December 6, 2024
In Kalmar, the transition is taking place with electric vehicles, climate programs and a strong transition arena.
Kalmar hooks arms with Falkenberg and Mörbylånga.
Kalmar is transitioning together with a strong transition arena and towards the goal of becoming one of Sweden's best municipalities in ecological sustainability, climate transition and climate adaptation. They have, among other things, local Climate City Contract, local climate breakfasts, a million program for the climate, pilot projects for climate investments, and an award-winning transition to electric vehicles.
Kalmar's long-term goal is to become one of Sweden's best municipalities in ecological sustainability, climate transition and climate adaptation. The municipality's ambition is also to become fossil fuel-free and climate-neutral by 2030. The municipality's administrations and companies are engaged and run a number of initiatives in close collaboration with external actors, and with support from Viable Cities, existing forms of collaboration have been strengthened and new ones have been developed. Local Climate City Contract for entrepreneurs was introduced in 2023 and there is now a wide range of large and small businesses with different experience and from different sectors. With the local climate breakfasts as a meeting place, the ambition is to create shared learning, provide inspiration and jointly build a sense of opportunity.
To achieve climate neutrality, Kalmar, in collaboration with farmers and biogas producers, is investing in establishing two plants for the production of liquid biogas. In parallel, an increase in the capacity of the existing combined heat and power plant is planned, which is a quick way to increase access to fossil-free heat and electricity. Through the Smart Procurement initiative, procurers are developing and testing new methods with the aim of increasing the proportion of circular goods and services purchased, and the municipality has begun work to reduce carbon dioxide emissions in planned and ongoing construction projects through, among other things, recycling and climate-improved concrete.
Major efforts are also being made in real estate and housing in Kalmar. Norrliden - a district in the Kalmar urban area with a high proportion of multi-family houses and rental apartments and many residents with lower incomes, lower levels of education and a higher proportion of foreign origin, compared to the municipal average - has extensive renovation needs. Many property owners are facing investment decisions that will have a high climate impact and Kalmar municipality is linking arms with local companies with the aim of accelerating the climate transition by developing the ability to identify, prioritize and jointly plan effective climate investments. In addition, focusing on the development of a centrally located industrial area, a transformation will take place into a sustainable, aesthetic and inclusive neighborhood of the entire 100 hectares. Together with businesses, property owners, landowners and other stakeholders, a vision for the area has been developed, which will be used to support future planning and development work.
In the city's latest update, they talk about the work, the transition arena, the project portfolio and much more.
Anders Almqvist, process manager for Climate Neutral Kalmar 2030, anders.almqvist@kalmar.se
Kalmar highlights two initiatives that they believe could be of particular interest to other municipalities to spy and apply. Contact the process leader to spy and apply.
Climate City Contract 2030 is a collective effort to achieve the climate transition that we need to implement in a short time to keep global warming below 1.5 degrees. It is an agreement between municipalities, government agencies and Viable Cities where all parties undertake to make a concrete contribution to increasing the pace of climate change.
To achieve deep change, we need to move from fragmented projects to an ecosystem of efforts that all pull in the same direction. Cities are doing this together with Viable Cities, funders government agencies and other partners, in different constellations and with different objectives. It is about moving beyond dealing with symptoms and instead focusing on underlying problems in our social structure. Here you will find the initiatives and studies within the city that have been granted funding under Viable Cities.
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