Capital idea: How the Climate City Capital Hub aims to make the difference for cities’ climate neutrality goals

2024-07-19T10:55:13+02:00July 15th, 2024|

“All in all, it often comes to the money questions like, ‘how do we fund our climate work?’” says Elina Ojala, the environmental director of Lahti, Finland.  “And there we also need private investors, and we need to find out how we can make it all happen and have all the things financed that we have planned.”  Like 32 other cities in the EU Cities Mission, Lahti has now been awarded a ‘Mission Label’ – formal recognition of their plans to reach climate neutrality, detailed in their Climate City Contract and submitted to the European Commission.   But what comes next? The [...]

City Leaders Committed to Driving Urban Climate Transitions: Introducing the Cities Mission Mayors Advisory Group

2024-07-10T12:27:04+02:00July 9th, 2024|

Hot news from the Cities Mission! A Cities Mission Mayors Advisory Group is soon to be inaugurated. This new body will play an essential role in advancing the EU Cities Mission, and will provide city leaders the opportunity to join forces, share insights, and shape the future of urban governance and development.  The Advisory Group will serve as a vital and dynamic forum bringing together 15+ Mission City leaders to engage directly with the European Commission and the Mission Platform, managed by NetZeroCities. The members will be representing Mission Cities to provide strategic advice and feedback, [...]

Unleashing a Research Agenda for the EU Mission Climate Neutral and Smart Cities: our first event fully focused on research

2024-07-09T09:50:11+02:00July 8th, 2024|

Are you familiar with the role of research in helping cities to become climate neutral? The event “Unleashing a Research Agenda for the EU Mission Climate Neutral and Smart Cities”, organised by NetZeroCities in Valencia on 25 June, was a first of its kind gathering of researchers from across Europe, complementing the 2024 edition of the Cities Mission Conference. Approximately 50 researchers participated, coming from both the NetZeroCities consortium and from an additional 28 universities and research institutions across Europe. The primary goals of this research event were to outline the research aspects of Mission [...]

That’s a wrap! Key takeaways from the 2024 Cities Mission Conference in Valencia

2024-07-09T10:58:24+02:00July 4th, 2024|

On June 25 and 26, no fewer than 450 mayors, city practitioners, national and regional representatives, and urban sustainability experts gathered in Valencia, Spain, for the third Cities Mission Conference.   Reunited in the 2024 EU Green Capital, the 112 Mission Cities focused their discussions on "Empowering Cities – the Climate-Neutral and Smart Cities Mission in Action”. The event, organised by the European Commission and NetZeroCities as part of the Valencia Cities Climate Week, represented a landmark in the journey towards climate neutrality. Progress and Ambition “It is exciting to see the progress [...]

25 cities set to receive further EU support for innovative climate projects

2024-05-06T12:13:30+02:00May 6th, 2024|

News from NetZeroCities - the platform supporting the EU’s Mission of “100 Climate-Neutral and Smart Cities by 2030” - for immediate release: Twenty-five cities committed to become climate neutral as part of the EU Cities Mission are on course to receive further EU support for ambitious climate-related projects, aimed at accelerating progress towards their 2030 goal. Through Horizon Europe, the EU’s key research and innovation programme, the cities from across the EU and in associated countries of Horizon Europe will benefit from over 14 million Euros in total to become ‘Pilot Cities’, acting as innovation hubs as they test solutions for rapid decarbonisation. The grants, awarded in packages of 500,000-600,000, [...]

Warm energy at icy Stockholm Spring School

2024-05-07T07:46:39+02:00May 3rd, 2024|

There was a lot of warm energy in the room at Stockholm Spring School on 24–26 April. This was much appreciated since the city did not show its most welcoming weather to the visiting representatives from all around Europe. At the NetZeroCities Spring School, organised by Politecnico di Milano (Polimi) and Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (UPM), representatives from about 25 of the 112 Mission Cities were present. Earlier editions of the Seasonal School have taken place in Spain, Italy and Hungary.   The Spring School took place at KTH, the Royal Institute of Technology hosted by [...]

Rivne: A beacon of sustainability in a time of turmoil 

2024-07-17T14:09:50+02:00April 29th, 2024|

Author: Barbara Jarkiewicz In the midst of the turmoil caused by the Russian invasion of Ukraine, lies Rivne — a city with a bold vision for a sustainable future. Despite the shadow of war and the nation's ongoing struggle for stability, Rivne has taken a courageous step forward on the eve of the EU accession by committing to the EU Cities Mission’ and joining the Pilot Cities Programme run by NetZeroCities. These initiatives aim to significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 2030, an unprecedented initiative in Ukraine that reflects the city’s determination to take ambitious action on climate. [...]

9 Mission Cities among the 20 New European Bauhaus Awards winners and runners-up

2025-02-06T15:28:38+01:00April 25th, 2024|

The New European Bauhaus (NEB) awards, revealed earlier in April, spotlight 20 winning and runner-up projects that exemplify the initiative's core values: sustainability, inclusivity, and a focus on the younger generation. This prize garners innovative ideas to benefit of local communities and society as a whole. Organized into four distinct categories aligned with the thematic axes of transformation guiding the NEB, the awards recognise both established 'Champions' and promising 'Rising Stars. Notably, among the distinguished winners, 9 Mission Cities participating in the Climate-Neutral and Smart Cities Mission stood out, underscoring their commitment to implementing innovative urban development initiatives that reflect the [...]

More European cities reach milestone on Climate-Neutral and Smart Cities Mission

2024-03-25T17:32:19+01:00March 25th, 2024|

At a ceremony in Brussels, 23 cities – all part of the EU Cities Mission – received a ‘Mission Label’, following the submission of their Climate City Contract or CCC, which defines the city’s climate commitments, action plan, and investment strategy to become climate neutral by 2030.  Detailed CCC documents also include input from citizens and stakeholders – a key part of the process of engagement that continues after submission, as the city advances towards its climate goals and the CCC is developed further.  The labels are a recognition of the city’s plans by the European Commission, which it is hoped [...]

Mission Cities’ Policy Brief: Tackling Circular Economy Challenges

2024-03-04T18:13:14+01:00March 4th, 2024|

With cities at the forefront of climate neutrality solutions, their experiences hold valuable lessons for national authorities and EU decision-makers in the framework of the European Green Deal. A first Policy Lab, facilitated by  NetZeroCities, gathered representatives from 21 Mission Cities to explore the intricacies of circular economy practices, with a particular focus on circular construction and reducing plastic waste. The insights gathered from Mission Cities Oslo, Helsinki, and Stockholm, alongside contributions from eighteen additional Mission Cities, have culminated in the production of a first Mission Cities’ Policy Brief. This document presents a comprehensive set of policy recommendations aimed at EU decision-makers and [...]

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