Call #14
Open until June 5, 2024
Funding announced approximately 120 million SEK.
The door is now open for even more Swedish cities to mobilize for the climate transition. Call #14: Climate-neutral cities 2030 3.0 is open from March 6 to June 5, 2024 and will further accelerate the local transition journey and scale up the transition.
This call for proposals offers support in two categories. The first means that we open up for new pioneer cities to raise their ambition to accelerate the climate transition. The second concerns pioneer cities in waves 1 and 2 that are raising their ambition for transition, where part of this can be to collaborate with one or more twin cities.
A minimum of four parties must support each application. The coordinating partner must be a municipality. The project consortium must consist of independent actors from universities, colleges or research institutes, companies, public organisations and the non-profit sector (civil society organizations).
Granted projects can receive from three to a maximum of 4.5 million euros. The higher level applies to consortia with twin cities. With one twin city the budget can be increased by up to one million SEK, with two or more twin cities the budget can be increased by up to 1.5 million SEK. Maximum aid intensity for the project as a whole: 50%.
This initiative will help boost climate and sustainability efforts in cities with high ambitions for the transition. It opens the door for more cities (pioneer cities and twin cities) to take the lead in accelerating the transition for greater impact in a shorter timeframe, while helping to address multiple crises.
Right now, there is a strong mobilization in Sweden and Europe to transition to climate-neutral and sustainable cities by 2030. This is part of the mission-driven work that Viable Cities has initiated and run for several years. The starting point for Viable Cities' activities is the mission Climate Neutral Cities 2030 with a good life for all within the boundaries of the planet. The mission means that the climate transition of cities should be based on a broad perspective, where social, ecological and economic sustainability are simultaneously considered. Both a just transition and opportunities for companies to build international competitiveness by contributing to a faster transition are important perspectives.
The projects funded under this initiative are an important part of achieving the mission. Now the ambition is sharpened and the focus is on upscaling, dissemination and replicability for increased impact of the climate work. The criteria for granting funds are different compared to previous calls from Viable Cities.
This call for proposals offers support in two categories. The applications in each category have partly different assessment criteria and different delivery expectations. It is not possible for a municipality to participate in more than one application. The coordinating party in each application must be a municipality. Any twin cities can also only be municipalities.
This refers to additional municipalities that, in collaboration with a wide range of actors, want to become pioneers in accelerating the climate transition to 2030, but which are not included among the cities that have already signed Climate City Contract 2030 under wave 1 and wave 2. Approximately seven new pioneer cities with associated project partners are intended to be funded in this category.
Here, pioneer cities from waves 1 and 2 can collaborate with twin cities as a pathway for scaling up or choose to apply on their own. Twinning is a new approach and is based on mutual learning between cities and building a shared ability to transition faster to climate neutrality by 2030. The twin cities may, for example, share similar challenges or opportunities as the pioneer cities. The pioneer cities and the twin cities should establish cooperation on climate transition where there is potential for upscaling. This may involve, for example, joint strategic work, joint procurement or concrete initiatives. It can also build on, and develop, existing intermunicipal cooperation (such as management of water, waste, communications, energy, housing, materials/logistics, labor market, urban planning).
Project consortia that include twin cities are able to apply for a higher amount of funding. A pioneer city needs to be the coordinator but can apply together with one or more twin cities. Epioneer city from waves 1 and 2, should be the main applicant (coordinator) of the project and any twin cities are project partners. It is mandatory that any twin cities included in the consortium also have a project budget. Up to 23 projects are intended to be funded in this category. Consortia can thus include one or more twin cities.
6 March 2024
Call opens
5 June 2024
Closing date for applications
November 2024
Provisional time for decision
1 December 2024
Provisional date for the start of the project
31 October 2027
End date of the project
More detailed information can be found in the full call text.
Applications are made through the Swedish Energy Agency's e-service "Funding of research and innovation" via "My pages". The deadline for application is June 5, 2024, and you can get support in your application until 16.00 (CET) the same day.
On 19 March 10.30-12.00 , a first digital information meeting about the call was arranged with representatives from Viable Cities and the Swedish Energy Agency. You can download the presentation from the meeting in PDF format. On 3 April at 10.30-11.30 , a second digital information meeting was arranged about the call with a focus on Viable Cities as a mission-driven innovation programme, on 10 April at 10.30-11.30 a third digital information meeting about the call was arranged with a focus on implementation and upscaling for the climate transition, and on 17 April at 10.30-11.30 A fourth and final information meeting was arranged about the call, with a focus on the transition map and thematic discussions. You can watch the recording of all the information sessions afterwards here and on our YouTube.
We offer consortia consultation sessions during the month of April. If you are interested, please contact utlysning@viablecities.se.
Here we have collected the most frequently asked questions about the call.
At least four partners should be behind each application. The ambition in the formation of consortia should be to strengthen the local transition arena and contribute to the long-term mobilization of more actors over time who can be driving forces in achieving a faster transition.
The project consortium shall consist of independent actors from all the following stakeholder groups:
Project partners can be legal entities, such as companies, universities, colleges, public actors, non-profit organizations and trade associations. Only actors with operations in Sweden can be project partners. All project partners can apply for support within the project based on the legal conditions that apply to each organizational form (see Appendix 3). The maximum permitted level of support for the project as a whole is 50%.
Political endorsement is a must for this application and a criterion in the assessment of the application. For Wave 3 pioneer cities, a letter of support from the political leadership is mandatory (mandatory annex). Gender equality and diversity must be taken into account in the composition of the project team, in the selection of the project leader and in the implementation, content, objectives and impact of the project.
Yes, international partners can participate in an application, but in order for the partner to be able to have its own budget in the project, the partner must also be active in Sweden and have a Swedish organization number. Otherwise, the partner can only participate and contribute with co-financing.
Yes, this is possible. However, municipalities can only participate in one application.
No, letters of support are only needed for the municipality.
Letters of support are not required from the 23 cities that have already participated. However, if you as a pioneer city choose to include one or more twin cities in your application, letters of support from the twin cities are required.
No, there are no such restrictions within the Viable Cities call, it is open to all cities.
A city cannot apply as both a pioneer and a twin city. They need to talk to each other and decide how to apply.
No, pioneer cities cannot find twin cities among other pioneer cities. Each application has one pioneer city and, if applying with a twin, one or more twin cities.
We do not currently know what future calls will look like, so we cannot promise that.
There is an allocated budget for all 23 that are currently in the initiative, but they do not automatically advance. All applicants must meet the criteria described in the call.
No, a twin city is linked to only one pioneer city, but even if you are not in the same consortium, you can still cooperate.
This can be done in different ways, such issues can be discussed in a consultation session.
The consortium needs to identify which initiatives it needs to pursue in order to succeed in the transition. The point of working with twin cities is that the transition does not stop at the municipality's border.
There cannot be two pioneer cities in the same application, but there can be several twin cities.
No, a twin city, as well as a pioneer city, should be a municipality. However, regions are welcome to join the consortium.
All pioneer cities, twin cities and project partners applying for funding must have activities in Sweden, however, an applicant can choose to cooperate with foreign actors without a project budget. Partners from other countries are welcome with their own funding.
The climate contract is a process where we revise the contract every year. How the contract is used and developed in each city is different as the local conditions for accelerating the transition to climate-neutral cities are different. All contracts are published on this link.
Yes, it will be mandatory and there will be support on how to do this. There are no ready-made templates as the plan will look different for different cities, depending on the measures needed to achieve climate neutrality. The climate investment plan is part of the city's transition journey and not a separate effort.
We have a tool, the Viable Cities Finance dashboard, to support the planning of climate investment plans. It combines emissions data, climate action simulations and financial analysis, offering comprehensive insights for the effective development of climate strategies up to 2030.
A climate investment plan is part of the work; it does not have to be in place at the time of application. However, you need to have an idea of how you will work with the development of the plans.
If you have a climate roadmap that leads to climate neutrality by 2030, that's good. Then you continue to refine it and add the climate investment plan. All municipalities start where they are.
The allocation of the total budget is decided by the consortium, but there is a requirement for all twin cities in a consortium to have a project budget. The size of this budget is determined by the consortium.
No, co-financing can also be, for example, working time.
Behind the consortium there must be at least four independent actors from all stakeholder groups. These must each have their own budget. How the amount of funding is distributed between the parties is decided in the consortium, in accordance with the conditions described in the call text in Appendix 3.
There can also be more than four parties in a consortium.
We have compiled a lot of examples on our knowledge hub, which we are constantly adding to. Each municipality knows best which are the main sources of emissions in their geographical area and how to work on the transition, which is all part of a portfolio. It is about building capacity to do the work and accelerate.
It means working beyond exploring, innovating and piloting, to focusing on scaling up and rapid implementation, sharing and dissemination. In short, radical implementation means implementing quickly and at scale and working beyond projectization.
You will receive a notification that the Swedish Energy Agency has received your application and which administrator is handling your case.
Your application will be assessed by an expert group. The expert group acts in an advisory capacity to the Swedish Energy Agency. The version of the application submitted before the closing date of the call will be assessed. No supplements will be accepted after the closing date, except for those explicitly requested by the Swedish Energy Agency.
The Swedish Energy Agency may request supplements if necessary after the application has been submitted. It is important to provide prompt feedback on these requests for supplementation.
The Swedish Energy Agency carries out a credit check on applicant companies.
The Swedish Energy Agency will then make a decision on your application, taking into account the expert group's assessments. The decision is planned to be made in November 2024 at the earliest. Shortly afterwards, you will be informed of the decision and the reasons for it.
Type your application text in the fields on My Pages at the Swedish Energy Agency. More information on what to include in the fields is described in the section How to apply.
The title of the project in the application is expected to be: Climate neutral city name 2030.
In cases where twin cities are part of the consortium, the application title is expected to be Climate Neutral Pioneer City Name, Twin City Name, Twin City Name 2030.
The application form should be accompanied by the CVs of the project leader and other key persons of a maximum of one A4 page each. Any figures and images referred to in the text may be attached. Attachments, in addition to the CV, should not exceed 4 pages.
Please note that the project description must be included in the application form and not attached as an annex. See the list below on which annexes should be attached to the application.
The following annexes are mandatory and must be attached to the application on My Pages:
The actual writing of the application form is not so extensive, the work consists rather in getting the essence in a few words. More effort probably needs to be put into forming the consortium and working out what you want to do.
The portfolio is about the actions that need to be taken, the work packages are about how to organize the work.
There are no such plans at the moment, but there may be in the future. It is part of the Viable Cities DNA to push for new initiatives and funding to support the work of cities. We identify strategic areas together with cities and co-create what is needed to accelerate the transition.
We provide support until 16:00 on the day the call closes.
Viable Cities, utlysning@viablecities.se
Anton Blanck, Swedish Energy Agency, anton.blanck@energimyndigheten.se, 016-542 06 96
Emina Pasic, Swedish Energy Agency, emina.pasic@energimyndigheten.se, 016-544 21 89
Technical support at the Swedish Energy Agency: minasidor@energimyndigheten.se, 016-544 22
Viable Cities Call #14: Climate-neutral cities 2030 3.0 is part of the mission of climate-neutral cities 2030. To accelerate the climate transition, we need to work together in new ways across society between actors in the public sector, business, universities and research institutes and civil society. We also need, based on the mission of climate-neutral and sustainable cities 2030, to create a clear and long-term common direction in efforts from local, regional, national and international levels.
