Call from TEMA Foundation before local elections: We want natural disaster-resistant cities!

With the Ecopolitics Document for Local Governments 2024, developed before the March 31 local elections, TEMA Foundation calls on all mayor candidates participating in the elections to make cities resilient against the climate crisis and natural disasters and to protect natural assets.

TEMA Foundation said, "In the coming period, there is a need for a democratic local government approach that takes care of natural assets and ecological balance for a healthier life for all living things." and shared ‘the Ecopolitics Document 2024 for Local Governments’ with the public.

The document aims to guide local governments to develop nature and society-oriented policies and strategies. Suggestions are listed to protect natural assets such as soil, water, forests, pastures and agricultural areas, biodiversity and ecosystem integrity. In addition, the steps that all citizens, especially local administrators, can take regarding resilience to natural events, adaptation to climate change and combating the climate crisis, climate justice, reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, food, water, air and solid waste management, democratic participation and urban rights are summarised.

“Local governments should be prepared for ecological crises and disasters”

Reminding that local governments in Türkiye have to face challenging agendas such as epidemics, earthquakes and disasters caused by climate crisis since the 2019 local elections, Ms. Deniz Ataç, Chairperson of TEMA Foundation, said, “In addition to these disasters, the decrease in size of forest areas, loss of biodiversity, desertification, ongoing ecological crises such as decreasing water and food and polluted air clearly show that local governments need to develop new policies. Considering the impacts and risks we face due to ecological crises and disasters, it is obvious that it has become necessary for local governments to be prepared and to make well-designed, urgent and strategic interventions."

“An ecosystem-based management model should be developed”

Stating that “The problem of drought, floods and floodings caused by heavy rains, the destructiveness of earthquakes and landslides, the damage caused by strong winds and storms, the deterioration of general public health due to heat waves and increasing air pollution reveal the vulnerability of our cities to natural disasters.” Deniz Ataç said, “To have settlements resistant to natural disasters, it is vital to strengthen buildings and infrastructure systems against natural events such as earthquakes, storms, floods and landslides. Increasing the durability and safety of the base and infrastructure will minimise the damage that will occur during natural events and accelerate the return of life to normal after the disaster. However, solid structures alone are not sufficient for resilient settlements and societies. In addition to them, it is necessary to develop an ecosystem-based management model. In this context, local governments should develop strategies that will reduce disaster risks, take into account the geology, morphology, cover, ecological functions and topography of the land and do not harm natural assets."

“Local governments have a vital role in combating the climate crisis”

Drawing attention to the increasingly adverse effects of climate change, especially in geographies located in mid-latitudes such as Türkiye, Ataç said, “Factors such as the dense population of cities, unplanned construction, decrease in green areas and high energy need increase air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions. This situation also causes the decline of natural ecosystems. Local governments have a vital role in combating the climate crisis, and in this context, they need to adopt policies that consider people and nature as a whole. Local climate action plans should be developed and citizens' participation in these processes should be ensured."

Underlining that according to the 2019 report of the Lancet Commission on Pollution and Health, air pollution is in the first place among the environmental problems that cause premature deaths in Türkiye, Ataç said, “With the document we have prepared, we call on local governments to take effective measures to improve air quality and to play an accelerating and guiding role in the development of clean air action plans."

“Cities should be planned with the principles of sustainability, democracy, equality and social justice"

Emphasising that every decision made and every step taken by local governments affects the quality of life of citizens and natural assets, Ataç said, “In the document, we remind that the policy preferences of local governments are of vital importance and that the active participation of citizens, professional organisations, civil society organisations and academic institutions must be ensured in these processes. Cities should be planned equitably within the framework of the principles of sustainability, democracy, equality and social justice. Urban spaces, services and facilities should be designed for the use of all urban residents, not for privileged groups. Rights of urban dwellers should be ensured by providing opportunities to live in a healthy environment, freedom of transportation and movement, protecting historical and cultural heritage, ensuring that individuals can live freely with their own life choices, ensuring housing security, increasing cooperation and solidarity, ensuring that every segment of society feels safe through economic and social justice, and by establishing a life worthy of human dignity.”

Please click the following link in order to Access Ecopolitics Document for Local Governments 2024: https://bit.ly/Yerel-Yonetimler-Icin-Ekosiyaset-Belgesi-2024