Regions and municipalities in action: tackling uncertainty through prevention, preparedness, and protection in European cross-border territories

The session was attended by representatives from territories that are geographically distant from one another, with different types of challenges and realities in their daily lives. All of them presented experiences and examples of initiatives developed in their territories, and it is important to note that all of them, regardless of their differences, agreed on the main messages to be conveyed, which were:
¬ Due to their unique characteristics, cross-border territories have to face specific challenges: different legal frameworks, languages, infrastructure, communication systems, and expectations, all of this make collaboration more difficult on the one hand, but also much more enriching and useful on the other.
- Subsidiarity and partnership are essential in this context. As it is the support from European institutions. And working within the framework of regional and municipal networks. One example of good collaboration is that carried out within the framework of the AEBR (Association of European Border Regions).
- Natural disasters do not stop at borders, so measures to prevent, combat and minimise them should also have no borders or geographical limitations. In this regard, it is essential to strengthen the sense of community in cross-border territories, as they share risks and solutions, in a spirit of safety, prevention and solidarity.
- The obligation of the local and regional authorities is to offer certainties to the citizens, ensuring that they are prepared, aware of the risks and know how to avoid them, and that when they do happen they already know how to respond. In this sense, the UNDRR has develop games to increase the awareness of children and young adults about the civil protection issues.
- Because of the climate change, risks coming from the natural disasters are more and more frequent and they are becoming increasingly harmful, more difficult to handle. They have greater impact on citizens' lives, greater economic and social impact, requiring ever more human, technical, infrastructural and economic resources.