The flagship status is a recognition for CASCADE’s aims to improve urban resilience in cities and towns in the Baltic Sea Region, as well as the overall macro-regional resilience. Particular focus in CASCADE is on climate change related risks and adaptation.
“The project CASCADE is very proud to be selected as a EUSBSR Flagship by PA Secure. This means a lot for our consortium and gives us more visibility among EU projects. This honor confirms that our vision on implementing the Sendai treaty in the Baltic Sea Region and beyond wakes up interest in our stakeholders and policy makers in the EU area,” states Miikka Toivonen, Project Manager of the Southwest Finland Emergency Services and the Lead Partner of CASCADE.
As a flagship project, CASCADE now operates as a pilot example for cross-sectoral cooperation in the region: CASCADE brings together civil protection specialists and climate change adaptation experts for the first time to fight the impacts of climate change jointly.
“It is this cross-sectoral aspect that makes CASCADE truly unique. The partnership between Policy Area Secure and Horizontal Action Climate, which represents the Baltic Sea cooperation in the field of climate adaptation and low emission development, is vital for CASCADE’s goals and for successful results in the region,” Toivonen continues.
In practice CASCADE will develop a comprehensive portfolio of risk management methodologies and tools related to climate change. To utilize this methodology established, CASCADE develops training courses in disaster risk reduction for civil protection experts and city planners. Thirdly, CASCADE initiates a region-wide policy dialogue on the UN Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction to form cross-sectorial cooperation between different levels of governance and for greater policy coherence on climate risk assessments.
Nine partners representing 7 Baltic Sea Region countries are involved in the project. The materials and results of CASCADE are replicable for all Baltic Sea Region countries.
The Policy Area (PA) SECURE
The Policy Area (PA) Secure focuses on protection from land-based emergencies, accidents and cross-border crime. It is one of the thirteen policy areas of the European Union Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region (EUSBSR). PA Secure activities are related to four areas: better risk assessment and crisis management, building up resilience and prevention towards emergencies and threats at the local level, enhancing effective cooperation in protecting human beings against criminal threats and preventing serious crime through developing efficient framework for law enforcement cooperation. PA Secure is coordinated by the Council of the Baltic Sea States Secreatariat (CBSS) and Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency (MSB).
In addition to CASCADE, four other projects were granted the Flagship status, namely ResQU2 (PA Secure), MARA (HA Spatial Planning), SuMaNu (PA Bioeconomy), and COMBINE (PA Transport).