pt.euronews.com
European Spa Towns Join Climate Protection Program
Eleven European historical spa towns, UNESCO World Heritage sites vital to cultural tourism, are joining the National Geographic Society's Preserving Legacies program to protect their natural springs and cultural heritage from climate change impacts like flooding and drought, leveraging the program's resources to build climate resilience and share best practices across Europe.
- How are climate change impacts threatening the economic and cultural heritage of Europe's historical spa towns?
- Eleven European historical spa towns, including Bath (UK), Baden Baden (Germany), and Vichy (France), are UNESCO World Heritage sites threatened by climate change impacts like flooding and drought. These towns, crucial for cultural tourism (40% of global tourism, 9.1% of global GDP in 2023), are joining the National Geographic Society's Preserving Legacies program to build climate resilience.
- What specific actions are being taken to protect these spa towns from the effects of rising temperatures, floods, and droughts?
- Rising temperatures, floods, and droughts are impacting the natural springs that created these spa towns. Specific examples include Baden bei Wien (Austria, 2024), Spa (Belgium, 2021), and Bath's Cleveland Pools, flooded annually for three years despite being designed for a 100-year flood. This jeopardizes valuable heritage and tourism.
- What broader implications does this initiative have for other European destinations facing similar climate-related challenges to cultural heritage sites?
- The Preserving Legacies program will provide training, tools, and a network to help these spa towns adapt to climate change. Four towns will share their knowledge, creating a model for other European destinations facing similar challenges. The long-term goal is to integrate climate resilience into property management plans by 2027.
Cognitive Concepts
Framing Bias
The article frames the issue as a challenge requiring proactive solutions, highlighting the collaborative efforts of European spa towns and the National Geographic Society. This positive framing emphasizes the potential for successful adaptation and resilience, which might downplay the severity of the threats or the potential for irreversible damage. The headline itself, while descriptive, also contributes to a positive framing by focusing on the protective action rather than the threats themselves.
Bias by Omission
The article focuses on the impacts of climate change on European spa towns and their efforts to mitigate these effects. While it mentions the economic importance of cultural tourism, it doesn't delve into the potential social impacts of losing these historical sites, such as the loss of cultural identity or community cohesion. Further, the article doesn't explore potential alternative revenue streams for these towns if their thermal springs are compromised. These omissions, while possibly due to space constraints, could limit a fully informed understanding of the issue.
Sustainable Development Goals
The article highlights the vulnerability of European spa towns to climate change impacts like floods and droughts, threatening their natural springs and tourism-based economies. The initiative to join the Preserving Legacies program demonstrates proactive steps towards climate resilience, including risk assessment, adaptation strategies, and knowledge sharing. This directly contributes to climate action by mitigating the negative impacts of climate change on cultural heritage and local economies. The program focuses on empowering local communities to develop climate action solutions, which is a key aspect of achieving climate resilience.