PHUSICOS Spring School 2022
Nature-Based Solutions in Mountain areas

2 – 11 April 2022

The European Commission defined the Nature-based solutions as living solutions inspired by, continuously supported by and using nature. They are designed to address various environmental challenges in a resource efficient and adaptable manner and to provide simultaneously economic, social and environmental benefits. NBS have been identified as critical for ecosystem regeneration and improvement of human well-being, socio-ecological resilience, multi-functional watershed management and ecosystem restoration. NBS have especially been applied to address societal challenges, such as climate change mitigation. NBS have been promoted by practitioners and through policy. The European Union is positioning itself as a leader in NBS implementation helping through research and action grant NBS implementation working with local communities.

PHUSICOS, meaning ‘According to nature’, in Greek φυσικός. PHUSICOS is an EU funded action and innovation project. It will demonstrate how nature-inspired solutions reduce the risk of extreme weather events in rural mountain landscapes. The focus is on demonstrating the effectiveness of nature-based solutions (NBSs) and their ability to reduce the impacts from small, frequent events (extensive risks) in rural mountain landscapes. There is a lack of adequate proof of concept for NBSs to address hydro-meteorological events in rural and mountainous regions. PHUSICOS will fill the knowledge gap specifically related to NBSs for hydro-meteorological hazards (flooding, erosion, landslides and drought) by implementing NBSs at several European case study sites. These sites comprise three large-scale demonstrator sites Italy, France/Spain/Andorra and Norway; and two small-scale complementary concept cases in Austria and Germany.

About the Summer School

The PHUSICOS project is organizing a 10 days long, hand-on summer school focused on Nature Based Solutions in mountain area. The training program will consist of three days at our demonstrator case in the Pyrenean and 7 days at our concept case in the Bavarian Alps. The summer school will covering the following topics:

• Introduction to NBS
• Policy and decision-making mechanisms
• Collaborative Landscape planing
• NBS assessment
• River restoration as NBS
• Riparian regeneration
• River and Society
• Hand-on learning via case site visit
• NBS Future perspectives

Participants will be introduced through long field trips to different case studies in France and Germany. The training program will consist of field visits, but also lectures, inspirational discussions with local stakeholders, and independent project work on a case site. The summer school will provide the opportunity of enhancing the interactions and exchanges between science, policy, business and society to mainstream the available knowledge into policy and practice. 

Preliminary program

Venue

The School will start in Munich (Germany) the 02.04.2022 in the afternoon and end in Lourdes (France) the 11.04.2024 around midday. Both cities have an airport. Travel between Lourdes and Freising will be organized by TUM.

Applications

Student or a young professionals interested on NBS, including scientists, government regulators, various industry sectors, spatial planners, engineers, architects, technical experts, market actors, as well as graduate students. The deadline for application is 28.02.2022 but number of participants is limited – Apply as soon as possible. Applications are to send at aude.zingraff-hamed(at)tum.de. Remember to attach your curriculum vitae and a cover letter.

Admission & Attendance

Admissions will be communicated two weeks after the application deadline by e-mail only. The School will certify the attendance. Reading material will be distributed in advance. Applicants will be selected from multiple target groups in order to reinforce knowledge transfer and facilitate co-design between different expertise.

Fees and services

All participants are expected to make their own travel arrangements to join and leave the Summer school and cover some of their dinners. The School will provide accommodation, travel cost to the excursions, coffee breaks, lunches and some dinners for free. It is noted that the participants will pay the overnight stay taxes for the hotel. Please consider Covid-19 travel restriction and make you own arrangement for visa, vaccination, and test. 

Funding

The summer school received funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No. 776681 and DFU-UFA (https://www.dfh-ufa.org/fr/?noredirect=fr_FR).

Downloads 

Flyer

Further info

For any request, please contact:

Aude Zingraff-Hamed (Technical University of Munich): aude.zingraff-hamed(at)tum.de