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Small stories and big news for those committed to a locally-driven energy transition.
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European City Facility opens second call with even more resources for cities
Get financial and technical support for your local sustainable energy investment plans!
After the huge enthusiasm created by the 1st call for projects, that received over 250 applications, the European City Facility (EUCF), led by Energy Cities, […]
The infinite energy …of people
Policy op-ed by Claire Roumet
No, I am not going to write about this fateful anniversary, this cursed year (or not), nothing, not a word about the pandemic. This newsletter […]
Helsinki Energy Challenge outcomes: an artificial island, salt and a HIVE will help decarbonise heating
Key lessons include involving citizens, market forces and combining existing technology with local resources
The city of Helsinki organised an international projects competition to find future-proof solutions to heat the city and meet its goal of becoming carbon neutral […]
The heated debate on hydrogen in our cities
Hydrogen is often presented as a quick fix to get rid of fossil fuels from heating and cooling in cities. But is it really?
In last week’s Decarb City Pipes 2050 webinar, Lisa Fischer, Programme Leader atE3G discussed with cities the role that hydrogen can play in the decarbonisation […]
Balkans citizens going solar
Spotlight on citizen energy in Croatia, Serbia and Bosnia-Herzegovina
The Western Balkans are a wonderful patchwork of cultures and the countries in the zone do each have their specific socio-economic context. While countries like […]
Higher efficiency + more renewables = lower emissions
Consultations on the European Commission’s Renewable and Efficiency Directives show the complexity behind a simple formula
The Renewable Energy Directive (RED) and the Energy Efficiency Directive (EED) need to become more ambitious if the EU is to achieve its objective to […]
Who are Energy Cities’ #CommunityPower champions?
An overview of our members’ community energy projects
In the last few years, we have been talking a lot about community energy. Energy Cities is part of the Community Power coalition, an advocacy […]
Where should green hydrogen fit in your city?
A short guide to where we think hydrogen can make the biggest impact in a city's energy transition.
Hydrogen is being touted as a solution to many challenges in the energy transition. And it is an exciting and flexible energy carrier that will […]
50 shades of (grey and blue and green) hydrogen
Puzzled by all the colours & jargon? This article is for you
When discussing the future of energy, hydrogen is on everyone’s lips. You might have heard of some of the colours associated to hydrogen, and wondered […]
Powering heritage buildings and districts with solar panels
Berlin’s Reichstag and the Vatican show that heritage is not a barrier to well-designed solar panels
Solar is the new ‘king of electricity’ according to Fatih Birol, Executive Director of the International Energy Agency (IEA). But many cities in Europe with […]
Renovation Wave will have a big impact on cities
Mandatory renovations for city-owned buildings and numerous lobbying wins makes for ambitious proposal
The Renovation Wave proposal from the European Commission landed on Oct. 14th and cities, for better or worse, will be most impacted. There are some […]
The EU Commission’s Hydrogen Prescription for System Integration
New strategies launched pushing energy efficiency and targeting sectors difficult to decarbonise
The European Commission’s new hydrogen strategy and energy system integration strategy have been launched. The two strategies work together. The hydrogen strategy is about developing […]
