Details
Cities and towns represent around three quarters of the EU’s population and have been among the key allies for the implementation of the REPowerEU, an ambitious plan spearheaded by the European Commission to safeguard the EU citizens and businesses from energy shortages by diversifying the energy supply chain and by accelerating the transition to clean energy to achieve climate-neutrality quicker and in a fair fashion. Cities thus play a pivotal role in the just and clean energy transition.
However, such transformation will require massive changes in usage, behaviour and a profound transformation in city organisation and governance that embraces the entire local society, communities, and all actors and stakeholders that can contribute and help addressing these challenges.
Many European cities are already in the process of this transformation and have embarked upon a daring road to implement innovative solutions and financing schemes to support their net zero ambitions. These cities are part of the Scalable Cities initiative that represent the Smart Cities and Communities Lighthouse programme funded by the Horizon 2020 and Horizon Europe research and innovation schemes.
The following report highlights some of the most ambitious and impactful solutions that are also cost-competitive and ready for a wide-scale replication, forming together the state of the art of European smart cities.