What is the meaning of Resilience?
Resilience refers to the ability of a city or community to cope with, adapt to, and recover from challenges and crises, such as natural disasters, extreme weather events, and the effects of climate change. A resilient city is designed to protect its residents, maintain its essential infrastructure, and promote sustainable practices that reduce the risk of future disasters. Resilience is not only about immediate response to crises, but also about long-term preparedness, prevention, and the ability to recover in a way that enhances the social, economic, and environmental stability of the city.
Resilience Festival
The Resilience Festival is an initiative of RiskAC, DUTH, and the Municipality of Xanthi, as part of the Care_X project, which is part of the European CLIMAAX Program, with the aim of raising public awareness and education, participation, innovation in the field of resilience, and promoting public dialogue.
The festival's contributors:
The CLIMAAX project
CLIMAAX (CLIMAte risk and vulnerability Assessment framework and toolboX) is a four-year Horizon Europe project that strengthens the capacity of European regions and communities to adapt to climate change and manage disaster risks. It started in January 2023 and will be completed in December 2026, providing financial, analytical, and practical support to improve regional climate risk management plans. The project is developing a harmonized climate risk assessment (CRA) framework and a tool that combines local, European, and global data, while offering financial support to at least 50 regions and technical support to a total of 69 regions and communities to carry out their own assessments. In this way, CLIMAAX contributes to the integration of climate risk assessment practices and creates a common European knowledge base for climate change adaptation. The project is funded by the EU Research and Innovation Program – Horizon Europe under the Climate Change Adaptation Mission, grant number 101093864.
Municipality of Xanthi
The Municipality of Xanthi, in collaboration with the Democritus University of Thrace (DUTH), is implementing the CARE_X (Climaax Action and Risk Evaluation of Xanthi) project, which is part of the European CLIMAAX program.
The aim is to improve the Municipality of Xanthi's adaptability to the challenges of climate change through the development of modern tools for climate risk assessment and management.
RiskAC DUTH
The Risk and Resilience Assessment Centre (RiskAC), part of the Democritus University of Thrace is a research infrastructure that aims to strengthen the decision-making process during the phase of prevention and suppression of natural and technological disasters.
RiskAC was established through the Operational Program "Competitiveness, Entrepreneurship, Innovation" – EPAnEK 2014-2020 and is a joint effort of approximately 80 experienced and new researchers from departments of the Democritus University of Thrace, the Aristotle University, and the Institute of Technical Seismology and Anti-Seismic Construction.
The Festival addresses:
The general public
All residents of Xanthi and the wider region who are interested in the resilience of cities against climate change and protection from natural disasters are welcome to attend our events.
Students, teachers and parents
The Festival will give students the opportunity to participate in specially designed educational activities and experiential workshops. It will also give teachers and parents the opportunity to learn how to incorporate knowledge about climate change into education and family life.
Institutions and bussinesses
The Festival also addresses institutions and businesses, offering innovative solutions, practical tools, and new approaches to strengthening resilience to natural disasters and climate change. Through workshops and presentations, participants can immediately apply new strategies to their organizations and communities.
You will find us at:
Our Festival will be housed in the Old Town Hall of Xanthi at 8 Mavromichali Street