The European project Germ of Life presents its second webinar, “Climate-Compatible Procurement, Co-design Approaches & Foundations of Vulnerability Assessment in Germ of Life”, now available to watch. This session focuses on how public administrations can integrate climate criteria into procurement processes and how new tools can help identify risks and plan more sustainable solutions, particularly in Mediterranean regions.
The webinar provides a practical overview of how, within the project, an innovative platform is being developed to support public authorities in designing and implementing nature-based solutions — such as ecosystem restoration or sustainable water management. It also explores the co-design approach, a collaborative process in which experts, institutions and local stakeholders work together to identify needs and develop solutions tailored to each territory. In addition, the first elements of the vulnerability assessment are introduced, a key tool to analyse which areas or sectors are most exposed to climate change impacts and how to respond to them.
The session features contributions from Panagiota Saranti (University of Patras and Project Manager of Germ of Life), who opens the webinar; Vincenzo Di Maria (Ubitel, Spain), who presents the participatory co-creation approach; and Matteo Colombo (also from Ubitel), who explains how public procurement can become a lever to drive innovative and sustainable solutions. The keynote speaker, Dr Francesco Molinari (independent policy researcher and advisor), offers expert insight into the role of public procurement in promoting nature-based solutions.
The webinar also includes a dedicated session on risk assessment, featuring Michalis Samouris (University of Patras), who explains how indicators are calculated to measure drought vulnerability, and Miltiadis Anastasiadis (Dotsoft, Greece), whose recent passing we deeply regret and whose technical contribution and personal commitment have been highly significant for the development of Germ of Life.
The project coordinator, Athanassios A. Argiriou (University of Patras), paid tribute with the following words: “Miltos will always be remembered with great respect and affection for his dynamism, stamina, hard work, and loyal friendship. His presence and contribution to our consortium will be truly missed.”
Through these contributions, the webinar demonstrates how collaboration between science, technology and public administration can be translated into practical solutions to address climate change. It represents a further step in the development of tools within Germ of Life to help regions better adapt to an increasingly challenging climate context.
