Navigating the future
How can Sweden's ports plan to effectively manage the effects of future climate-related challenges? That is what the ‘Navigating the Future’ project aims to find out.
Ports are an important hub in the global transport system. If they come to a standstill, it causes disruption at several levels. At the same time, ports are vulnerable to both sea level rise and extreme weather as a result of climate change.
The aim of the project is to develop, test, adapt and further develop a framework for how ports can be gradually and dynamically adapted to climate change over time, thereby creating flexibility to deal with future uncertainties.
This involves, for example, highlighting which solutions/strategies should be prioritized and which can be postponed, identifying solutions that are unlikely to be regretted, highlighting dependencies between different choices, identifying robust and flexible solutions, and evaluating costs, benefits and sustainability over time.
The project is divided into four sub-goals:
- Identification of vulnerabilities
- Increased knowledge about the effects of climate change and the port's resilience
- Development of paths for climate adaptation
- Proposals for implementation
The knowledge gained from the project will be useful for ports, port stakeholders and various authorities.
SMHI's role in the project
SMHI will initially work with multiple natural events and produce statistics on the current and future climate.
About the project
Project name:
Navigating the future: Towards a fossil-free and resilient transport system – the role of ports and climate adaptation to extreme weather events.
Partners
- The Swedish National Road and Transport Research Institute (VTI; Statens väg- och transportforskningsinstitut)
- Swedish Meteorological and Hydrological Institute (SMHI)
- Göteborgs Hamn AB – Scandinavia's largest port
Funding
The Swedish Energy Agency (Energimyndigheten), via the call for proposals “Contribute to the development of the resilient and fossil-free transport system of the future – 2023-10-03”.
Project period
1 April 2024 – 1 April 2027
