More than a hundred activities will mobilise Basque citizens against climate change during ASTEKLIMA, the Basque Climate and Energy Week
18/10/2024
10 municipalities will host Klima Azoka, an activity promoted by Ihobe and EVE, which offers a tour around different tents to learn more about climate change, habits at home, mobility, leisure and responsible consumption.
Within the framework of the International Day against Climate Change, the fifth edition of ASTEKLIMA 2024 will be held from 18th to 27th October under the slogan "Every action counts, no matter how small".
ASTEKLIMA, the Basque Climate and Energy Week, will mobilise local councils and organisations to carry out 114 activities between 18th and 27th October, involving Basque society in the challenge posed by the energy and climate transition. Under the slogan "Every action counts, no matter how small", the Basque Government’s Department of Industry, Energy Transition and Sustainability is organising the fifth edition of ASTEKLIMA through EVE, the Basque Energy Agency, and Ihobe, the Public Environmental Management Company, within the framework of the International Day against Climate Change to be held on 24th October.
ASTEKLIMA offers a wide variety of events to promote citizen awareness and co-responsibility through different activities, such as workshops, theatre shows and storytelling, films, guided tours and children's games. The Department of Industry, Energy Transition and Sustainability will promote Klima Azoka, an initiative developed by Ihobe and EVE. Ten Basque towns will host this playful travelling installation which offers self-diagnosis tests, information and possible actions in the form of a fair, to get each person to make a commitment to act against climate change. Over the coming 9 days, Klima Azoka will be in Bilbao (18th October), Gernika (19th October), Eibar (20th October), Amurrio (21st October), Vitoria-Gasteiz (22nd October), Sestao (23rd October), Zumarraga and Urretxu (24th October), Hernani (25th October) and Getxo (26th October). Thanks to the 7 tents that make up the installation, Klima Azoka will offer reflections on climate change, habits at home, mobility, leisure and responsible consumption, which will be joined by a new installation to raise awareness of the importance of soil protection and the Urban Klima 2050 installation, the largest climate adaptation project in the Basque Country.
Coastal climate adaptation and energy transition
To mark this fifth edition, the Basque Government's Public Company for Environmental Management, Ihobe, will present the advances made in coastal adaptation as a defence against climate change, focusing on climate risk analysis and guidelines for adaptation on the Basque coast. The conference, to be held on 22 October at the Euskalduna Conference Centre in Bilbao, will also serve to present good practices and success stories in coastal adaptation measures, such as the importance of dunes for the protection of the Orio coastline, marine monitoring and adaptation developed by AZTI, coastal adaptation measures and coordination with urban planning in Bakio or coastal maritime effects in the emergency warning system in the Basque Country, among other international success stories.
In parallel, Ihobe will participate in Uhinak, the Cross-Border Congress on Climate and Coastal Change, to be held in Irun on 23rd and 24th October, a leading international event thanks to the quality of its speakers and its programme, which addresses the latest research and solutions on the effects of climate change in coastal areas.
Prizes for the best actions
This edition of ASTEKLIMA will reward the best awareness-raising actions developed by the entities and municipalities responsible for organising the ASTEKLIMA events. Of the 114 applications received by 11th October, local entities submitted the largest number of activities (72), followed by educational centres (13 events), non-profit organisations and NGOs in the Basque Country (10) and other types of entities (19 actions). All of the awareness-raising actions compete for recognition of their impact through 8 different categories, including the main award "Best initiative in the Basque Country", one for each Historical Territory, with prize money of €5,000. The prizes will be awarded on 29th November 2024.
All activities that form part of the Basque Climate and Energy Week, ASTEKLIMA 2024, can be consulted via the www.asteklima.eus website.
