23.10.2020. Last Wednesday, october 21st, 2020, the last webinar of the Iberian Center for Research and Fight Against Forest Fires (CILIFO) was held within the framework of #EUGreenWeek and the only ‘side event’ of the project at #EURegionsWeek . The event, which dealt with European Union funding for innovative projects to combat forest fires and the protection of biodiversity, was organized by the Finnova Foundation, in collaboration with the University of Córdoba (CILIFO beneficiary entities) and the Provincial Council of Córdoba, collaborating entity.
During the event several topics were discussed: in the first block, some project beneficiaries talked about prevention, extinction of forest fires and protection of biodiversity; and the second block revolved around entrepreneurship, financing and community training. In the next block, a conference was held with the press, in which various media specializing in the environment, sustainability and climate change explained how they collaborate to protect, restore and promote sustainability and how they collaborate to fight against climate change. The day ended with the last block, which focused on the transfer of good practices, some of the companies annexed to the Firefighting Open Innovation Lab – CILIFO accelerator presented themselves.
According to the data collected, it is estimated a total of 87 people were able to view the CILIFO webinar in the framework of #EUGreenWeek and #EURegionsWeek (67 people registered to access Zoom and 20 people watched the event live on YouTube) . On this occasion, 27 speakers participated: 3.7% from Mexico; 29.6% from Portugal; and 66.7% from Spain.
You can watch the webinar again at the following link: https://youtu.be/0qC_KJnju5E
Below, you can read some of the statements of the speakers who participated in the third CILIFO webinar in the framework of #EUGreenWeek and #EURegionsWeek:
Maria de Lurdes Carvalho , Director of Regional Development Services at the Algarve Regional Development and Coordination Commission (CCDR), spoke about the Algarve fire research group.
“The mission of CCDR Algarve, in its geographic area, is to implement policies for the environment, urban and spatial planning, regional development and incentives for social communication and to provide technical support to local authorities and their associations.
Inmaculada Vázquez , from the Andalusian Environment and Water Agency (AMAYA) of the Junta de Andalucía, presented the CILIFO project.
“Among the results of the Project, we mainly highlight the creation of the Iberian Center for Research and Fight against Forest Fires (CILIFO), the design of a training plan, through which skills are acquired and the operations that make up will be accredited. those extinguishing devices both in the area of Spain and Portugal; the design of a joint awareness plan on forest fires; and the launch of a joint investigation in the fight against forest fires ”.
Download the presentation here
Víctor Manuel Montoro Caba , deputy for European Programs and Electronic Administration of the Diputación de Córdoba, said that one of their objectives is for Córdoba to become the first province with 100% sustainable electric mobility.
“We are in a position to be the first province in Spain in which we can have an infrastructure network of electric vehicle recharging points in which at least each of the municipalities that make up the province of Córdoba has at least a charging point of municipal public ownership. “
Francisco Rodríguez y Silva, head of the Forest Fire Defense Laboratory ETS of Agronomic and Forest Engineering at the University of Córdoba, explained some of the lines of research that they are dealing with.
“One of the most recent achievements has been to know the possibility of graduating the extinction difficulty index, that is, a tool designed to be able to make an evaluation before and during the time of the emergency. In context with the CILIFO Project, we are working to make a version along the same lines, to know in the provinces that are the object of the project how we can have a dynamic knowledge of the danger in terms of energy behavior, which means the difficulty to be able to work extinction ”.
Nuno Guiomar, researcher at the University of Évora at the Mediterranean Institute of Agriculture, Environment and Development spoke about the evolution of the work carried out by the University of Évora for CILIFO and the tools such as Copernicus to fight fires from the scientific-academic sphere.
“The evaluation of the severity of the fire is a fundamental instrument in the paradigm shift: initially we only considered the determination of the classical spectral indicators (dNBR and RdNBR), at this moment we add more of them (BAI2 and RBR). Regarding the RBR, we have introduced an innovation in compensation proposed by Sean Parks. We are considering including temporal variations in the combined Ludar / Radar data… ”.
Pedro Arala Chaves, florestal technician in the Algarve Intermunicipal Community (AMAL), made his presentation on the creation of forest brigades and forest technical cabinets to combat forest fires.
“The Intermunicipal Forestry Technical Cabinet (GTFI) and the Sapadores Florestais Brigade (bSF) have the purpose of increasing the resilience of the territory by promoting a new intervention logic in the forest territory, through the creation of forest brigades and technical forest offices between municipalities ”.
Margarida Jesus, technician of the Cabinet of Candidacies for Community Functions of the Municipal Chamber of Tavira, explained the management of aerial means for fire prevention in the Cachopo area and how it helps prevent forest fires.
“The Tavira Air Media Center will provide support in the event of a disaster, not only in this area, but also throughout the Algarve, Alentejo and Andalusia, also serving as a strategic base for the development of specific awareness and training campaigns for the Civil Protection agents and for the general population ”.
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Victor Rosa, councilor of the Municipal Chamber of Castro Marim, explained that they have a project for a school to fight and fight forest fires on the Guadiana border.
“The municipality intends to participate in a joint strategy for the prevention and fight against forest fires, one of the great challenges of the Iberian Peninsula.”
José Chaparro, councilor of the Municipal Chamber of Monchique, spoke about the projects they had in the field of forest fire prevention in the municipality.
“Monchique has several competences at the level of civil protection and the defense of the forest against forest fires, there is a small municipal heliport in the municipality with the aim of hosting aerial means of combat and first intervention of forest fires”
Víctor Salgado, technician of the CILIFO Project at Fundación ONCE, gave a presentation on attention to diversity in the prevention and extinction of forest fires.
“In the development and innovation department we are improving a progressive web application, we will create accessible fire alerts in Portuguese and Spanish with shortcuts to ICT applications of accessible contact with 112 and as well as reporting other low-impact hazards such as rockfall , tree falls, flooded paths, etc. ”.
Juan Viesca , director of European Funds at the Finnova Foundation, presented some of the European calls open in the forestry field.
“Within the H2020 program, specifically within the Green Deal, the fight and prevention against forest fires is mentioned, this type of calls finances 100% non-profit organizations such as public administrations, which can allow collaboration with other countries such as the United States , Canada, and many others. “
Beatriz Camacho Ávila, Director of Ecosystems of the Southern Europe Regional Innovation Plan – EIT Climate-KIC.
“EIT Climate-KIC is a European community of knowledge and innovation that works to achieve a prosperous, inclusive and resilient community to climate change, based on a circular economy of zero emissions.”
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Beatriz Toro , head of the Institutional Relations Department, presented the EuroAAA Bulletin of the Junta de Andalucía.
“The Euroregion newsletter is bilingual, digital and designed to report on news of cross-border cooperation, European initiatives, territorial cooperation in the Euroregion, place the AAA Euroregion cooperation agent in the CTE, cross-border cooperation projects are managed with partners From both sides”.
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Antonio Villarreal , journalist for El Confidencial.
“I want to invite the CILIFO consortium and its collaborators to send me the progress that is being developed in the project to try to inform the community in a much more direct, easy and clear way about current or historical cases of incidents with fire.”
Gustavo Gómez , CEO of Acento Comunicación.
“We have begun to hold a congress of shepherds that has had a lot of impact and that we have begun to organize together with another foundation, the Mil Caminos Foundation, and its objective is that the rural world serves as a job destination for many young people.”
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Ismael Muñoz , director of OSBO Digital.
“The objectives we have are; connect the various actors involved in the fight against fires, share knowledge, experience and good practices; and disseminate to society the problem of forest fires, the existence of qualified professionals who avoid and fight them and generate a change of consciousness that helps prevent fires ”.
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Pedro Pablo García , attached to the management of EFFE Verde
“EFE Verde is a global platform for news and environmental journalism of the EFE Agency, the project was presented in November 2019 and officially started on March 21, 2010 with the launch of the website www.efeverde.es . It is an informative reference but also a meeting point for companies, NGOs, institutions and all those entities and people interested in Spain in everything related to green information. “
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Lola Bordás , Marketing Director at the Finnova Foundation, presented the 2nd edition – Firefighting StartUp Europe Awards (SEUA-CILIFO) 2020.
StartUp Europe Awards (SEUA) are a highly useful open innovation tool to promote the exchange of experiences, add value to the business ecosystem and help start-ups to grow and position themselves in the market. The Finnova Foundation – beneficiary entity of the CILIFO Project – supported by the Committee of the Regions and the European Commission, specifically by the Directorate General for Communication and New Technologies (DG CONNECT), has already held and successfully launched several editions of these awards; and is organizing the 2nd Edition Firefighting StartUp Europe Awards (SEUA-CILIFO). “StartUp Europe Awards, since 2016 is an initiative promoted by the European Commission and implemented by Finnova, supporting entrepreneurship throughout Europe. The prize is an acceleration ticket for the winning project.
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Alexander Pereda Rodríguez , founder of La GIStería, exposed the Potential of GIS in the fight against fires.
“The real-time fire map was created in 2017 due to the increase in fires, and I was based on data provided by NASA from its VIIRS sensor, which captures high temperatures on the ground, but does not discriminate if those temperatures are forest fires or other reasons. This map meant a before and after since the burning of the Atlantic Corniche and after this disaster many maps similar to the one we had designed in La GIStería appeared ”.
Pedro Ruíz , Director of Innovation at Integrasys SA.
“We developed an application for tracking (positioning) and communication when facing fire, combining various technologies, such as the new European positioning system for the Galileo Satellite. We also mix new communication technologies to ensure that we always have communication at all times and in adverse situations. Thanks to these characteristics the firefighters will be able to face the fire as well informed and positioned as possible, without a doubt a great approach ”.
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Leonardo Rico Fernández , CEO of Solid Rain.
“Solid rain is a technology that retains water up to 400 times its weight in water, and we place it at the root, thanks to this the plant will stay hydrated for weeks without the need for water or rain, after that period it returns to its original state of granulate and rehydrates with the next irrigation or rain, reducing the frequency of irrigations. As for the fight against fire, what we do is throw the already hydrated granules at a safe distance towards the fire, creating a stream of solid water, leaving the fire to extinguish itself, and after these fires it is reforested with solid water again and around 70% and 80% of the reforested areas can be saved ”.
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Irene Carrasco Abad , Sustainable Innovation strategist and general director of Diagnosis Sistémica.
“Faced with the environmental problems of forest fires in Andalusia and the Algarve, we propose a holistic proposal.” This proposal is based on acting with a medium and long-term approach, focusing on prevention, early detection and regeneration, evaluating and optimizing applications on the ground where the implementation of know-how of specific parameters is key to achieving results. reliable.
Information of interest:
#EURegionsWeek:
The European Week of Regions and Cities is the largest annual Brussels-based event dedicated to cohesion policy. The event has grown into a unique communication and networking platform, bringing together regions and cities from across Europe, including their political representatives, officials, experts and academics. Over the past 17 years, you have done a lot to promote policy learning and the exchange of good practices.
https://europa.eu/regions-and-cities
#EUGreenWeek:
EU Green Week 2020 will be held on October 19-22, 2020 and will address
on nature and biodiversity. Following the adoption of a new EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030 in May, Green Week will highlight the contribution that biodiversity can make to society and the economy, and the role it can play in supporting and stimulating recovery in the world after the pandemic, creating jobs and sustainable development. The European Green Week is an event organized by the Directorate General of the European Commission.
2nd EDITION OF THE CILIFO – FIREFIGHTING STARTUP EUROPE Accelerathon (SEUA – CILIFO) 2020
StartUp Europe Awards (SEUA) is an initiative promoted by the European Commission, supported by the Committee of the Regions and the European Parliament; and implemented by the Finnova Foundation in collaboration with StartUp Europe.
It is an open innovation tool to identify innovative start-ups with potential, capable of solving current challenges in the area of forest fire management. The objective is to locate those that offer products, services or methodologies that address the three phases in fire fighting 1) Prevention 2) Action 3) Regeneration. They must contribute to an improvement in the efficiency of resources in action against fires; Technological tools; social awareness; fire behavior; spatial and temporal patterns of fire; fire meteorology and fire hazard classification; fire fighting techniques; ground, air and space detection; restoration; etc.
Recipients: entrepreneurs and start-ups with ideas / projects related to fighting forest fires in the 3 areas of action framed in the CILIFO project: Prevention, Action and Regeneration. More information regarding these awards will be communicated shortly.
https://startupeuropeawards.eu/
Accelerathon:
Accelerathon is an acceleration program for innovative projects promoted by the Finnova Foundation. This methodology of the Finnova Foundation aims to find solutions and funding, through an online system of applied open innovation that brings together the innovative ecosystem in the environmental sector, in which the European Commission works within the framework of the LIFE program.
THE CILIFO PROJECT
The project ” Iberian Center for Research and Fight Against Forest Fires ” (CILIFO) focuses on the fight against forest fires and their consequences for the adaptation and mitigation of climate change; within a framework of cross-border cooperation for the prevention of risks and the improvement of the management of the natural resources of Spain and Portugal in the Alentejo – Algarve – Andalusia Euroregion area. CILIFO is part of the Thematic Objective 5 of the POCTEP Program: Promote adaptation to climate change in all sectors; and responds to the investment priority, with respect to the POCTEP Program, 5B: Promotion of investment to address specific risks and the guarantee of adaptation to disasters and development of disaster management systems.
With a duration of three years (2019 to 2021), it seeks, through the expected results of its activities, to establish itself as a permanent Center for the promotion and development of training, awareness, development and innovation, and cooperation interregional in the fight against forest fires. CILIFO is being developed thanks to the collaboration of a public-private partnership, led by the Junta de Andalucía and made up of public research organizations, non-profit public interest entities, and public administrations; and all with the common goal of fighting forest fires.
FINNOVA FOUNDATION
FINNOVA is a European non-profit foundation, with headquarters in Belgium-Brussels, and offices and antennas in Spain (Seville, Valencia, Tenerife, Madrid and Vitoria), whose main purpose is to search for international financing related to the transfer of new technology, modernization, training, innovation for regional or local public administrations. Its main objective is to promote international and interregional cooperation through networks and events, its main fields of work being the environment, energy, climate change, innovation and improvement of the quality of life.
CONTACT:
Beatriz Martínez Muñoz
European projects and communication officer at the Finnova Foundation
Beatriz.martinez@finnova.eu