ICLEI Oceania and La Trobe University are thrilled to announce a new strategic partnership to strengthen climate resilience for local governments across Oceania, driven by cutting‑edge research and on‑the‑ground action.
As part of this collaboration, an innovative joint position uniting the two organisations will bridge the gap between academic research and local government practice in climate change adaptation.
We are pleased to welcome Hartmut Fünfgeld as the new ICLEI Professor of Practice: Local Government Climate Resilience.
This unique role will be co‑hosted by La Trobe University’s Climate Change Adaptation Lab, led by Prof Lauren Rickards in the University’s School of Humanities and Social Sciences, and the ICLEI Oceania Secretariat in Melbourne.
Hartmut brings twenty years of experience working with local governments and communities across Australia, Europe, Africa and Asia on climate change adaptation and resilience, including some time at ICLEI. With a strong focus on rural and regional contexts, he has built a career as an applied and transdisciplinary researcher dedicated to making a real difference on the ground – and we’re delighted to see him return to ICLEI in this new capacity.
“I’m excited to expand collaboration with local governments on practical, impact‑focused climate resilience work in this new role, and I’m fully committed to helping close the gap between academic research and real‑world practice,” Hartmut said.
This partnership captures ICLEI Oceania’s commitment to supporting all local and subnational governments, from urban councils and regional cities to rural communities, in tackling the impacts of climate change. Amongst a range of practical outputs, it will see stronger partnerships built across the region and robust training courses developed to support local and government leaders and stakeholders in building capacity for locally-led climate change adaptation and resilience.
Kobie Brand, Deputy Secretary General of ICLEI and ICLEI Oceania’s Regional Director, reflected on the new partnership: “Building on ICLEI’s track record of practical innovation, this new role will connect La Trobe’s outstanding capabilities in climate adaptation, rural resilience and health research with ICLEI’s proven expertise in working with local governments to build capacity and deliver practical, on-the-ground solutions.”
Prof Lauren Rickards, Director of the La Trobe Climate Change Adaptation Lab noted: “This groundbreaking new partnership with ICLEI Oceania demonstrates La Trobe University’s commitment to innovative strategic engagements that allow us to work from the local to international levels to drive real impact. We are thrilled to have Hartmut joining our Lab for this vital role. As Australia has seen again in recent weeks, strengthening climate resilience at the local level is an urgent priority. This new Professor of Practice position further strengthens our longstanding efforts to help rural and regional governments address climate change in effective, collective ways.”
With this new role and partnership, we’re bringing together the best of applied research and real‑world practice to accelerate climate resilience across the region. We can’t wait to see the impact this collaboration will have for local governments and the communities they serve. Watch this space for more information on new activities coming soon!