You can also subscribe to Climate Online’s newsletter to be reminded about weekly event updates by e-mail:


2 November, 9:30 AM – 5:00 PM CET
“Smart City Business Event: The Road to Smart City Live” (by Enterprise Europe Network, European Commission, Netherlands Enterprise Agency, Cleantech Scandinavia, ITEA3)

The purpose of this digital event is to provide government, city representatives, start-ups, SME’s, corporates, experts and investors with a platform to initiate long-term partnerships. National organizations and cities from all over the world will be brought together to establish new alliances and build on existing ones. Innovators and experts will share (see agenda here) their solutions and it will be a great opportunity for investors with a smart city focus to find investment opportunities. Focus areas are: the business case for climate neutral Cities, smart and green mobility, resilient cities, circular economy and more. The event takes place on 2nd, 9th and 16th November. Register on the website by 1st November.

2 November, 4:00 – 5:30 AM CET (8:30 AM IST)
“Experiences and challenges in implementing electric mobility initiatives” (by Asia LEDS Partnership and SLOCAT Partnership)

This webinar is designed to provide the status update and trends on electric mobility adopted in different countries and inform the participants about significance of framework for electric mobility, its need, components and case examples. During the session, speakers will also share challenges and experiences in implementing EV projects from the private sector perspective.

2 November, 10:00 AM – 1:00 PM CET
“SDG 15 Day: Focus on forests in the ‘super year’ for nature and beyond” (by United Nations Economic Commission for Europe – UNECE and Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations – FAO)

This event features a roundtable moderated by member State representatives where relevant UN agencies and partner organizations will discuss the progress on achieving forest-related targets of SDG15 in the UNECE region, with a particular focus on 2020 as the ‘super year’ of nature. Speakers will also discuss innovative scalable solutions to climate change through afforestation and ecosystem restoration; as well as concrete proposals on how to step up joint delivery in light of financial and other challenges associated with the post COVID-19 recovery.

2 November, 3:00 – 4:00 PM CET (9:00 AM EST)
“Hydrogen in Europe – The Perspective of the Gas Industry” (by International Association for Energy Economics)

Renewable hydrogen is considered a strategic component for the European Green Deal. In this context, the existing infrastructure for natural gas in Europe may prove to be an asset for the transport of hydrogen. But what are the requirements, both technical and economic, for switching from transporting natural gas to transporting hydrogen? In this webinar experts will present their ideas on how to solve these issues.

2 November, 3:00 – 4:00 PM CET
“How you can use flood hazard data in risk assessment, climate change analysis and resilience management” (by Oasis Hub)

Join Fathom’s co-founder as he explains how you can benefit from the Fathom US hazard dataset. Helping those working in (re)insurance, corporate risk management, conservation and disaster response, it brings together improved inland flood maps with their new coastal flooding model, including storm surge based on <50,000 synthetic hurricanes from MIT. The comprehensive, national-scale flood model accounts for climate change impact with scenarios for 2020 and 2050. Fathom’s new US data underpins the First Street Foundation’s Flood Factor which makes it possible for anyone in the US to instantly see the flood risk for their property, a game changer when it comes to understanding the real flood risk in the states.

2 November, 6:30 – 7:15 PM CET (12:30 PM EST)
“Energy Justice and Policy” (by Massachusetts Institute of Technology – MIT Sloan School of Management)

Join a special discussion with Professor Shalanda Baker (Professor of Law, Public Policy, and Urban Affairs, Northeastern) and Professor John Sterman (Jay W Forrester Professor of Management, MIT Sloan) about what we need to do to create an intersectional movement, focussed on justice and equity, to transform our energy and climate policies moving forward.


3 – 4 November
“European Circular Economy Stakeholder Conference” (by European Commission and European Economic and Social Committee)

Every year, the European circular economy community from businesses, public authorities, NGOs to knowledge communities and civil society organisations gathers to discuss the transition to a circular economy. Some sessions of the conference will be webstreamed. You can also register here for the launch of the OECD Synthesis report on The Circular Economy in Cities and Regions. The report provides a compendium of circular economy good practices, obstacles and opportunities, analysed through the lens of its 3Ps analytical framework ( people, policies and places).


3 – 6 November
“Local Climate Solutions for Africa Congress” (by ICLEI Africa)

The purpose of the event is to strengthen the cooperation between local, regional and national governments with the practitioners, academia, and researchers around urban sustainability issues. The online congress provides space to exchange new visions and strategies for climate action in Africa. Register here.


3 November, 9:00 – 10:00 AM CET (10:00 AM Johannesburg Time)
“Unravelling South Africa’s just transition: Unpacking the ground-level impacts in the coal value chain” (by Trade & Industrial Policy Strategies – TIPS)

South Africa, a carbon-intensive economy, has initiated a transition to a more sustainable development pathway. While this is an economy-wide transformation, the progressive decline of the coal value chain is at the centre of this shift. In a highly unequal society like South Africa, the need for a just transition, which would empower vulnerable stakeholders, has emerged as an imperative. This online dialogue aims to inform this just transition process. It explores the ground-level impacts associated with a just transition away from coal. It builds on previous dialogues and aims to unpack evidence rather than perspectives.

3 November, 9:00 – 11:00 AM or 4:00 – 6:00 PM CET
“Engaging Civil Society in the Energy Transition: the Role of Grids” (by REN21, Renewables Grid Initiative, CAN Europe and European Environmental Bureau)

Demand for electricity will increase as we switch away from using fossil fuels, especially in heating and transport. This growth in electricity use will require expanding renewable energy, and improvements to the system that distributes all that electricity: the grid. Without civil society advocating for grid development, as well as investment in renewables, the energy transition will not happen quickly enough. Join this event to learn answers to these two critical questions: (1) What is the role of power grids in the transition to renewable energy? (2) How can civil society drive this change?

3 November, 9:00 AM – 1:00 PM CET
“Team up for climate action! Improving municipal energy management and adapting to climate change” (by Compete4SECAP)

The Compete4SECAP project team will make its last public appearance. Representatives from European cities in Croatia, Cyprus, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Latvia and Spain will share their experience transforming energy management practices. Join a team of committed energy-savers to hear about: (1) Methods and tools to monitor municipal energy use, as part of implementing an Energy Management System; (2) The do’s and don’ts of running a creative and inspiring energy-saving campaign; (3) How Covenant of Mayors signatory cities can better integrate action on climate mitigation with efforts to adapt to climate change.

3 November, 1:00 – 2:00 PM CET
“Biomass Monitoring” (by Global Forest Observations Initiative)

This webinar will present an overview of recently refined guidance on the use of Earth Observations for biomass monitoring. It will highlight the planned and existing space-based datasets that can be used for biomass mapping, the use of these maps for forest monitoring in-practice, and the latest R&D developments on this topic.

3 November, 3:00 – 4:30 PM CET
“Rebuilding Better: The role of training and education” (by Green Growth Knowledge Partnership – GGKP, UN Institute for Training and Research – UNITAR and Global Green Growth Institute)

What is the role of education and training institutions in a green recovery? What are the opportunities and benefits of peer-sharing and networks? What are the risks from the current approach to green learning and how can these be overcome? How is COVID-19 reshaping the education sector and learning? Join for a discussion with experts on how education and learning will play a central role for a successful long-term recovery.

3 November, 4:00 – 5:30 PM CET
“Blockchain for Climate Action and the Governance Challenge” (by Climate Ledger Initiative – CLI)

The event aims to provide an overview of relevant governance challenges for practitioners from the climate policy and blockchain world as well as to get feedback and input from participants. Moreover, the webinar presentations and discussions will feed into a knowledge piece on governance that is useful for practitioners to be published in early 2021, key findings may be mentioned in the next CLI flagship report on “Navigating blockchain for Climate Action”, to be published in December 2020.


4 – 5 November
“Reinventing cities – beyond the urban crises” (by Eurocities)

This is the first online annual conference of Eurocities. It is happening at a time when a new reality is taking shape in cities, in Europe and globally. Cities have been the hardest hit by the pandemic, as well as the social and economic consequences. It is also in cities that the urgency of dealing with other major challenges such as climate change stands out very clearly. Register and join the following discussions: “Future cities – do cities have a future?”, “A stronger future: resilient cities”, “Green and just recovery in cities”.


4 -5 November
“The International Exhibition for Sustainable Mobility Solutions” (by Autonomy & The Urban Mobility Company)

Join the exhibition’s Industry Talks and other events all happening virtual this year. The event brings innovators and policy makers together to change the way we move in cities. Register here.


4 November, 10:00 – 11:00 AM CET
“Energy modelling confirms: 100% renewable energy is possible” (by World Future Council and Brot für die Welt)

Energy scenarios a crucial for effective, long-term energy policy making. Scenarios can guide policy making, highlight transition pathways and potential technology options to increase the share of renewable energy in a country’s energy mix and maximise socio-economic benefits (e.g. job growth, fossil fuel cost savings, CO2 emission reductions). This session of a November online seminar series highlights the lessons learned from energy scenario modelling for Bangladesh, Tanzania and Costa Rica and explores why participatory scenario development and inclusion of stakeholders across all sectors and jurisdictions is necessary to achieve a just 100% renewable energy future.

4 November, 3:00 – 4:00 PM CET
“Nature+ Accelerator Fund: A new market strategy for nature-based solutions” (by International Union for Conservation of NatureIUCN)

IUCN and partners will introduce you to the first-of-its-kind private sector focused nature conservation accelerator fund, intended to create a scalable pipeline of investments rooted in nature-based solutions. The Nature+ Accelerator Fund provides measurable, science-based, conservation and social benefits while delivering financial returns for investors, and effectively creating a new natural capital asset class.

4 November, 4:00 – 5:00 PM CET (10:00 AM EST)
“Insights from Long-Term Energy Scenarios” (by International Association for Energy Economics)

Energy scenarios are developed by universities, international organizations, think tanks, energy companies, as well as consultancies. Despite their differences, most scenarios are not optimistic about the world meeting the Paris Agreement targets. This webinar will provide new insights into long-term scenario planning and will ask such questions as: Are we now more (or less) likely to achieve ambitious climate targets than we were before Covid19? Importantly, the speakers will discuss whether a 100% renewable energy system is technologically and economically feasible and who has expected a Black Swan event, such as the coronavirus crisis.

4 November, 4:00 – 5:15 PM CET
“Energy efficiency in a time of Covid-19: Action on transport urban infrastructure and impacts to support social and economic recovery in Latin America” (by International Energy Agency – IEA)

The webinar will look at action being taken on urban infrastructure in Latin America due to the impacts of the Covid-19 crisis. It will explore how social distancing and modal shift has resulted in new walk and cycle infrastructure. Scheme details including levels of investment, infrastructure km built and job creation opportunities will be discussed.

4 November, 7:00 – 8:00 PM CET (6:00 PM London Time)
“How can the UK turn 2020 from a climate crisis to a green milestone?” (by University of Oxford)

While every cloud has a silver lining, the year 2020 brought a few too many clouds. This year brings the COVID19 pandemic, BREXIT, and an impending economic recession bearing down on the UK’s ability to pursue its climate goals. The Agora Oxford Roundtables offer a platform to look for that silver lining after all, together with experts from the worlds of politics, academia, industry, think tanks, and activism. What are the pitfalls, and the opportunities that the UK should uncover, and how can it make the most of it? What does the pandemic uncover about different ways we could organise our labour, transport, and city centers? How can the UK use its new diplomatic position to promote renewable energy in its new trade agreements? And how can it ensure that climate policy does not fall behind when the economy shuffles political priorities?


5 November, 5:45 – 8:00 AM CET (11:45 AM Bangkok Time)
“Tracking progress in Asia’s transport transformation – Opportunities for linking SDG and NDC reporting” (by GIZ and SLOCAT Partnership)

How can reporting on the developments of transport activities, policies and related climate and sustainable development impacts be better integrated and improved? Could a regional reporting mechanism benefit transparency and if so, how should it be designed to effectively track progress and lower the current manifold reporting burdens of transport and environment ministries and agencies? Information on registration and even details here.

5 November, 11:00 AM – 4:30 PM CET
“Fifth Agricultural Business Summit: The European Green Deal and Sustainable Agriculture” (by The Economist)

It has become clear that the negative economic and social impacts are deeper and broader than were first anticipated. The covid-19 pandemic has resulted in a concurrent slowdown in all major global economies. This represents an unprecedented challenge to the economic integrity of the EU, its constituent member states, and the global trading framework. New challenges have emerged owing to covid-19 related to climate change and sustainability while technological innovations are having a considerable impact on the production, processing and distribution of foodstuffs. The event will explore the EU’s priorities for agribusiness and to what it extent it has been affected.

5 November, 12:00 – 1:00 PM CET
“Retrofitting concentrated solar power (CSP) projects to store and integrate variable renewable energy in the grid” (by ATA Insights)

Spain’s Integrated National Energy and Climate Plan (PINEC) targets 74% of power from renewable sources by 2030, with more than 25GW of PV capacity expected to be added by that year. Hybrid PV – CSP bring together these complementary technologies to deliver solar power when it is required (dispatchable) or around the clock (baseload). In this webinar you will hear from the innovators retrofitting CSP storage projects to integrate a higher share of variable renewable energy to the grid.

5 November, 1:00 – 2:30 PM CET
“The Triple Dividend of Resilience: from concept to application” (by Grantham Institute on Climate Change and the Environment, London School of Economics – LSE and Zurich Flood Resilience Alliance)

The Triple Dividend of Resilience (TDR) Framework was developed by the Overseas Development Institute, London School of Economics and the World Bank in 2016 to address the common perception that investing in disaster/ climate resilience will only yield benefits once disaster strikes. Existing methods of appraising disaster risk management and adaptation investments undervalue the significant societal and economic benefits from taking action early rather than later. Hence decision-makers view these investments as a gamble that only pays off in the event of a disaster. The goal of this webinar is to share learning from case studies in Africa and Southeast Asia on the use of the TDR framework to evaluate the benefits of improved Early Warning information/climate services.

5 November, 2:00 – 3:00 PM CET (8:00 AM EST)
“Engineering with Nature” (by WWF US)

This session will advance the discussion on opportunities to apply nature-based solutions (NBS) as alternatives or additions to human-made infrastructure. Speakers will explore the business case through NBS experiences at all levels, from planning to implementation, highlighting the latest examples of how engineers are building with nature for increased benefits for people, resilience, and biodiversity.

5 November, 2:00 – 4:30 PM CET
“Towards a Sustainable Single Market of Smart City Solutions” (by FIWARE Foundation)

Smart Cities represent distinctive ecosystems of collaborative frameworks: private and public businesses, not-for-profit organisations, social enterprises, citizens, etc. These ecosystems facilitate the transformation of cities into enablers of economic growth, innovation, and well-being. Under this concept, cities become more efficient, resilient to environmental challenges, cost-effective, and sustainable, providing citizens with a better place to work, live, and socialise. During the event, experts will discuss topics such as the adoption of common standards and information models to break information silos, exploiting data across verticals, and the development of overall city-level smart decision support systems.

5 November, 3:00 – 4:30 PM CET
“Corporate PPAs in Africa: opportunities and challenges” (by SolarPower Europe)

Across the globe, renewable energy generators are increasingly entering into corporate power purchase agreements (PPAs) – a long-term contract that allows corporates to secure a supply of clean electricity for the long-term and at a competitive price. While in some parts of the world like the US and Europe corporate PPAs are on the uptake, Sub-Saharan African countries may face specific, mainly regulatory challenges in this regard, such as strict licence requirements and lack of net-metering options. Addressing these barriers can be the key to help unlock the corporate renewable energy PPA market in Africa…

5 November, 3:30 – 4:30 PM CET
“Delivering a resilient, net zero economy: How do we transition infrastructure at pace in the race to zero?” (by The Prince of Wales’s Corporate Leaders Group – CLG)

The aim of this webinar is to examine the challenges of how we transition national infrastructure towards a resilient net zero vision. It will take a place-based approach to look at the role of business in accelerating the transition, opportunities for innovation, where new approaches may be required and the policy levers required to release private investment.

5 November, 4:00 – 5:00 PM CET (10:00 AM EST)
“Sustainable Business Briefing: Empowering the Workforce of the Future” (by Bloomberg)

How should business engage with the next generation to support their passion for sustainability and equality? Can we respond to and act on their priorities today in order to secure a better tomorrow? Engaging effectively with Generation Z is critical to both building a sustainable workforce and winning the trust of the world’s most influential consumer group. With social and environmental issues consistently ranked as their top concern, youth voices are amongst the loudest in pressing for change across society – with a particular focus on how business operates. Organizations have realized that attracting the next generation of employees and customers means ensuring that ethical and sustainable action are core elements of both their brand and their operations…

5 November, 6:00 – 7:00 PM CET
“Energy and Environmental Policy in the Next U.S. Administration” (by K&L Gates)

2020 is shaping up to be a pivotal year for both energy and environmental policy, and that only becomes more apparent as the U.S. moves closer to Election Day on 3 November. Members of K&L Gates Public Policy and Energy, Infrastructure & Resources practice groups will host an insightful panel discussing the possible implications of the election on energy and environmental policy of the country.


6 November, 10:00 – 11:15 AM CET (2:30 PM IST)
“Evolving landscape of Indian renewable energy investments” (by International Energy Agency – IEA and Council on Energy, Environment and Water – CEEW)

Investor interest in the Indian renewable energy sector remains strong, even amid the ongoing Covid- 19 pandemic. The webinar will feature the launch of the Clean Energy Investment Trends 2020 report. Now in its third iteration, the report tracks project-level renewable energy market and financing trends to explain how the interaction of risks and regulations shapes investment flows.

6 November, 2:00 – 3:00 PM CET
“A fair governance for enhanced guarantees of origin” (by Florence School of Regulation – FSR)

The EU Strategy for Energy System Integration, released in July this year, calls for a “more circular energy system, with energy efficiency at its core, in which the least energy-intensive choices are prioritised”. A holistic approach to deliver overall efficiency in achieving the renewables penetration target requires a “common currency” which provides a consistent (price) signal against which the cost of different technologies and renewable vectors can be assessed. Guarantees of Origin (GOs) could become, if “upgraded’, this ‘common currency’…

6 November, 3:00 – 4:00 PM CET
“The ecophysiology of Australian tropical rainforests” (by University of Oxford)

Tropical rainforests occur on only a small part of the Australian continent, mainly restricted to a narrow humid tropical zone in northeastern Queensland. However, within this relatively small area, a broad range of climatic, topographic, and edaphic conditions exists. Here, Prof. Cernusak discusses recent research into the ecophysiology of trees in these rainforests, aimed at gaining insight into how they are likely to respond to climate change.

6 November, 7:00 – 8:00 PM CET (1:00 PM EST)
“Climate change and its impact on the global food system” (by Michigan State University)

Climate change poses tremendous challenges to the global food system. This round table conversation aims to span perspectives and bridge disciplines on the issue. Register here.