Minister of Environment and Urbanization Murat Kurum attended the "G20 Ministerial Meeting on Environment, Climate and Energy" held in Naples, Italy. Minister Kurum stated that in addition to increasing the resilience of cities, durable infrastructure applications are one of the important issues for adaptation to climate change at the local level. In this sense, he emphasized that it is essential to accelerate durable infrastructure investments and efficiently use resources.
Minister Kurum attended the "Climate and Energy Joint Ministerial Session" held on the second day of the "G20 Ministerial Meeting on Environment, Climate and Energy" held at the historical Palazzo Reale Palace in Naples, Italy.
Speaking at the session titled "Cities and Climate Action", Mr. Kurum stated that "Climate Resilient Cities" are cities that use natural resources effectively, ensure the balance between production and consumption, develop and implement participatory policies, and that integrated and harmonious policies and strategies are needed for this.
Pointing out that the efforts to be made within the scope of adaptation to climate change with good planning will increase the resilience of all cities, Mr. Kurum said, "in addition to increasing the resilience of cities, durable infrastructure applications are one of the critical issues for adaptation to climate change at the local level. He also indicated that in this sense, accelerating durable infrastructure investments, efficient use of resources, It is imperative to develop methods that will add value to the local area.
Mr. Kurum noted that the transformation of cities should be placed at the top of the priorities if it is to be successful in the fight against climate change.
He also highlighted that many adaptation measures could be adapted to local conditions, such as green roof applications, coastal dams, efficient irrigation systems, and early warning systems. Minister Kurum underlined that these issues should be included in the scope of the Regional and Local Climate Change Action Plan and implemented.
Minister Murat Kurum said:
"As Turkey, we know that determination in this matter is vital to be successful. We are taking steps to ensure the highest level of cooperation at the national and local levels. We are expanding smart city and zero waste practices with our regional and local action plans, which we started in the Black Sea Region. As the Ministry, We have accelerated our efforts to reduce energy consumption in our buildings. We carry out climate-sensitive urbanization, climate urbanism, and eco-city-centered urbanism projects. We have carried out all our construction activities in the 2.5 million residences we have built so far, and 300 thousand urban transformation residences are currently in progress. We do all our instruction activities with this precision.
We choose natural materials, install solar energy systems, and implement systems that produce their electricity in all our urban transformation projects, social housing, and public buildings. We protect our natural water resources by making rainwater collection systems mandatory in buildings. On the one hand, we increase our natural protected areas; on the other hand, we bring new green areas to our cities with our national gardens. Our main goal with all these projects is to reduce disaster risks, protect our nature and ensure the sustainable development of our cities while building climate-sensitive, energy-efficient cities. We believe that these studies will contribute significantly to the fight against climate change, not only in our country but also on a global scale."