Back in November 2023, ARSINOE launched its very first Open Tenders for Innovations. Through this open call, we were aiming at hearing from innovative solutions that can help European regions enhance their resilience to extreme heat, water scarcity, drought, water pollution, and floods in the context of two of our case studies : Canary Islands, Spain and Main River Basin, Germany.
Selected innovators could receive up to EUR 50,000 for demonstration activities in our regions. This was a chance for innovators to showcase their innovation, make it fit the needs of real end-users, and potentially meet prospective clients.
In total 27 innovators applied. After a careful evaluation of the applications, 3 innovators were selected, and we are thrilled to introduce them today!
Fundación para la Investigación del Clima (FIClima) – Canary Islands, Spain
The Canary Islands suffer from climate-hazards such as heavy precipitation, pluvial floods, droughts and heatwaves. FIClima, the selected innovator, will deploy its software tool SICMA Canarias to provide the Canary Islands case with a friendly and ready-to-use platform that will integrate a wide selection of climate data layers and other derived indicators and variables, co-designed based on stakeholders’ requirements. This platform will include a large variety of climate information, mainly based on future climate projections at local resolution (down to 100x100m) of temperature and precipitation, obtained thanks to the application of a statistical downscaling to 10 CMIP6 climate models. Some derived variables will also be calculated to enrich the information provided, mainly tailored to the case study needs, like evapotranspiration.
Furthermore, other layers that facilitate the visualization of the information can be uploaded and it will have a total availability for future extensions of the functionalities and variables provided. Local workshops will also take place to co-define specific variables of use for local stakeholders and help in the design of adaptation measures and validation of the economic and social impact. They will also serve to disseminate results and train stakeholders in the proper use of the tool.
SICMA Canarias will therefore comply and resolve the two main challenges addressed by the Canarian case.
Learn more about FIClima.
ANBI-Emilia Romagna – Main River Basin, Germany
The Main River Basin suffers from droughts which lead to conflicts for water management. Developed by ANBI-Emilia Romagna, IrriBigData is a tool for collecting data from irrigation systems and supports analysis and forecasting algorithms. It is a data provider for tools supporting operational and for water scarcity management decisions. It has a crucial role for strategic water for future use planning. In such a way IrriBigData has a considerable impact on the water usage governance as it supports decisions for policy implementation in the water sector and, therefore, it can be viewed as an effective social and governance innovation. Data collected and stored in IrriBigData allow to build the basis for managing conflicts for water uses and among territories also at the river district level.
IrriBigData can be suitable to face several challenges in the Main River Basin case study as it attends to the primary function of data collection at regional or river district area which constitutes the indispensable base knowledge to engage all these challenges. IrriBigData may contribute to social or behavioural changes and governance as it aims to obtain more efficiency in agricultural water use and support regulation in the irrigation sector. Potential impacts on social behaviour and capacity building enforcement are expected. In addition, it will have a direct impact on water conservation and water use efficiency as it provides knowledge to decision makers and awareness of the water use to farmers and water managers. It supports cross-sectoral approaches to resource management as suggested and promoted by the EU WFD2000/60/CE. IrriBigData provides knowledge concerning current water uses, effective needs and potential efficiency gain rooms in the irrigation system. Therefore, it can significantly improve water management of the whole system.
Learn more about ANBI-Emilia Romagna.
a tip: tap e.V. – Main River Basin, Germany
The Main River Basin suffers from climate change leading to droughts and heatwaves, which can be dangerous for citizens. One way to counter this is to improve public access to drinking water to ensure that everyone has enough water to hydrate. Another important part of the innovation is raising awareness of the fact that our good drinking water is a valuable asset that needs to be protected, firstly by saving water and secondly by preventing pollutants from entering the groundwater. Especially in the dry regions of Franconia, creating more awareness for the value of water resources and how they can be protected is essential.
Thus, a tip : tap aims to create more places along the Main Cycle Path where water bottles can be refilled with free, fresh tap water. Existing drinking fountains and refill stations will be made more visible and new ones initiated. The aim is to respond to the increasing number of hot days, create appreciation for the precious resource of drinking water and contribute to sustainable tourism. The vision is to offer cyclists the opportunity to refresh themselves with tap water at intervals of no more than 10 kilometres in the future, while also promoting the value of water and its protection along the cycle path. Organisations and people from the region can support the project e.g. by creating new Refill-Stations or by supporting the communication about the protection and use of tap water.
The innovation also revolves around education and capacity building: private individuals of all age groups will be educated on the ecological benefits of tap water, its production and on how to save water and protect its quality. Stakeholders will learn how to implement access to drinking water in public and new ways to positively communicate about drinking water and sustainability. Social or behavioural change and governance structures’ evolution will also be addressed, indeed people as well as organisations will be encouraged to re-think their habits of using bottled water. Drinking tap water will be normalised and facilitated. a tip : tap will bring social and governance innovation to the Main River case study.
Learn more about a tip : tap.
From conception to implementation, their solutions have been guided by a commitment to real end-user needs and prospective clients, paving the way for a more sustainable and resilient future, aligned with ARSINOE’s purpose of fostering climate-resilient regions through systemic solutions and innovations. We are now very much looking forward to implementing these innovative solutions within our case studies ! Stay tuned on ARSINOE’s channels to learn more about our latest developments…