Inventive measures and tools to accelerate cities’ energy transition: Lisbon and Stuttgart in the spotlight!


Cities keep their course!
Cities from all across the world are busy outlining roadmaps and masterplans defining the kind of energy transition they are keen to deliver: 100% renewable or climate neutral by 2050.
But 2050 is now!

Lisbon’s 2050 roadmap

Lisbon, together with seven other European cities, (Barcelona, Copenhagen & Malmö, Istanbul, Lisbon, Litomerice, Milan & Turin, Rostock & Zagreb) designed local 2050 “post-carbon” roadmaps in the framework of the EU-funded POCACITO (Post Carbon Cities of Tomorrow) project.

Lisbon has been collaborating with local actors to develop a common vision: “A smart city with more people, more jobs and better quality of life”. Considering this vision as the desirable endpoint, six thematic areas were selected in the visioning process: mobility, energy, climate change, urban regeneration, inclusion and attractiveness. After identifying opportunities and obstacles, milestones and actions were agreed upon, using 2020 and 2030 as interim points: developing pedestrian areas and public spaces, cocreation of urban furniture with citizens (3D printing), launching Neighbourhood Sustainability Contests, promoting cohousing initiatives… 
Most of the measures will be implemented in a pilot district of Lisbon and will then be scaled up to the entire city!

POCACITO
One of the major results of the POCACITO 7FP project (2014-2016), co-financed by ADEME, is an EU 2050 roadmap which calls for cities to be better involved in EU policy making. It is the result of a two-year consultation process with both EU and local stakeholders. The roadmap is accompanied by a series of 6 Policy Briefs targeting political decision-makers and an online marketplace of ideas presents 60 factsheets covering most of the fields of the transition to a local post-carbon economy.

Stuttgart: Innovating for the energy transition

Stuttgart has an ambitious vision for 2050: climate neutrality, i.e. reaching the ultimate balance between emissions and the absorptive capacity of the Earth. Stuttgart is putting a lot of efforts in reaching its vision! For many years now, the city has been implementing inventive measures to improve energy efficiency in private and public buildings, a sector which is responsible for over 35% of GHG emissions in the EU. As early 1995, the city council set up an innovative financing scheme aimed at increasing energy efficiency and the use of renewable energy in public buildings, equipment and facilities. The combination of a revolving fund and an internal contracting Intracting scheme has already allowed the municipality to finance around 350 energy efficiency measures, generating savings of over EUR 22 million.
As for the private residential sector, the city offers a “care-free package” for the home owners who are willing to carry out energy renovation works, with the aim of raising the annual energy refurbishment rate from 1,5 to 3% by 2020. Signatory to the Covenant of Mayors, Stuttgart has set itself the objective to reduce CO2 emissions by 20% by 2020, compared to 1990 levels. A target that the city intends to reach by implementing the measures described in its action plan “Klimaschutzkonzept Stuttgart”. And by carrying on visioning, daring, inventing!

All best practices of Stuttgart, Lisbon and all members of Energy Cities are in our database