Networks and cities' news

EcoCore - Small Cities with Big Ambitions for their Green Transition

The climate time bomb is ticking. This is the most important global systemic threat to the worldwide economy today. In response, government policies from the local to international level are seeking to reshape industrial development towards more environmentally sound practices right across the value chain. This is commonly referred to as the green industrial transition.  

This transition or process of change is resulting in a worldwide movement towards more sustainable and eco-friendly industrial practices. The aim is to move away from traditional resource-heavy and polluting industrial processes to cleaner and more sustainable, efficient and smart alternatives. This will also involve a shift in consumer behaviour towards more sustainable products and services.

Green transition policies aim to reshape productive sectors, from energy to agriculture, mobility, manufacturing and construction. According to a recent paper entitled ‘The green transition and its potential territorial discontents’, there will however be winners and losers.  In short, the green transition may well redirect capital investments towards regions and cities where pre-conditions in terms of infrastructure, skills and governance are more favourable. Those who want to capitalise on the opportunities provided by the green transition – those who want to emerge as ‘winners’ -  need to ensure that these preconditions are firmly in place. 

Cognisant of this, the EcoCore network of nine small European cities have opted to unite in proactively shaping their future fate and seizing the opportunities provided by the green transition for their local economies.  

“Vitamin N” for everyone – Transforming cities’ relationship with nature and the rise of nature-based solutions to tackle the ecological crisis

Bestseller author Richard Louv defined nature-deficit disorder in his book (Vitamin N: The Essential Guide to a Nature, 2016 – where “N” is for “nature”) and launched an international movement to get humans’ connection back to nature, especially in urban areas where this connection has been dramatically lost over the last centuries, as it was painfully, but perfectly showcased during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Promoting the 30-minutes Territories - Challenges and Ambitions for Small and Mid-size Communities

Is it all about the parents?

Social isolation: a silent and nearly invisible epidemic that needs to be broken

Humans are, by nature, social creatures. We, humans, need social interactions. We need to talk, to laugh, to cry, to play, to share. Of course, we also enjoy, sometimes, to withdraw and take a break from social interactions. This is the need for solitude. And it’s just fine and a rather healthy practice. Because it’s temporary, it’s about taking time just for yourself.

But what happens when one does not get any social interaction, at all? And when it’s not by choice? When a person has, completely, and for a long period, no meeting, no sharing, no exchanging with his/her fellow human? What happens when one gets truly isolated, left alone? What happens to our society when more and more people get isolated, feel left out, abandoned, unfit for society?

Unifying Efforts for Bringing One Health in Cities

A European collaboration for human, animal and environmental health

In the face of diverse health and environmental challenges across European regions and globally, the One Health 4 Cities Network emerges as a beacon of collaboration and knowledge exchange looking for holistic solutions in cities.

The need for systemic approaches that support not only the current states of living but safeguard our environments for the future is very prominent. The One Health approach will bring us solutions that never were so urgent before.

Unique of its kind, the Network brings light on how to implement the One Health approach in urban public policies, strategies, and projects. It recognises that the perception of the One Health concept may vary according to EU regions and cities and it aims to refine and propagate this transformative approach by bringing together partners representing a wide variety of local contexts.

Comprising cities with varying levels of experience in One Health, the network fosters a collaborative environment where the nine partners come together to learn and share experiences: Benissa (ES), Elefsina (GR), Kuopio (FI), Lahti (FI), Loulé (PT), Lyon (FR), Munich (DE), Eurometropolis of Strasbourg (FR) and Suceava (RO).