Since the launch of its Gender Equal Cities report URBACT has embedded gender perspectives across its networks of cities, capacity-building activities and knowledge production. From dedicated webinars and online trainings to in-depth articles, practical tools and peer-learning sessions, gender equality has become an increasingly visible and transversal priority. Over the past years, URBACT cities have explored how to integrate gender-sensitive approaches into urban planning, mobility, public space design, local governance and economic development.
13 new youth-led case studies enrich the URBACT Knowledge Hub
In 2025, URBACT partnered with the French Urban School of Sciences Po to study how cities foster gender equality at local level. The research, conducted by four students, combined desk analysis with first-hand engagement. Students developed a database of over 30 municipal gender-focused initiatives and conducted 11 in-depth interviews with urban professionals between March and May 2025. As a result, 13 new case studies are now published on the URBACT Gender Equality Knowledge Hub.
The selected case studies span a diverse range of European cities covering a wide range of themes, from gender mainstreaming in municipal governance to gender-sensitive mobility planning, from gender-responsive public procurement to participatory processes engaging girls and young women. Particular attention was given to initiatives demonstrating measurable impact, institutional commitment, intersectional approaches, and transferability to other cities.
The 13 case studies in a glance:
- Glasgow (UK): gender mainstreaming in municipal governance
- Krakow (PL): Krakowianki – Women of Krakow
- Krakow (PL): HerStory - reinscribing women’s presence in urban space
- Lisbon (PT): integrating intersectionality and gender equality in public transport planning
- Botkyrka (SE): correcting gender-blind planning in a disadvantaged neighbourhood through the #UrbanGirlsMovement
- Krakow (PL): municipal gender equality plans for internal parity
- Brussels (BE), Espoo (FI), Ankara (TR): Gender Geographies: mapping disaggregated data for change
- GenProcure - Gender Responsive Procurement
- Berlin (DE): the Gender Datenreport
- Valladolid, Zaragoza and Valencia, (ES): Public Procurement: lessons from three Spanish cities
- Bielsko Biała (PL): bringing HerStory to male-dominated tech
- Zaragoza (ES): co-creating participatory processes through intersectionality
- Novi Pazar & Bijelo Polje (RS): building economic bridges for unemployed women
This collaboration adds a clear youth and intergenerational dimension to the URBACT Gender Equal Cities initiative and reinforces the understanding of gender equality as a transversal, evidence-based and continuously evolving process in European urban governance.
Discover the 13 new case studies now on the URBACT Gender Equality Knowledge Hub!
Want to know about more resources available to help cities integrate gender equality into urban policies and projects?
In 2025, URBACT delivered a dedicated online course on Gender Equal Cities. The course was reserved to the programme’s beneficiaries, but its contents will be soon shared with a wider audience, so stay tuned.
But that’s not all! In 2025 URBACT beneficiaries and city practitioners at large have also explored inclusive solutions to mobility challenges from a gender perspective thanks to a public webinar aimed at sharing best practices on the topic.
For continued learning, consult the URBACT Knowledge Hub for expert insights on building gender-equal cities.
