© Global Center on Adaptation
We proudly announce that the Barrio 20 Urban Lab in Buenos Aires, presented by IIED-AL, has been recognized again, this time, with the prestigious Local Adaptation Champions Award granted by the Global Center on Adaptation during COP29.
The Urban Lab was recognized among 870 projects submitted to the general competition and in the Urban Adaptation Solutions category after a rigorous selection process that included 21 projects from different parts of the world. In other categories, outstanding initiatives from Burkina Faso, Indonesia and Kyrgyzstan were awarded, underlining the award's global reach.
The jury was comprised of distinguished international leaders, including Ban Ki-moon, Chair of the Global Center on Adaptation and eighth UN Secretary-General; Samia Suluhu Hassan, President of Tanzania; Anne Beathe Tvinnereim, Minister for International Development of Norway; Anneliese Dodds, Minister for Development of the United Kingdom; and Patrick Verkooijen, Executive Director of the Global Center on Adaptation.
Barrio 20 is an informal settlement in Buenos Aires that has been going through an urban upgrading process since 2016. Since 2021, due to the Urban Lab initiative, climate action has been incorporated into its transformation process.
Several initiatives have been implemented in the area through a participatory process that includes the input of women, youth, academia, government actors and civil society organizations, reducing CO2 emissions. These include increasing vegetation cover in the intervened spaces, generating two complementary effects: 1) the added vegetation (trees, climbing plants, shrubs and herbaceous plants) directly captures CO2; 2) the new shaded spaces and the replacement of impermeable surfaces produce a cooling effect, providing bioclimatic comfort in outdoor spaces and improving the interior temperature of the adjoining homes (reducing the demand for thermal conditioning in summer), with benefits for health and energy savings. These actions have created a significant improvement in the quality of life for the residents.
The award was received on behalf of the project by Noelia Maruani, a resident of Barrio 20 and ambassador of the initiative at COP29.
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We are pleased to announce that the Urban Lab in Buenos Aires has been awarded third prize in the prestigious Urban Life (“Vida Urbana”) Urban Planning Competition. This competition, organized by the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID) in collaboration with the Ibero-American General Secretariat (SEGIB), aimed to highlight innovative ideas and proposals that promote sustainable urban transformations, improving the quality of life, particularly for the most vulnerable populations.
We are pleased to announce that the Urban Lab in Buenos Aires has been awarded third prize in the prestigious Urban Life (“Vida Urbana”) Urban Planning Competition. This competition, organized by the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID) in collaboration with the Ibero-American General Secretariat (SEGIB), aimed to highlight innovative ideas and proposals that promote sustainable urban transformations, improving the quality of life, particularly for the most vulnerable populations.