The International Network of Michelin Cities created a Lab “Adaptation to climate change” to tackle the challenges of climate change. This Lab aims at enabling member cities to collaborate in order to develop innovative policies capable of helping them to protect themselves against the harmful impacts of climate change.
Alongside the creation of the Lab, Michelin presented its new adaptation committee during the 4th Conference of the INMC in Anderson, SC, in 2024, therefore joining the Network’s community of interest based on this subject. Since then, the Lab has pursued its work with videoconferences, managed by the Office of sustainable development and energy of the City of Clermont-Ferrand, the Université Clermont Auvergne (UCA) and Michelin, gathering experts from a dozen of cities who could think together of the implementation of a common project. The call for project Water4All rapidly became a not-to-be-missed opportunity.
Water4All: a collaborative project in favor of a circular economy
Coordinated by Dr. Arnaud Diemer from the UCA, the Water4All project aims at uniting cities around reusing water in the framework of circular economy. Co-funded by the European Union, this research project brings together actors from various sectors (local governments, private sector, research) to imagine concrete solutions against climate change.
This project is an opportunity of collaboration between cities of the Network. It will allow to shed the light on their expertise as regards circular economy and benefit from fundings to support environmental transition. INMC cities wishing to get involved in the Water4All consortium will benefit from true synergies between the public and private sectors and the academic world, which is why a coordinated answer to such a call for project is primordial.
An international and multi-sector consortium
The suggested consortium includes:
- UCA/CERDI, Clermont-Ferrand, France (coordinator)
- University of Torino, Italy
- University of Hamburg, Germany
- International Network of Michelin Cities (INMC)
- HEC Montreal
- Michelin
Water4All – Chronology of the project delivery
Organized in two periods, the answer to the call for project Water4All included a first stage with the delivery of a pre-proposal (November 2024), which is to say a concise presentation of the project summarizing its goals, the methods used, the entities involved, as well as the human resources provided. A selection of the pre-proposals will occur by the end of February 2025 and will lead to the delivery of a detailed project proposal, for those taken on. The final results will be delivered in October 2025 for the projects to begin at the end of 2025 or beginning of 2026.
Perspectives beyond Water4All: a LIFE project
The INMC Lab Adaptation to climate change stands as a significant progress in international cooperation for environmental transition. By gathering actors who stem from various horizons, this project sets the INMC as a key actor of international and multi-sector collaboration as regards climate.
After Water4All, the results obtained from the research will be turned into a practical framework for a LIFE project, funded by the European Commission, and aiming at strengthening the climatic resilience of the EU by 2050. This project could allow cities to benefit from important subsidies for the implementation of both concrete and sustainable solutions.
