Center for ClimateResilient Development – CRED

Climate change today poses significant risks to natural environments, people, and infrastructure on a global scale, and even small increases in temperature amplify these risks. Efforts to mitigate these dangers are further complicated by other global trends such as biodiversity loss, overconsumption, rapid urbanization, land degradation, poverty, and inequality.

Climate-resilient development is a holistic approach to transforming and adapting while simultaneously limiting the extent of climate change. This involves initiating climate action, such as reducing greenhouse gas emissions and implementing risk reduction and adaptation measures, to promote sustainable development for all.

CRED is an initiative under the Tax Research Centre.

News

Siri Eriksen at the Adaptation Future Confernece in 2025

Adaptation Future25:From Follo to the World - and back

When the researchers CRED travelled to Adaptation Futures 2025, they brought more than academic insights. They brought practical experience from the Follo region, where researchers work alongside municipalities, communities, planners, students, and practitioners to advance climate resilient development in practice.

Read the article here (English)

Tom Tanner from SOAS University of London

Open Seminar on Vulnerability and Climate Action Denial

CRED recently received funding from the SKAPE program to develop new tools for climate-resilient local development. The grant supports the project “New Tools for Co-Creation of Transformative Measures for Climate-Resilient Local Development.”

Read the article here (English)

When the Rain Comes, is Follo Ready?

Extreme rainfall, ageing pipe networks, and densification pressure are pushing stormwater management to a breaking point across the Follo region. But solutions exist

Read the article here (English)

Climate Action in Follo: Between Growth and Sustainability

The findings suggest that the municipalities of the Follo Region are navigating a complex intersection between economic development and climate responsibility.

Read the article here (English)

Student Research supports climate resilience in Follo

In the Follo Region, students from NMBU can now do research addressing challenges identified by municipalities and feed their findings directly back to the local communities.

Read the article here (English)

NMBU/CRED and the Follo Region have received 12.5 million kroner in funding from the Research Council

The project “Navigating Growth and Sustainability: Co-creating Local Climate-Resilient Development Practice in the Oslofjord Region” has received 12.5 million NOK in funding from the Research Council.

Read the article here (English)

Follo and NMBU join forces for a climate-resilient future

The new collaboration between the Follo municipalities and the Centre for Climate-Resilient Transformation (KRED) at NMBU will connect research and local practice to develop sustainable solutions for the region’s future.

Read the article here (English)

Are area neutrality and ecological compensation the path toward sustainable land management?

Land neutrality has in recent years become an increasingly important topic in Norwegian urban and regional planning. Given the growing pressure on natural resources, it is crucial to find a balance between development and the protection of natural areas.

Read the article here (English)

KRED mottar finansiering fra SKAPE programmet

CRED was awarded funding from the SKAPE Program

Read the article here (English)

What is CRED
The Center for Climate-Resilient Develompent provides expertise on anticipated climate changes and how these can be managed holistically, in accordance with government regulations. It serves as a platform for collaboration between universities, public administration, and local communities to develop solutions for future challenges.
The center aims to make expert knowledge more accessible to local communities, ensuring a faster, more cost-effective, and better transition. By supporting the implementation of strategies that strengthen social, economic, and ecological resilience, the center can help address climate challenges. This requires the integration of sustainability goals, policies, and practices, facilitating community decisions that enhance these strategies.
CRED works in alignment with the UN's recommendations for achieving climate-resilient development:
- All relevant parties, including governments, the public sector, businesses, and civil society, must be involved to ensure that solutions are well-grounded and robust.
- Climate actions are scientifically based and should be combined with nature-based solutions and circular economy practices, such as waste reduction, reuse, and recycling.
Figure on Climate resilient development from the sixth IPCC assesment report, chapter 18Photo: IPCC

Activities in CRED
1. Policy labs: Creating dialogue platforms where politicians, officials, businesses, and civil society can meet for expert lectures and develop solutions through workshops across municipal borders and sectors.
2. Climate sparring: Expert dialogue or professional presentations at conferences, public meetings, seminars, or during the preparation of municipal zoning plans.
3. Development of tailored continuing and further education programs (with credits) for municipal politicians, employees, businesses, and civil society.
4. Student research: Connecting master's and doctoral students to local challenges they can address in their theses.
5. Internships: For students (10-30 ECTS) at NMBU's sustainability hub, gaining practical experience with community actors to support relevant cases and initiatives.
6. Studies: NMBU conducts studies on relevant issues defined by the needs of collaboration partners.

Events in CRED
- 2026
- January 29- 11:00-12:00 at the Sustainability Hub at NMBU: An open seminar on vulnerability and climate adaptation denial with presence of Tom Tanner from SOAS University of London. The discussion was about how vulnerability can be used to deny and delay climate adaptation in different contexts.
March 24 – 3:00–4:30 PM at the BiT Center in Ås Town Center: A Climate-Resilient Follo: Kick-off of the Research Project Balancing Growth and Sustainability: Co-creating Local Climate-Resilient Practices in the Oslofjord Region. The project is funded by the Research Council and focuses in particular on the challenges of balancing development and housing construction in the Follo region with climate and nature protection goals.
- April 16 – 3:00–4:30 PM (location to be announced): A discussion on local circular systems for water and wastewater, exploring how such systems can, in practice, contribute to economic and environmental sustainability in the Follo region.
May 19 – 3:00–4:30 PM (location to be announced): A session on housing and energy, exploring how both new and existing homes in the Follo region can reduce energy consumption while also producing energy for the local grid. The meeting will examine the potential for economically sustainable energy efficiency improvements and energy production in homes and buildings in Follo, as well as the requirements and support schemes that the region can use to realize this potential.
- 2025
- March 13 - Applied for funding from the NFR - Samarbeidsprosjekt for å møte utfordringer i samfunn og næringsliv - arealer under press
- May 20 - TOWARDS last seminar: TOWARDS a sustainability journey (read the story in Norwegian).
September 25 – Co-creation Meeting: Flooding and Stormwater in Follo – Let’s Solve It Together. Increasing extreme rainfall, expanding impermeable surfaces, and pressure on wastewater systems are leading to more flooding, damage, and costs in the Follo region. Politicians, public administration, and businesses in Follo will come together for a practical, solution-oriented dialogue with leading experts from NMBU. The discussion will focus directly on what works and which measures each municipality should begin implementing.
- 2024
- February 14 - Climate-Resilient Plans - Collaboration between NMBU and the Follo Region. About 30 case officers from Follo participated, where four experts shared insights on climate adaptation locally in Norway, the USA, developing countries, and internationally, followed by a workshop where the case officers shared and discussed specific challenges and solutions from their municipalities.
- April 18 - Meeting at the Sustainability Hub: Harnessing Science to Achieve SDG2 Zero Hunger. A meeting between Caren Smaller from the Shamba Center and five experts from TOWARDS/Sustainability Hub for knowledge exchange on the use of big data to, among other things, counteract climate change locally.
- May 23 - Coordinated Effort for the Oslofjord. TOWARDS gathered 30 experts at NMBU for presentations on each other's fields and activities related to the Oslofjord, followed by a discussion to improve collaboration across disciplines and with other community actors in the region.
- May 27 - Dialogue Meeting of the Sustainability Arenas with Prorectors and Municipal Politicians. Follo's municipal politicians were invited by NMBU to a dialogue meeting to present the breadth of NMBU's expertise relevant to municipal policy. Approximately 30 politicians participated.
- September 6 - Preparation for Fall Student Projects under TOWARDS/Sustainability Arena
- September 13 - Policy Lab on area neutrality.
  Read about the meeting here.
- October 10 - Field Visit to ColliCare in Vestby with the students from Climate-change and Society.
- November 5 - The Sustainability Festival.
  Read about the festival here.