[{"command":"openDialog","selector":"#drupal-modal","settings":null,"data":"\u003Cdiv id=\u0022republish_modal_form\u0022\u003E\u003Cform class=\u0022modal-form-example-modal-form ecl-form\u0022 data-drupal-selector=\u0022modal-form-example-modal-form\u0022 action=\u0022\/en\/article\/modal\/10117\u0022 method=\u0022post\u0022 id=\u0022modal-form-example-modal-form\u0022 accept-charset=\u0022UTF-8\u0022\u003E\u003Cp\u003EHorizon articles can be republished for free under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) licence.\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cp\u003EYou must give appropriate credit. We ask you to do this by:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n 1) Using the original journalist\u0027s byline\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n 2) Linking back to our original story\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n 3) Using the following text in the footer: This article was originally published in \u003Ca href=\u0027#\u0027\u003EHorizon, the EU Research and Innovation magazine\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cp\u003ESee our full republication guidelines \u003Ca href=\u0027\/horizon-magazine\/republish-our-stories\u0027\u003Ehere\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cp\u003EHTML for this article, including the attribution and page view counter, is below:\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cdiv class=\u0022js-form-item form-item js-form-type-textarea form-item-body-content js-form-item-body-content ecl-form-group ecl-form-group--text-area form-no-label ecl-u-mv-m\u0022\u003E\n \n\u003Cdiv\u003E\n \u003Ctextarea data-drupal-selector=\u0022edit-body-content\u0022 aria-describedby=\u0022edit-body-content--description\u0022 id=\u0022edit-body-content\u0022 name=\u0022body_content\u0022 rows=\u00225\u0022 cols=\u002260\u0022 class=\u0022form-textarea ecl-text-area\u0022\u003E\u003Ch2\u003EFinnish and French cities chart Europe\u0027s path to clean energy\u003C\/h2\u003E\u003Cp\u003EIn 2029, Finland\u2019s oldest city, Turku, will celebrate reaching the grand old age of 800. At the same time, it hopes to reach another major milestone \u2013 becoming climate-neutral. The French city of Dijon 2 000 kilometres away hopes to achieve the same goal by 2030.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EThe two are part of the \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/research-and-innovation.ec.europa.eu\/funding\/funding-opportunities\/funding-programmes-and-open-calls\/horizon-europe\/eu-missions-horizon-europe\/climate-neutral-and-smart-cities_en\u0022\u003ECities Mission\u003C\/a\u003E \u2013 an EU initiative to create 100 climate-neutral cities by the end of this decade. Turku and Dijon are also flagship members of the\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/cordis.europa.eu\/project\/id\/957751\u0022\u003EEU-funded RESPONSE\u003C\/a\u003E project to help cities chart the path toward clean energy.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cstrong\u003ECity labs\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u2018We\u2019re finding new ways to empower different kinds of citizens,\u2019 said\u0026nbsp;David Goujon, the project\u0027s coordinator.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EThree-quarters of EU inhabitants live in urban areas. Worldwide,\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/research-and-innovation.ec.europa.eu\/funding\/funding-opportunities\/funding-programmes-and-open-calls\/horizon-europe\/eu-missions-horizon-europe\/climate-neutral-and-smart-cities_en\u0022\u003Ecities account for over 65% of global energy consumption and more than 70% of greenhouse-gas emissions\u003C\/a\u003E \u2013 making them key players in the fight against global warming.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EA wide range of green technologies has been developed, from solar panels to quadruple glazing, but selecting the best mix to meet each city\u2019s particular needs is far from straightforward.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003ERESPONSE has set out almost 100 options from which cities can select a mix that works best for their specific situations. Examples include biomethane produced from sewage sludge, predictive home thermostats and high-performance ventilation systems.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EThe project is also running workshops and hackathons to introduce citizens to the available energy-saving tools, encouraging them to use less and lower their bills.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EA wide variety of options will be tested in Turku and Dijon, the project\u2019s two \u0022lighthouse cities\u0022. Six \u0022fellow\u0022 cities \u2013 Brussels (Belgium), Zaragoza (Spain), Boto\u0219ani (Romania), Ptolemaida (Greece), Gabrovo (Bulgaria) and Severodonetsk (Ukraine) \u2013 will look to apply what is learned.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EOne key goal is to create \u0022positive energy districts\u0022 in these cities \u2013 meaning they produce more energy than they consume. The ultimate aim is for 20% more energy to be produced than consumed on an annual basis, but to achieve a positive balance at a minimum.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cstrong\u003ELocal differences\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EThe idea was to cover a range of cities with varying characteristics and at different stages on the sustainability path to test what works for different populations, according to Goujon, sustainable city project manager at the European Institute for Energy Research (EIFER) in Karlsruhe, Germany.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cblockquote class=\u0022tw-text-center tw-text-blue tw-font-bold tw-text-2xl lg:tw-w-1\/2 tw-border-2 tw-border-blue tw-p-12 tw-my-8 lg:tw-m-12 lg:tw--ml-16 tw-float-left\u0022\u003E\n \u003Cspan class=\u0022tw-text-5xl tw-rotate-180\u0022\u003E\u201c\u003C\/span\u003E\n \u003Cp class=\u0022tw-font-serif tw-italic\u0022\u003EWe\u2019re finding new ways to empower different kinds of citizens.\r\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cfooter\u003E\n \u003Ccite class=\u0022tw-not-italic tw-font-normal tw-text-sm tw-text-black\u0022\u003EDavid Goujon, RESPONSE\u003C\/cite\u003E\n \u003C\/footer\u003E\n\u003C\/blockquote\u003E\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EThe focus in Turku is on its large student population \u2013 with the city home to several universities and about 40\u0026nbsp;000 higher-education students. The focal point in Dijon comprises many lower-income households with a broad cultural mix of nationalities.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u2018It\u2019s two totally different worlds that we\u2019re addressing,\u2019 said Goujon.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003ERESPONSE hopes that Turku and Dijon can inspire other cities in Europe to follow and scale up their examples.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u2018We could advise the European Commission that some of these solutions are perfect in the conditions of Dijon, others are very good in the conditions of Turku, and then the fellow cities can learn from this,\u2019 said Monjur Murshed, co-coordinator of RESPONSE and senior project manager for climate-neutral communities at EIFER.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EOver the past six months, RESPONSE has undertaken activities including refurbishing buildings in Dijon and Turku and installing quadruple-glazed windows and solar technologies.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EIn both cities, the team is testing community-based options for generating renewable energy. In a district of Dijon, for example, 1 100 inhabitants will participate in an initiative to harvest solar energy in the second half of 2023. Smart public lighting and infrastructure for electric vehicles, as well as cloud-based smart energy systems, are other options under consideration in the two cities.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EWhat\u2019s working best should become clearer in the coming year. Goujon and Murshed think the project\u2019s positive-energy goals are achievable by 2024.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cb\u003EGreen purchases\u003C\/b\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EAn\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/cordis.europa.eu\/project\/id\/857831\u0022\u003EEU-funded project called XPRESS\u003C\/a\u003E has sought to increase city planners\u2019 uptake of renewable energy solutions (RES) by bringing together small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), public authorities and end users of technology.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cblockquote class=\u0022tw-text-center tw-text-blue tw-font-bold tw-text-2xl lg:tw-w-1\/2 tw-border-2 tw-border-blue tw-p-12 tw-my-8 lg:tw-m-12 lg:tw--ml-16 tw-float-left\u0022\u003E\n \u003Cspan class=\u0022tw-text-5xl tw-rotate-180\u0022\u003E\u201c\u003C\/span\u003E\n \u003Cp class=\u0022tw-font-serif tw-italic\u0022\u003EYou cannot consider only the price you\u2019re going to pay for a service, or for energy or new cars for your public transport fleet.\r\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cfooter\u003E\n \u003Ccite class=\u0022tw-not-italic tw-font-normal tw-text-sm tw-text-black\u0022\u003ERiccardo Coletta, XPRESS\u003C\/cite\u003E\n \u003C\/footer\u003E\n\u003C\/blockquote\u003E\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EThe tools developed include a searchable database with RES-related tenders and green public procurement projects across 10 European countries \u2013 Belgium, Denmark, Germany, Italy, Norway, Portugal, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden and the UK.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EThe database aims to make it easier for SMEs to access RES tenders and, by extension, increase the adoption of innovative solutions by cities \u2013 leading to greater energy savings and lower carbon emissions.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EXPRESS has tried to spur public authorities to look at the full long-term environmental impact of products across their lifecycle rather than just their initial price.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u2018The goal is to bring authorities to write public tenders taking into consideration the real impact on the environment in the cost of the purchase,\u2019 said project coordinator Riccardo Coletta of the Agency for the Promotion of European Research (APRE) in Rome, Italy. \u2018You cannot consider only the price you\u2019re going to pay for a service, or for energy or new cars for your public transport fleet.\u2019\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EColetta highlighted advances in electric transport in the Portuguese city of Braga, which he said has had a strong commitment to pushing green mobility through the development of fully electric buses, promotion of electric vehicles and construction of charging stations.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EThe Danish island of Sams\u00f8, home to 4\u0026nbsp;000 inhabitants, is another notable case. In 2007, it became the world\u2019s first island to be powered entirely by renewable energy. Community involvement has been key to the island\u2019s rapid progress.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003ELarger areas can build on these examples, according to Coletta.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u2018One way might be to start producing renewable energy with small communities, and then selling energy to other communities that can be inspired by this example,\u2019 he said. \u2018This means a bottom-up change coming from the people.\u2019\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cem\u003EResearch in this article was funded by the EU. If you liked this article, please consider sharing it on social media.\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cdiv class=\u0022tw-text-center tw-bg-bluelightest tw-p-12 tw-my-12 tw--mx-16\u0022\u003E\n \u003Ch3 class=\u0022tw-font-sans tw-font-bold tw-text-blue tw-uppercase tw-text-lg tw-mb-8\u0022\u003EEU Mission: 100 climate-neutral and smart cities by 2030\u003C\/h3\u003E\n \u003Cspan class=\u0022tw-inline-block tw-w-1\/6 tw-h-1 tw-bg-blue tw-mb-8\u0022\u003E\u003C\/span\u003E\n \u003Cp\u003EOn 28 April 2022, the Commission announced the \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/ec.europa.eu\/commission\/presscorner\/detail\/en\/IP_22_2591\u0022\u003E100 EU cities\u003C\/a\u003E that will participate in the EU Mission for 100 climate-neutral and smart cities by 2030, the so-called Cities Mission.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EThese 100 cities will act as hubs of experimentation and innovation for green, digital and inclusive transformations. Local, regional and national authorities, citizens, businesses, and investors will work together to make sectors like energy, buildings, waste management and transport climate neutral by 2030.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EThe 100 model cities will act as experimentation and innovation hubs to enable all European cities to follow suit by 2050.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003ERead more about the Cities Mission \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/research-and-innovation.ec.europa.eu\/funding\/funding-opportunities\/funding-programmes-and-open-calls\/horizon-europe\/eu-missions-horizon-europe\/climate-neutral-and-smart-cities_en\u0022\u003Ehere\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\n\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003C\/textarea\u003E\n\u003C\/div\u003E\n\n \u003Cdiv id=\u0022edit-body-content--description\u0022 class=\u0022ecl-help-block description\u0022\u003E\n Please copy the above code and embed it onto your website to republish.\n \u003C\/div\u003E\n \u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cinput autocomplete=\u0022off\u0022 data-drupal-selector=\u0022form-r-2mb50eu6ifrf-ei4nsm3bzlscfybszhrjf7e1o2u4\u0022 type=\u0022hidden\u0022 name=\u0022form_build_id\u0022 value=\u0022form-r_2MB50eU6ifrf_eI4nSM3bzlsCfyBsZhRJF7E1o2U4\u0022 \/\u003E\n\u003Cinput data-drupal-selector=\u0022edit-modal-form-example-modal-form\u0022 type=\u0022hidden\u0022 name=\u0022form_id\u0022 value=\u0022modal_form_example_modal_form\u0022 \/\u003E\n\u003C\/form\u003E\n\u003C\/div\u003E","dialogOptions":{"width":"800","modal":true,"title":"Republish this content"}}]