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Greece’s island municipalities face the first impacts of the climate crisis but lack the means to respond, according to a study by the Hellenic Foundation for European and Foreign Policy (ELIAMEP).
The study says the state transfers responsibilities to municipalities to reduce climate vulnerability without providing matching funding, technical support or administrative capacity, while key decisions continue to be made centrally, excluding local communities.
The research was presented in Athens at an event on climate resilience and local government. Islands are more exposed to climate risks because of their small scale, geographic isolation, intense tourism pressure, uncontrolled construction, depletion of natural resources and lack of critical infrastructure, said Emmanuella Doussis, a University of Athens professor who coordinated the study.
Local authorities manage flood risks, infrastructure, environmental protection and responses to extreme events, but the study finds a gap between commitments to multilevel governance and a reality in which municipal participation in policy design remains limited.