Lukas Sander

Background

About Lukas Sander

Dealing with the consequences of climate change is one of the most urgent tasks of the 21st century. For many years, I have been helping regions, companies and political decision-makers to prepare for the more frequent and more intensive consequences of climate change. As a qualified urban and spatial planner, I am particularly interested in planning and decision-making processes for climate impact adaptation at local and regional level. My work focuses on three areas. When climate protection is mentioned, the question of how much it should cost - most often followed by the remark that we cannot afford it - is not far away. For Germany, as well as for various regions in numerous projects (including the Ruhr region), I therefore turn the tables and calculate the costs we could incur by doing nothing in the event of unchecked climate change. I also prepare vulnerability analyses for sectors, regions and individual locations. Regional strategies are the cornerstone of any successful regional climate adaptation. These must be developed, justified, adopted, implemented and their effectiveness reviewed together with stakeholders. I apply my many years of expertise at all stages of this process - for example, in conducting stakeholder dialogues and cost-benefit analyses. Another focus of my work is the development of monitoring concepts. I am currently applying all these steps in ‘classic’ adaptation concepts, but also in the development of heat action plans (e.g. state-wide in Thuringia). Companies not only have to adapt to the consequences of climate change, they also provide products and services that make adaptation possible in all areas of life. We make these activities visible and summarise them in the cross-sectional sector of the ‘climate change adaptation economy’. I develop market information and statistical definitions of the sector, but also design exchange formats and events to help the sector to establish itself and make it more visible.