Italia-Croatia

22/09/2025

On September 12, 2025, the Civil Protection Section of Puglia Region organized a specialized training course under the HANDY project, held at the Calenè Resort in Castellaneta Marina (TA). The initiative brought together Civil Protection professionals to strengthen their expertise in managing increasingly complex emergencies driven by climate change, promoting collaboration and knowledge exchange among Italian Civil Protection actors.

Following a morning of institutional addresses and presentations, the afternoon focused on hands-on training and demonstrations of innovative tools identified within the HANDY Catalogue of main innovative solutions for the prevention and mitigation of climate change events. During the sessions, participants had the opportunity to explore advanced technologies designed to support risk assessment and decision-making in emergency scenarios, including:

• AdriaFirePropagator for wildfire modeling;
• Next Generation Incident Command System (NICS) for operational coordination of interventions;
• CHyM Hydrological Forecast for hydrological predictions and territorial monitoring;
• PPCNE Platform for climate projections in the North-East region;
• HGSS QGis for spatial data management and analysis.

The session also featured discussions on the application of Artificial Intelligence and emerging research technologiesto enhance decision-making, with a focus on integrating these tools into Regional Civil Protection Systems.

Regional Civil Protection authorities highlighted that the course represents more than a technical update: it is a vital step toward a modern and resilient Civil Protection System, capable of addressing real risks such as wildfires, floods, landslides, and other extreme climate events. Special recognition was given to volunteers, whose dedication and commitment are essential to maintaining an effective and widespread protection network for the communities of Puglia and the whole Programme area.