Driving transformation: the acceleration potential of the EU Mission for Climate-Neutral and Smart Cities

The devastating effects of extreme weather conditions across Europe this past summer underscore the pressing challenges of climate change. In the race against time facing humanity, the recent climate COP meeting has again underlined the urgent need for climate action.  Against this alarming backdrop, the European Union has launched an ambitious initiative: the Mission for Climate-Neutral and Smart Cities – in short, the Cities Mission – to support 100 EU cities to achieve climate neutrality by 2030. The Cities Mission is one of five missions, a novelty within the EU’s research and innovation Horizon Europe programme that marks a new era of collaborative governance, innovation and citizen engagement.

Cities cover only 4% of the EU’s land area, yet they house 75% of the population and account for over 65% of the world’s energy consumption and 70% of global CO2 emissions. The Cities Mission, recognising the crucial role that urban centres play in climate mitigation, aims to catalyse green and digital transformations of cities across Europe. In doing so, it serves the ambitious goal of the European Green Deal — achieving climate neutrality by 2050.

The Cities Mission’s primary objectives are twofold: to attain 100 climate-neutral and smart cities by 2030 and to establish them as experimentation and innovation hubs, enabling all European cities to become climate-neutral by 2050. To achieve these goals, the Cities Mission involves collaboration among local authorities, citizens, businesses, investors, as well as regional and national authorities. It takes a cross-sectoral and demand-driven approach, seeking to foster synergies between existing initiatives.

Breaking silos and fostering collaboration

The Cities Mission fosters a collaborative community among ambitious cities and transcends traditional administrative boundaries at the EU, national, and regional levels. The Cities Mission involves cities from all EU member states, as well as from eight associated countries, encompassing most of the EU capital cities and 12% of the EU population. A Mission Platform provides tailor-made support to participating cities and facilitates cross-border collaboration in pilot projects and a twinning programme, complemented by learning and exchange opportunities such as summer schools. Cities highly appreciate working with their peers – they tell us that cities learn best from cities.

Some Mission cities have restructured their administrations to reflect the interdisciplinary nature of climate transition. For example, Lisbon has appointed a director for climate who reports directly to the mayor. National and regional support structures have been established in many countries, with governments providing additional sources of funding, for example, in Austria, Spain, Sweden and Greece.

The case of Austria exemplifies the Cities Mission’s potential as a catalyst for cities to work together on climate action. Already in the preparatory phase of the EU Cities Mission, the Austrian government launched a complementary national initiative called Fit4UrbanMission. The government now supports the ten biggest Austrian cities with a capacity building and exchange programme, which also allows the cities to hire additional staff to work on climate action. In this way, learnings of the EU Mission cities, which includes Klagenfurt in Austria, are passed on directly to more cities.

The domino effect

Public action and sources of funding will only ever be able to tackle a fraction of the necessary transition in cities, which is why private sector involvement is crucial. The Cities Mission can trigger a domino effect in this regard. For example, the Spanish cities of Valencia and Vitoria-Gasteiz convinced major local businesses, including a car manufacturer and a supermarket chain, to align themselves to the cities’ 2030 climate neutrality targets, triggering a chain reaction that made their competitors join as well. The Cities Mission thus drives a broader ripple effect, encouraging private entities to participate in the collective journey toward climate neutrality.

Common language and citizen engagement

The Cities Mission provides a point of reference and common language to cities and their stakeholders, bridging diverse points of view and placing citizen engagement at the core of its approach. Local stakeholders and citizens actively participate in co-creating so-called ‘Climate City Contracts’, outlining cities’ specific paths to climate neutrality.

This makes the European Green Deal a reality for local communities and its benefits tangible for citizens through cleaner air, safer transport, and reduced congestion and noise. It fosters a sense of ownership and participation in local communities through action in support of just transition.

As I visit cities in my role as Mission Manager, I am constantly struck by their innovative approaches to citizen engagement and by the impressive projects that have been conceived and realised by local communities. They are rightly proud of their achievements, ranging from clean energy districts and sustainable mobility to urban greening projects.

The success of the Cities Mission in supporting pioneer climate-neutral and smart cities relies on sustained political and financial commitment. This commitment needs active engagement at the city, regional, national and EU levels. It is essential to enhance ties between the Cities Mission and other funding instruments to optimise resources. The participation of private capital is also crucial in this transformative journey toward climate neutrality. Let’s all come together to create a sustainable and resilient path for our cities and communities.

This article is a contribution from a member or partner organisation of Friends of Europe. The views expressed in this #CriticalThinking article reflect those of the author(s) and not of Friends of Europe.