How are Italian and Spanish cities tackling climate change? A local comparative study

The study finds that Italian cities are generally more proactive in climate mitigation than Spanish cities, with earlier plan implementation and more ambitious emission targets. In both countries, mitigation efforts significantly outweigh adaptation efforts, despite high vulnerability levels. The Covenant of Mayors (CoM) is identified as a more influential driver for local action than national policies or networks.

• Italian cities demonstrate a higher level of proactivity in climate mitigation compared to Spanish cities, characterized by an earlier start to local efforts (1997 in Italy versus 2005 in Spain) and a higher proportion of cities setting CO2e emission reduction targets above 20% (22% in Italy versus 15% in Spain).
• Climate change mitigation is significantly more advanced than adaptation in both countries. While approximately 75% of Italian and 77% of Spanish cities have approved or committed to mitigation plans, only 11 Italian and 7 Spanish cities have developed adaptation strategies.
• International networking initiatives, specifically the Covenant of Mayors (CoM), have been more instrumental in driving the development of local mitigation plans than national policies or national networks like the RECC in Spain.

APA

Olazabal, M., Hurtado, S. D. G., Olazabal, E., Pietrapertosa, F., Salvia, M., Geneletti, D., D’Alonzo, V., Feliú, E., Di Leo, S., & Reckien, D. (2014). How are Italian and Spanish cities tackling climate change? A local comparative study. Basque Centre for Climate Change. https://www.bc3research.org/h6T8Uy8Nm4gFs0O/20140326122109738542705.pdf

Chicago

Olazabal, Marta, Sonia De Gregorio Hurtado, Eduardo Olazabal, Filomena Pietrapertosa, Monica Salvia, Davide Geneletti, Valentina D’Alonzo, et al. How are Italian and Spanish cities tackling climate change? A local comparative study. Basque Centre for Climate Change, 2014. https://www.bc3research.org/h6T8Uy8Nm4gFs0O/20140326122109738542705.pdf.

Wikipedia

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BibTeX

@techreport{olazabal2014how, author = {Olazabal, Marta and Hurtado, Sonia De Gregorio and Olazabal, Eduardo and Pietrapertosa, Filomena and Salvia, Monica and Geneletti, Davide and D’Alonzo, Valentina and Feliú, Efrén and Di Leo, Senatro and Reckien, Diana}, title = {{How are Italian and Spanish cities tackling climate change? A local comparative study}}, institution = {Basque Centre for Climate Change}, year = {2014}, month = mar, url = {https://www.bc3research.org/h6T8Uy8Nm4gFs0O/20140326122109738542705.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }