TIPS4PED places cities, districts, buildings, and user needs at the heart of its mission, recognizing the unique challenges and opportunities each local context presents. To ensure alignment with local stakeholders, the project recently established local Focus Groups in Turin, Cork, Kozani, and Budapest’s Kőbánya district. These groups hosted workshops to identify key stakeholders and their priorities, needs, and capabilities in achieving Positive Energy Districts (PEDs).
The workshops brought together a diverse range of stakeholders from various sectors to address shared challenges and opportunities. Participants provided valuable insights into their communities’ expectations, such as the functionalities most desired for the Integrated Assessment Platform (IAP), a digital tool TIPS4PED co-designs to simulate and evaluate PED interventions.
While the Focus Groups followed a common methodology, their approaches reflected the unique characteristics of each city. For example, Kőbánya started with internal municipal discussions, while Turin engaged philanthropic organizations, and Cork and Kozani included community groups. Across all cities, there was significant interest in holistic planning and advanced digital tools. Stakeholders expressed dissatisfaction with piecemeal infrastructure updates, calling for integrated renovation strategies. A recurring priority was for the IAP to feature real-time monitoring, socio-economic impact analysis, and a user-friendly interface for both technical and non-technical users. Improved data sharing and interpretation mechanisms were also identified as crucial.
Supportive local, national, and EU policies emerged as a key theme across all cities, emphasising fostering cross-sector collaboration and public engagement. Cities like Turin and Kozani highlighted the importance of behaviour-change campaigns to encourage efficient energy use, while Cork and Turin emphasised learning from Renewable Energy Communities to advance local energy generation and storage.
These initial workshops confirmed the local needs and challenges, setting the stage for the next steps in the TIPS4PED project. They also revealed underrepresented stakeholders, such as philanthropic organizations, banks, real estate investors, data analysts, and mobility providers, whose involvement will be crucial. Moving forward, continuous communication and collaboration will be essential. Some Focus Groups have committed to periodic meetings to track progress and address emerging issues, while others aim to hold targeted discussions on specific areas like mobility or energy. Additionally, video recording future meetings could enhance accessibility and visibility.
These activities will align with the capacity-building and co-creation events planned under TIPS4PED, ensuring the project’s efforts remain inclusive and effective in advancing PED development.