In Malmö, emissions from citizens' consumption are to be halved by 2030. To achieve this, more people need to reduce their everyday emissions. To get the message across, the city is investing in a fun communication campaign with concrete tips for a climate-smart everyday life.
To achieve the climate goals, the organization needs to be rigged to handle all perspectives in the climate transition. In its progress report, the City of Helsingborg describes, among other things, a new implementation organization that will ensure both action and follow-up.
In Gothenburg, there is a strong focus on developing the city's ability to create and utilize citizen engagement in the environmental and climate transition, and in the spring of 2024, the city conducted a so-called citizens' council, where 30 people were given the opportunity to contribute thoughts and suggestions on how the city can engage and involve residents in transforming society for the environment and climate. Gothenburg is also working with a broad toolbox to create a more sustainable and efficient mobility system that will benefit citizens, including efforts for walking and cycling, trams, electrified buses, micromobility and trains. Mobility is a major issue for the city, but it is also working on climate-neutral construction, circular economy, farming, green infrastructure and nature-based solutions, and much more.
A central strategy in Umeå's work is to mobilize and strengthen partnerships and collaboration between partners, based on the Umeå Climate Roadmap's focus areas. Over 60 partners are part of Umeå's climate roadmap and collaborate and learn from each other to strengthen local climate work. With the municipality at the forefront, Umeå has developed a handbook on how to lead an effective climate transition, started an economic association to increase knowledge for circular construction and establish Byggåterbruket, and organized a construction recycling festival for students and staff.
Mariestad has been working on innovative green solutions for almost ten years, and the Climate Neutral Mariestad 2030 mission brings together everyone working for the climate in Mariestad - business, individuals and other actors - in Mariestad's transition arena. Together, they work for a climate-neutral association life, sustainable passenger transport to and from workplaces, sustainable construction, hydrogen as an energy source and board games as a tool.
Borås aims to be fossil-free by 2030, and with that goal in mind, the municipality is taking overall responsibility as a cog in the transition. Together with companies, organizations and citizens, the whole of Borås is mobilizing in the true spirit of "knalle". They are working with green frameworks for financing, sustainability roadmaps for events, hackathons, citizen involvement, open dialogues and much much more...
The transition in Skellefteå focuses on sustainable mobility, sustainable construction and sustainable industry. By mobilizing the whole community, they are working to increase biodiversity by creating environments that benefit local species, redesign the city's traffic flows to promote sustainable transport, bring together actors from different sectors to explore how public procurement can serve as a tool to reduce climate emissions, reduce the need for new energy sources by heating streets and buildings with waste heat... and much much more!
In Uppsala, the focus in the coming years will be on improving energy and power efficiency and increasing the share of renewable electricity, setting high climate requirements in land allocation competitions and procurements, and investing in sustainable travel through tramways, traffic diversions, new cycle paths and charging infrastructure. The new football pitch at Fålhagens IP can also become a reservoir in the event of torrential rain, the municipality plants hundreds of new trees every year, and the municipality has produced documentation and reports on various risks that may arise due to climate change, as support for property owners and construction companies. The Uppsala Climate Protocol, which has existed since 2010, brings together companies, public sector organizations, universities and associations that want to make concrete progress towards a climate-adapted Uppsala.
Växjö municipality aims to be both fossil fuel free and climate neutral by 2030. Therefore, a special focus in the transition is on a sustainable transport system, but Växjö also works with energy-smart housing, engaging local companies, and recycling of building materials. And not least, they work with young people at upper secondary school level, who choose a challenge in the climate transition, develop proposals for initiatives that contribute to solving the challenge, and then exhibit their work at Linnaeus University.
Linköping tells us, among other things, about the climate investment plan for transport they developed together with Linköping University, how they developed a model for category management and worked on an environmental commuting analysis, that they allocated funds for test bed checks and launched a smart map where you can rent, share, exchange, borrow, repair and buy reused. Read also about the five priority areas Linköping is focusing on and the initiatives, networks and project groups that are bubbling with commitment!
Malmö says it will become climate neutral by 2030 and is one of the European Commission's selected pioneer cities to lead the transition. At the heart of Malmö's approach is a new horizontal approach - Climate Transition Malmö - focusing on joint roadmaps in seven priority areas, where strong action can have a big impact for Malmö and the planet. Local work for a global mission!
We face complex societal challenges with declining trust and participation in democracy. To strengthen deliberative democracy in the Nordic region, a network - Nordic Deliberation - has been created. The aim of the network is to build resilient democracies and close the gap between citizens and the representative political system by accelerating the wave of deliberative democracy in the Nordic region. So what is deliberative democracy and why do we need it?
Karlstad is working on a broad front for the climate transition, from student councils and collaboration to climate investment plans and ambitious targets. Charlotte Wedberg and Henric Barkman, process managers for Climate Neutral Karlstad 2030, talk about the transition work in the city, which is both broad and ambitious.
When the government official opened the question and answer session, the atmosphere became aggressive and hostile. He had just moderated a panel discussion between representatives of political parties on the topic of norm shifts and racism. People in the audience hurled accusations of bias and surreptitious activism at the moderator. He stepped in and replied: I have not taken sides, I am just delivering facts!
This spring, Viable Cities and Digidem Lab are entering a deeper collaboration on citizen engagement. Pierre Mesure has for 5 years supported municipalities to involve citizens in decision-making, with a focus on the underrepresented in our institutions.
In all 23 cities that are part of Viable Cities' Climate Neutral Cities 2030 program, intensive work is underway with citizen engagement where they experiment with different forms. For more than a year now, Gothenburg has hosted Götepod, where city architect Björn Siesjö talks to guests about Gothenburg's urban development from different perspectives. In episode 18, he was visited by Karin Bjerner, Development Manager at the Environmental Administration, City of Gothenburg and Viable Cities Learning Strategist Lena Holmberg.
Yesterday, Viable Cities made a study visit to Uppsala municipality's city hall to participate in the kick-off of the new Climate Neutral Uppsala work package.
Events are a growing billion-dollar industry and a key component of the economy and profile of many cities. At the same time, they are an increasingly important tool for community development. The joy and excitement of an event is something special. There is a strength and power to influence and change. This is why events have a great potential to contribute to, push and accelerate the climate transition.
Gävle, Borlänge and Eskilstuna are three of the "newer" municipalities in the Climate Neutral Cities 2030 initiative. This week, the project managers from the three met at Palladium in Borlänge for joint learning. - "There is great value in developing existing and finding new forms of cooperation between the cities when the climate work is accelerated," says Evelina Loberg, project manager in Gävle municipality.
During Transition Lab Forum 8, we shared experiences from Skellefteå as part of the transition in northern Sweden, and we explored some key issues in the transition process and Climate City Contract 2030 - multi-level governance, sustainable construction, business strategies for sustainability and citizen engagement. The power of the transition in the north is a golden opportunity to use to accelerate the climate transition throughout Sweden and the world.
In the work with Climate City Contract 2030, Viable Cities has identified four areas as strategically important for the climate transition in cities. Last spring, Ramboll was commissioned to work with us to develop a strategy for one of these areas, it is about how digitalization and digital tools can support the transition to climate neutral and sustainable cities.
Last spring, Anthesis was commissioned by Viable Cities to develop a strategy for engaging citizens and civil society as co-creators of the city's future. Through workshops and interviews, Anthesis, together with its partners Actinate and Sustainable 3.0, has collected information that is analyzed and now results in recommendations on a possible way forward.
During the work on Climate City Contract 2030, several strategic development areas have been identified, areas that need to be strengthened to accelerate the climate transition. One of them is citizen engagement. Last spring, Anthesis was commissioned to develop a strategy for howcitizens and civil society can be engaged as co-creators in the city's future. On our blog, Agneta Persson, Anthesis, reflects on their findings. This is also the theme of the Climate Breakfast on October 6.
Our search for partners to develop two strategic projects was very successful - we received over 30 high quality bids. It is now clear who will be commissioned to develop two parallel strategies for the transition to climate-neutral cities. Ramboll will lead the work on the strategy for digitalization and digital tools and Anthesis will drive the strategy for citizen engagement.
Do you want to join us in developing our strategic development projects? Viable Cities is inviting tenders for two different assignments. Both are about how we can accelerate the climate transition in cities, one focusing on citizen engagement and the other focusing on digitalization and digital tools.
To speed up the climate transition, everyone in society needs to be involved. The Hammarby Sjöstad 2.0 project in Stockholm is a citizens' initiative to reduce the climate footprint of the district. In the project, 55 housing associations with 12,500 residents, companies, researchers and the City of Stockholm are working together to become climate neutral by 2030. Climate Breakfast 9 was hosted by Jörgen Lööf, ElectriCITY Innovation, and Charlie Gullström, Sweco/RISE.
Digital tools can be used in many different ways to accelerate the climate transition. During Transition Lab Forum 4, a workshop entitled "Digital tools for transition in practical climate work" was held to provide an insight into what tools exist, how they can be used and why.
Edward Andersson, Democratic Society, spoke at Viable Cities' first climate breakfast on the theme of citizen involvement in the climate transition - for real. On our blog, he and his colleague Namita Kambli develop their thoughts on this topic.
On September 30, Viable Cities held its first climate breakfast. Guests were Edward Andersson from Democratic Society, who gave concrete tips on how to develop citizen engagement and Charlotte Gustafsson-Brynielsson from Växjö reflected on how they work with it in Växjö.
"It always seems impossible until it is done." Maria Vassilakou, EU mission board on climate neutral cities, quoted Nelson Mandela when she attended Transition Lab Forum 3, September 16-17.
She was one of many speakers who, over two days, gave strength and inspiration to continue working on the mission: Climate Neutral Cities 2030.
Achieving the profound climate transition we need requires cooperation between all members of society at a level never seen before. Citizen engagement and local Climate City Contract is the theme of the Viable Cities Transition Lab Forum 3, on September 16-17 (press release).
Clearly, the coronavirus crisis can teach us something about transition work. But what? That we should do what the experts say? This is what researchers Sofie Joosse and Martin Westin from the Viable Cities project Sustainable urban lifestyles through nudging and citizen participation discuss on our blog.
Urban cultivation with waste heat from data centers and models of climate-smart music and sports events are examples of 12 projects receiving a total of €28 million to accelerate the climate transition.
Illustration: Anders Westerberg On the theme of "a more human city", KTH's Jill Klackenberg has interviewed Viable Cities program manager Olga Kordas in an article published on KTH's website. In the interview Olga says, among other things: - That people living in cities are...
Smart Sustainable Cities is participating in the Smart Cities 2017 conference, November 22-23 at Kistamässan. Smart Cities consists of a two-day conference of the same name, organized in collaboration between EasyFaris and Geoforum Sweden, and a vibrant exhibition focusing on the smart city....
Smart Sustainable Cities is participating in the Smart Cities 2017 conference, November 22-23 at Kistamässan. Smart Cities consists of a two-day conference of the same name, organized in collaboration between EasyFaris and Geoforum Sweden, and a vibrant exhibition focusing on the smart city....
