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The first edition of the International Conference on “Geographic Perspectives on Climate Change Mitigation in Urban and Rural Environments” was held at the University of Salento, Italy as the main host. The conference took place physically and virtually from the 25th of June till the 27th of June 2024, including attendees from all corners of the world.

This conference aim was to disseminate knowledge and enhance the research community. IEREK invited all interested environmentalists, and university students from all over the world to discuss and elaborate on topics about climatic mitigation in urban and rural environments, specifically in a geographic context. The conference covered a wide array of topics that pertained to sustainable development. Some of the main topics that were discussed include:

1. Applications of Climatology in Urbanism
2. The Role of Geography in Climate Change Mitigation
3. Wind Energy Resource Assessment and Optimization
4. Meteorology and Disaster Prevention in Urban and Rural Environments
5. Urban Planning and Climate Change Mitigation
6. Rural Land Use and Climate Change Mitigation
7. Geography Mapping and Innovative Systems for Rural Fragmentation Protection
8. Food Crisis in Climate Change phenomenon
9. Heritage Conservation with Climate Change Hazards
10. Sustainable Transportation and Transit Systems
11. Climatic Impacts and Response Methods in Rural Environments
12. Environmental Impacts on Human Geography and Culture
13. Sustainable Governmental Policy and Leadership

Day 1:

Welcoming Session:

The Opening Ceremony started with registration and welcoming speeches from the Chancellor of the University of Salento, Prof. Fabio Pollice, and Dr. Hind Al-Shoubaki Institute Social Planning, Organizational Change and Urban Development the University of Applied Science FHNW, Switzerland, and IEREK’s founder, Dr. Mourad Amer.

Following the speeches, a brief presentation was given that introduced IEREK and its activities to the audience.

Following the session, and the welcoming notes lunch break started.

Plenary sessions:

A plenary session followed introducing the keynote speakers Egidio Dansero Full Professor of Political and Economic Geography at the University of Turin and Vice-Rector for Sustainability and Development Cooperation, and Massimo De Marchi Associate Professor of Geography at the Department of Civil, Environmental, and Architectural Engineering, University of Padua.

Following the keynote speeches, parallel sessions 1 and 2 started right away.

The First Session of the conference titled “Urban Climate Dynamics: Insights and Adaptations” was moderated by Valentina Albanese and Giovanna Zavettieri.

The Second Session of the conference titled “Ecological Insights and Ecosystems in Climate Change” was moderated by Patrizia Miggiano and Sara Nocco.

As the sessions went on, multiple authors presented their research in person and online, taking questions from the audience, and answering them as best they could.

After the discussions and Q&A, the first conference day ended with a Panel session where final remarks and feedback were discussed.

Day 2:

Welcoming Session:

The second day started with registrations and then the welcome speech by our keynote speaker Teresa Amodio, Full Professor of Political and Economic Geography at the University of Salerno and Vice-Rector for Third Mission – Social Impact, Antonella Ambrosino PhD student in “Risk and Sustainability in civil, architectural and environmental engineering systems at the University of Salerno, Lucrezia Lopez, Ph.D. in Geography (University of Santiago de Compostela, 2012) an Assistant Professor in the Department of Geography at the USC and Piero Lionello, Full professor of Atmospheric Physics and Oceanography, director of the Museum of the Environment at the University of Salento.

Following the keynote speech, parallel sessions 3 and 4 started right away.

The Third Session of the conference titled “Urban Planning, Architectural Design, and Heritage Management in Climate Mitigation” was moderated by Gustavo D'Aversa and Federica Epifani.

The Fourth Session of the conference titled “Innovative Approaches to Sustainable Urban Development, Climate Mitigation, and Policy Integration” was moderated by Cristina Baglivo and Piero Lionello.

As the sessions went on, multiple authors presented their research in person and online, taking questions from the audience, and answering them as best they could.

After a discussion and a Questions and Answers session, the second conference day ended with a Panel session where final remarks and feedback were discussed.

Day 3:

Welcoming Session:

On the final day of the GCUE 2024, the third day began with registrations and then a welcome speech by our keynote speaker Giuseppina Padeletti, Research Director at the Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche (CNR) Institute for the Study of Nanostructured Materials (ISMN-CNR) and Marco Grasso, Professor of Political Geography at the University of Milano-Bicocca.

Following the keynote speech, the last session took place.

The fifth Session of the conference titled “Climate Resilience: Innovations in Hazard Management” was moderated by Valentina Albanese and Federica Epifani.

Wrapping up, a final remarks session and a closing ceremony were held.