• How Ukrainian cities stand up a year after Russia’s invasion?

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    Nataliya Lazarenko at the URBACT City Festival - COVER
    24/02/2023

    A year after the Russian invasion in Ukraine, URBACT takes the opportunity to interview Nataliya Lazarenko from the Association of Ukrainian Cities.

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    Nataliya Lazarenko at the URBACT City Festival
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    Collaborative painting in the United for Ukraine stand at the URBACT City Festival

     

    Nataliya Lazarenko, works as International Cooperation Manager at the Association of Ukrainian Cities (AUC), which is the all-Ukrainian association of local governments established in 1992. Today, the association brings together 1 002 municipalities in all the regions of the country, where more than 90% of Ukrainian population resides. AUC is the official voice of the local governments, the engine of reforms. It’s also a partner of the Parliament of Ukraine, the Government of Ukraine, the Office of the President of Ukraine and international organisations like the Council of European Municipalities and Regions. Nataliya Lazarenko and the Stand with Ukraine initiative were also present at the URBACT City Festival in June 2022 where a special session on “How to welcome Ukrainian residents in your city” took place.

     

     

    Collaborative painting based on the art work from Ukrainian painter,
    Maria Prymachenko, in the United for Ukraine stand at the URBACT City Festival

     

     

    A year after the invasion of the Ukrainian territory, how do you perceive the situation today?

     

    Last year brought a lot of horror to our lives, forced millions of people to leave their homes, killed thousands of civilians, damaged or totally ruined thousands of residential buildings, roads, hundreds of schools, kindergartens, hospitals, churches, cultural heritage… but it united us. We’ve one clear vision and desire: to win the war, to get back all our territories within the borders of 1991, to bring our people back home, to cure souls and wounds, to reconstruct our municipalities, to foster our future development. Also, it showed us that Ukraine is not alone in this battle. The world stands with us.

    It was a very difficult year to all of us, because we had to adapt to rather unpredicted or sudden changes. For instance, since October 2022, after regular massive missile attacks, we have been regularly facing the blackouts, with many hours without electricity. This greatly impacts our lives and work, but we do our best to cope with them. A lot of important things were implemented with our international partners, of course. Thanks to their support municipalities were provided with energy-generating equipment. And here I would like to thank European municipalities and businesses for being so fast, responsive and helpful.

    Still, many municipalities need assistance. Many of them have no electricity, gas and drinking water. Internally displaced people need new homes and some territories are still occupied by invaders. We still face missile attacks. There are still a lot of challenges. But indeed, we feel stronger than a year ago. We feel proud of our people. We feel grateful to all the countries that stand with us. We feel sorry that we have to ask for help, but we are convinced that we must win for the sake of the world’s security and for the democratic values.

    I would also like to draw special attention to the fact that since the beginning of the war, 59 local government officials have been abducted by the Russian military. Among them there were 35 mayors, today, 5 mayors are still in captivity. We urge for the freedom of our people.

     

    Ukranian mayors who are still missing

     

     

    How do you see and imagine the future of Ukrainian cities?

     

    My dream is to see peaceful, well-developed and comfortable Ukrainian cities, towns and villages with happy citizens. Also, I dream about the time when Ukraine had its own International Development Agency, like USAID or GIZ, and implements projects to share its best practices with other countries.

     

     

    How European cities can support Ukraine and the Ukrainian residents? 

     

    Last year a special initiative www.cities4cities.eu was launched by the city of Sindelfingen and supported by the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe, Council of European Municipalities and Regions, and Association of Ukrainian Cities. This year this initiative will be upgraded and you will be able to see the full profiles of Ukrainian municipalities that would like to establish long-term relations. So, if you want to help, please contact Association of Ukrainian Cities. If you want to find a partner municipality, please contact auc.communities@gmail.com. We need your assistance to win the war and reconstruct our municipalities. Our local governments are preparing projects for their restoration.

    At the moment, basic needs of the Ukrainian municipalities are:

     

    - Development of partnership relations between communities of other countries;

    - Participation in projects for fast, mid-term, and long-term recovery and development;

    - Building housing, bomb shelters, new technologies to do that, construction materials;

    - Energy saving technologies, water purification technologies;

    - Municipal equipment and transport;

    - Medical equipment.

     

    You may also provide a support to the Association of Ukrainian Cities as a representative of the whole local governance in Ukraine. Also, we encourage municipalities to establish partnerships with the Ukrainian municipalities. I thank URBACT for the opportunity of sharing this messages and I do hope to build and reinforce future cooperation with European cities.

     

     

    United for Ukraine stand at the URBACT City Festival

    United for Ukraine stand at the 2022 URBACT City Festival (original drawing by Maria Prymachenko, Ukrainian artist)

     

     

     


     

     
    Are you from an European city?  Get in touch with the Association of Ukrainian Cities at auc.communities@gmail.com to establish a partnership. The current URBACT open call for Action Planning Networks is also a unique opportunity for eligible partners to invite a Ukrainian municipality to join their journey as an observer. Together, we stand for Ukraine!

     

     

     

     

  • Retour sur l'Infoday URBACT France

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    Présentation Infoday France 2023
    14/02/2023

    Le 1er février dernier s'est tenu l'Infoday URBACT France&Luxembourg. L'occasion de revenir sur les grands enjeux du programme URBACT et de présenter le nouvel appel à réseaux en cours du 9 janvier au 31 mars 2023.

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    C'est dans le cadre cosy d'une ancienne gare de la petite ceinture de Paris transformée en tiers-lieux, La REcyclerie , qu'une cinquantaine d'acteurs français des politiques urbaines locales se sont réunis  pour mieux comprendre le programme URBACT et envisager une candidature pour l'appel à réseaux en cours.

     

    Infoday France 2023 - Echanges plénièresLes réseaux, les experts, les chefs de file, les partenariats, les groupes locaux URBACT, etc... les participants ont pu découvrir très largement le programme URBACT. La matinée était consacrée aux présentations générales pour bien saisir les plus-values ​​d'une participation pour les Collectivités locales. L'occasion de revenir sur la méthode URBACT et l'intérêt des échanges transnationaux dans la conception de politiques publiques locales.

    Le point d'orgue de la matinée fût les échanges entre 3 anciens partenaires français URBACT qui sont revenus sur leur parcours au sein d'un réseau et ont fait leur retour d'expérience. Ainsi, grâce à Clermont-Auvergne métropole pour son réseau Urb-en-Pact , Agen pour son réseau Active Citizens , et Saint-Quentin pour son réseau DigiPlace , ont été décomptées 5 bonnes raisons de s'engager dans un réseau URBACT :

    - Trouver de nouvelles solutions concrètes pour les territoires ;

    - S'inspirer des pratiques et de l'expérience de vos homologues européens ;

    - Co-produire une stratégie urbaine intégrée avec vos acteurs locaux ;

    - Bénéficier d'une expertise européenne ;

    - Intégrer une communauté de travail européenne.

     

    L'après-midi, ce sont 4 ateliers qui ont permis aux Collectivités locales d'aborder toutes les facettes d'une candidature et ainsi préparer sa réponse à l'appel à réseaux en cours.

    Journée d'information France 2023 - Table rondeUn speed-dating a été organisé entre les Collectivités françaises et les Points de contacts nationaux de Belgique, d'Espagne, de Grèce/Chypre, de Pologne, et de République tchèque. L'objectif était de commencer à envisager les possibilités de partenariats avec d'autres villes européennes autour d'une thématique commune. Les Collectivités françaises ont donc présenté leurs idées de projets aux Points de contacts nationaux qui ont fait le lien avec des villes de leurs pays respectifs, et ainsi commencer le partenariat et la mise en réseaux.

    Un autre atelier présentait la répartition des rôles au sein d'un réseau. Cet atelier permet notamment de revenir sur le rôle de tous ceux qui font le succès d'un réseau : de Lead partner, de Project partner, du Lead expert, des experts ad hoc, du Secrétariat URBACT, etc. Ce fût l'occasion de revenir en détail sur le rôle particulier du Lead partner, et de la plus-value des experts URBACT au sein d'un réseau.

    Un troisième atelier a permis de maximiser ces chances d'intégration dans un réseau en se préparant à la candidature et à la complétion du formulaire. Le Secrétariat URBACT est également revenu en détail sur les attentes des différentes rubriques du formulaire de candidature.

    Un dernier atelier se consacrait à la préparation du budget collectif au réseau et individuel par partenaire. Le Secrétariat URBACT y a notamment développer la construction et la répartition du budget entre partenaires, les dépenses éligibles et le remboursement FEDER. 

     

    Pour avoir un retour complet sur cette journée riche en information et en échange, plusieurs documents vous sont proposés : 

    Le PowerPoint présenté lors de la journée

    Le PowerPoint présenté par le Secrétariat URBACT ;

    Un compte rendu des présentations et des échanges ;

    Le formulaire de candidature détaillé ;

    Le budget sur Synergie et les dépenses éligibles.

     

    Cette journée a été organisée par le Point de Contact national URBACT pour la France et le Luxembourg avec l'appui de Séverine Bressaud et Cécilia Dumesnil d'Eurêka21.

  • The Bee Path Cities - good for pollinators and therefore good for people

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    13/02/2023

    The Bee Path Cities network – a network of urban authorities that have come together under the shared vision of creating cities that are good for pollinators and therefore good for people was established in October 2022. Listen to five mayors explaining the greening changes in their neighbourhoods fostered by seeking to understand, adapt, re-use and upgrade the inspiring Ljubljana (Slovenia) ‘Bee Path’ practice. Learn what the Bee Path City network philosophy stands for and how to join HERE.

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    You can explore a diversity of approaches implemented in the cities covering the majority of different climate conditions for beekeeping, various types of bees, as well as different situations related to the perception of bees among the general public in inspiring stories of Bansko (Bulgaria), Bergamo (Italy), Ljubljana (Slovenia), Osijek (Croatia), Sosnowiec (Poland).

     

    Find out more:

    Visit webpage: www.urbact.eu/Bees

    Contact us: beepathnet@ljubljana.si

  • Perfect partners?

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    Valentine's Day - Be my project partner - COVER
    13/02/2023

    How to put together a strong partnership for an URBACT Network.

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    While Valentine’s Day reminds us the importance of love in our lives, URBACT Action Planning Networks trigger good partnerships across EU cities willing to work together. For those aiming to submit an application for the open call for networks, read on for advice on how to find the best match and figure out the best way to seek out your ideal exchange and learning city partners.

    Action Planning Networks bring together a number of city partners to collaborate over 2.5 years. Together they address a common urban challenge to develop long-term strategies and solutions to suit their local needs, the so-called Integrated Action Plans.  The URBACT Programme specifies criteria about the composition and balance of these network partnerships.

     

    In summary, each network proposal needs to have:

    - from 8 to 10 partners, one municipality or local authority as a Lead Partner and the other institutions as Project Partners;

    - a balanced partnership with cities coming from more developed, less developed and transition regions, in line with the EU Cohesion Policy;

    - partners from the 27 EU member states, Norway, Switzerland Albania, Montenegro, Bosnia and Hezergovina, Bosnia and North Macedonia are all eligible for URBACT funds. Cities from other countries can also take part in networks at their own costs;

    - the eligibility details are further described in the Terms of Reference for the call. In case of doubts, reach out to apn@urbact.eu

     

    So that already narrows the field... just a little.  You now have the pick of hundreds of towns and cities across Europe!

     


     

    What makes a good match?

     

    It's important to take the time and effort to identify a great partnership at the application stage. In the context of the call (Terms of Reference, criterion 3), the quality and relevance of the partnership are highly valued, at 35% of the overall score to be more precise.

     

    This is what the assessors will be looking for:

     

    1. Relevant policy challenge for all 6. Identified value of benefitting from the URBACT
    2. An appropriate geographical mix of EU Member States 7. Relevant and diverse stakeholders to consolidate an URBACT Local Group
    3. Relevant strategic environment 8. High potential for funding actions
    4. Links to the urban dimension of Cohesion Policy 9. Relevant staff skills
    5. Willingness and ability to get involved 10. Overall coherence

     

     

    Exploring potential partners

     

    So, what does that mean in practice and how can you fulfil the criteria to be successful and create a great group for future collaboration?

    In a change from the URBACT III (2014 – 2020) to the current programme period, networks will start with a full partnership from the beginning. In the past a reduced number of partners started the first six-months of the project (Phase 1) and expanded the partnership for the following two-year journey (Phase 2). Starting with a full partnership in URBACT IV means it's important to get the right partners in place at the application stage which will allow networks to go faster and quicker.

    From our experience a vital element of productive partnership is a genuine shared interest and need around a particular challenge, whether that be mobility, digital transition or something else. Each partner also needs to bring a commitment to truly engage with all elements of the URBACT Programme. That means full participation in all meetings, openness and honesty, as well as  willingness and enthusiasm to complete related tasks and support others.  It means learning about the URBACT Method, building local capacity and integrating URBACT’s cross cutting themes of digital, green and gender equality into policymaking. Thinking about how much time and effort will be involved over the 2.5-year timeframe is key.

    2019 URBACT City Lab - finding partnersThe question of coherence and balance does not necessarily mean that all partners are similar or at the same stage of development. While some previous partnerships have been of similar cities, such as all capitals in ACCESS the metropolises in RiConnect; or all small and medium-sized cities in IPlace or ESIMEC; or even made of balanced structure, like in the Tropa Verde Transfer Network which counted with two boroughs/districts, two large cities and two agglomerations/metropolis.

    But equally, we have seen successful partnerships with cities of different sizes, from different regional contexts, at different stages of development. In fact, the mutual learning does not go in a single direction, from “well-developed” to “less-developed” partners. There are always interesting insights to discover, through peer exchange and site visits, which promote reflection and innovative thinking. What matters is to demonstrate clearly the rationale of working in this formation, that the partners have a shared interest in the common challenge and have established this together before submitting the application.

    To assist in this process a questionnaire for all potential partners is a useful way to collect the information that will be required to complete the application form, but also to assess what exactly the learning needs and potential contributions are, how each city partner wants to focus their local Integrated Action Plan. The criteria listed above would provide a good foundation. In addition, one to one or group calls are easy to set up to talk virtually and test the waters with each other.  These are the kinds of questions that could be explored with more nuance in calls:

     

    Do they have the right resources?

    Can city partners commit the right kind of resource? Are they able to find the level of match funding? Can they allocate or hire the right staff to fulfil the local project roles? Do they have the finance team that can do the reporting on time and understand the audit control? Are they ready to set up and drive the local group and encourage local stakeholders to get involved at both local and transnational level? A good indicator is also the responsiveness of a potential partner at this stage already. If you are having to chase them then maybe that’s not a good omen.

     

    Are they open to learning?

    Do you get a sense that the city partners are hungry for new knowledge? Keen to learn and to honestly share their own experiences? What is their baseline level of understanding, for instance, of integrated and participated approaches?

     

    Do they have political support?

    It's really important that city partners will have political support in place. This is one of the known key barriers to implementation of Integrated Action Plans. It can also be quite destabilising or difficult administratively to lose a partner along the way if, for whatever reason, they withdraw from the network. How can prospective partners evidence that their political leaders are fully briefed and on board?

     

    What exactly do they want to get out of participation in an URBACT Network?

    It's good to tease out what exactly cities want from participating in URBACT. Is it money? Professional development? The chance to improve participative and integrated approaches? An opportunity to develop a plan that has more chance of securing EU and national funds?  Make sure that partners understand what URBACT does and doesn't do and that they are applying to the right fund for the right reason.

     

     

    Finding project partners

     

     

    2018 URBACT City Festival - finding partners

     

    Where to find suitable candidates? The easy answer lies in URBACT’s Partner Search Tool.  Although the platform might ignite many exchanges and allow people to have first contact with others, we are aware that many partnerships are done offline. URBACT events, notably the City Festivals, are a great way to get in touch with other cities and meet new peers.

    Another way to get an overview of other proposals and opportunities is to reach out to the National URBACT Points. They are basically the programme’s ambassadors, who represent URBACT and communicate about it on a regular basis using local languages. To further disseminate information about the call, they have been organising National Infodays both in-person and online, which you are welcome to attend If, by any chance, you have missed the event, you can still contact your corresponding National URBACT Point.

     

     

     

     

    Everlasting love?

     

    URBACT partnerships last 2.5 years and often it's very hard to say goodbye at the end. But there are lots of examples of enduring friendships and spin off collaborations. There’s something incredibly rewarding and motivating about connecting with colleagues from other cities across Europe who do a similar job, who face similar challenges and are as focused on driving change.

    Several networks or parts of networks have gone on in the past to work together in different shapes and sizes both within and beyond URBACT, for instance more than 30% of the URBACT III cities have applied to Horizon 2020 after the end of their network. The original Electric Vehicles in Urban Europe network went on to leverage the results into a multi-million Euro demonstration project through it.

    Many cities have worked together through evolutions of URBACT Networks around tech and digital transition: from Techtown to TechRevolution and even a spin-off, the TechRevolution 2.0 Likewise, the original Action Planning Network PROCURE has later turned into the Transfer Network Making Spend Matter Both cases had many cities in common, including the same ones acting as Lead Partners.

    In other cases, a specific theme was used as a common thread and as an occasion for cities to evolve and seek outnew directions. This was the case of AGRI-URBAN a network in which many partners moved towards Horizon 2020 opportunities, while other partners developed an URBACT Transfer Network, the BioCanteens counting with yet another spin-off, the BioCanteens 2 It’s worth mentioning that the Lead Partner of both BioCanteens’ networks was originally a new-comer Project Partner in AGRI-URBAN.

    Some towns active in URBACT placemaking networks went on to deliver the Erasmus PART-Y project around gender sensitive youth services and participation. While a project partner from CREATIVE SPIRITS Implementation Networks has pursued its project with Urban Innovative Actions’ funds, the partners from the Re-growCities Transfer Networks founded a brand new project with EuroTowns. Most recently, some of the cities from the SibDev Action Planning Network had their bid for an Interreg Europe project approved.

     


     

     

    Valentine's URBACT heartHopefully these tips will help the right partners find each other to bid for URBACT funds. In the meantime, the Secretariat is here to help. Although it's not possible to provide an active matchmaking service, there are several resources to help you as you prepare your application, like all webinars and different materials. Just like love, cooperation knows no limits. But when it comes to the call for Action Planning Networks, don’t forget the deadline- 31 March.

     

     

     

  • Digital Transition in cities – how can it benefit citizens?

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    Women using her phone to take a picture at the Tallinn URBACT City Festival
    15/11/2022

    Take a trip down memory lane with us. Re-discover stories and reflections that we've captured over the last years. This article was first published in 2019 and, yet, is more relevant than ever, with digital transition at the heart of EU cohesion policy objectives and the URBACT Programme.

    Articles

     

    Digitalisation is omnipresent in today’s social and urban life and URBACT cities are seizing the opportunity. As Alison Partridge, Lead Expert of the TechRevolution 2.0 and the TechRevolution Transfer Networks, always advocates cities need to ‘adapt or die’. for many years: “cities of all sizes need to better understand the opportunities offered by digital and tech and jump on them to grow higher value jobs and start-ups for local people”. Indeed, at all levels of society and of governance, services and products are going digital: online availability, digital tools for access, compiling and using data to proceed to meta-analysis.

     

    The transition to a society based on “virtual”, intangible, vectors, using computing techniques and algorithms – a digital transition - is growing in European cities, meaning more intrusions in our daily lives.

     

     

    The use of new technologies to communicate and access information is changing the way society works

     

     

    states the Action Plan of the Digital Transition Urban Agenda Partnership because “citizens live an increasingly digital life both in the public and private sphere”.

     

    Beyond the digital divide issue, private data protection and free choice, this trend follows new consumption and production patterns, as well as interaction between people.

     

    Taking advantage of digital transition’s potential is an asset for cities, not only for business development and job creation, but also for city governance and getting closer to citizens, thus developing more integrated governance approaches at city level. That is the way URBACT cities have approached their digital transition over the last 15 years – as a means of driving change in cities.This article, written by URBACT Expert Marcelline Bonneau,  presents a few cases from URBACT cities and Urban Agenda Partnerships, which can inspire other cities.

     

     

    Digital transition as a goal: transforming cities’ local economic development

     

     

    Cities are taking advantage of digital transition as a goal in itself. Indeed, the digital sector has been and should be developed. Creating “smart cities” is now appearing in more and more cities’ strategy as a way to achieve competitive advantage. Focusing on local economic development, as a new way of addressing emerging societal issues such as environmental and social ones, requires strong leadership, commitment and investments.

     

    For some URBACT Networks, digitalisation of cities means the development of incubators, hubs and other platforms to support the development of jobs and skills. Featuring a wealth of examples about the ways in which cities support tech and digital economy, TechPlace showcases URBACT Networks such as TechTown, GEN Y CITY and Interactive Cities. It shares content such as articles, videos, podcasts and presentations on the ways cities use social media, digital strategies, digital education, digital health, co-working environments, digital hubs etc.

     

    Developing digital strategies is the starting point of the DigiPlace network, one of the 23 approved Action Planning Networks back in 2019. It seeks to support the creation of global vision and improve technical and engineering capacities by incorporating digital innovation, with both hard and soft infrastructures. Supporting digital growth and transformational economies is also the key focus of the TechRevolution 2.0 network. Transferring the experience of Barnsley (UK) and its Digital Media Centre, a business support programme which nurtures an 'ecosystem' thanks to knowledge-based jobs and businesses across all sectors and industries.

     

    As for the skills needed to move towards more digital cities, URBACT has also contributed to the Digital Skills Map platform, as an outcome of the Urban Agenda Partnership on Jobs and Skills, presenting local know-how on digitalisation in vocational education and training.

     

     

     

     

     

     

    Digital transition as a methodology: A governance focus

     

     

    Digitalisation can, on the other hand, be seen as a methodology. The process, supporting societal and urban transition, has a strong impact on governance, and on how our everyday life is organised - as well as on the way we make the city work.

     

    Although the use of technology can lead to personalisation of services, “strengthening the barrier between the people and the services which their taxes fund”, as pointed out by URBACT Expert Eddy Adams following URBACT city lab's contribution to the Leipzig Charter, it's key to use adequate language which does not alienate people. Indeed, administrations and citizens need to get to know each other and adopt a language that is understandable by both sides. When used correctly, digitalisation and new technologies can be harnessed to transform cities into platforms of open innovation and develop digital urbanism. The ESPON working paper on the “Digital innovation in urban environments: Solutions for sustainable and fluently working cities” backs the benefit for vertical and horizontal co-creation of cities.

     

    Digital transition can be supported by specific tools to make governance more inclusive, participatory and more efficient. As identified by ESPON, larger cities and Northern European cities are more advanced than the rest of European cities.

     

    Such a process, according to the Urban agenda Partnership on Digital Transition, can be supported by 4 frameworks: technological, organisational, institutional and by stakeholders (see figure). Indeed, what is of crucial importance to cities is not what technology is used but how it is used.

     

    Nele Leosk, 2019, DIGITAL TRANSITION ABC

     

    Creating a one-stop shop for citizens and ensuring the centralisation of citizens’ information is the core of the Card4All URBACT network transferring the experience Citizen Card System of Gijon (ES). The card enables using innovative services and technologies. Cities can thus gather information to improve their services and use it as part of a participative processes. This can be applied to promote social inclusion, local trade, urban mobility and sustainable living, creating a Smart City with Smart Citizens. Such a card can be used for access to citizens’ terminals (for public services), public transport, library, swimming pool, public toilets, car sharing, etc. The IoTxChange network also seeks to benefit from the Internet of Things (IoT) solutions to improve the quality of life in small and medium sized EU cities.

     

    At the same time, participation and citizens’ engagement is also increasingly relying on digital tools. The participatory budget of Paris URBACT Good Practice is an online process which combines offline and online promotion. The city of Agen (FR) has started a new network, ActiveCitizen, placing citizens at the heart of local democracy in small and medium-sized cities, developing new interactive platforms such as Agen’s Tell My City.

     

    Many other URBACT cities have developed digital solutions on a wider scale. For example, Helsinki (FI), within the REFILL network, shared its experiment with an online service, Flexi Spaces, allowing people to find and book spaces by the hour in the neighbourhood of Kalasatama. After all, it's safe to say URBACT brings a wealth of knowledge and practical cases into the European Urban Policy debate – helping develop and share new innovative solutions creating smart cities.

     

     

     


     

     

    Are you interested in the topic of digital transition but don't know where to start?

    Join us for a webinar on 9 March 2023, from 10.00 to 11.30 (CET), to understand how tech can be an asset in your city and how it can potentially help you in your future action-planning journey

     

     

    Digital transition URBACT webinar

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  • Copying Neighbours - augmented edition

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    Copying Neighbours
    20/01/2023

    More lessons learned about how to transfer inspiring practices between cities on sustainable food?

    Take a look at last BioCanteens URBACT Transfer Network publication



     

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    COPYING NEIGHBOURS…
    How to facilitate the collaboration between territories, the exchange of inspiring cases, the translation between governance cultures, the emulation and transfer between cities and resilience through cooperation in the face of such as the pandemic, the Ukraine crisis, or other unprecedented future problems?
    BioCanteens is one of the 23 URBACT Transfer Networks engaged in a form of “action-research” to transfer "Good Practice" from one city to a set of partner cities across Europe. In this augmented edition completing the first publication based on the experience of BioCanteens1 with the experience of BioCanteens2 “second wave”, you will find out...

    ...LESSONS OF BIOCANTEENS TRANSFER NETWORKS
    BioCanteens Transfer Network is about ensuring the distribution of sustainable school meals in participating cities as a key lever towards the development of an integrated local agri-food approach, protecting both citizens’ health and the environment. The project aims to transfer Mouans-Sartoux’s Good Practice based on the daily distribution of meals that are 100% organic and mostly composed of local products, the drastic reduction of food waste thereby fully compensating the higher cost of switching to organic products, and the organisation of dedicated educational activities to raise children’s awareness about sustainable food. It tells the various “Transfer stories” of the 9 BioCanteens city partners: Gavà in Spain, Liège and Pays des Condruses in Belgium, Rosignano-Marittimo in Italy, Torres Vedras in Portugal, Trikala in Greece, Troyan in Bulgaria, Vaslui in Romania and Wroclaw in Poland. You may also learn about “Transfer outcomes” after BioCanteens 1 & 2 and in particular the European online event organized in March 2021 in partnership with URBACT and the Glasgow Declaration and the Mouans-Sartoux Food Festival « À TABLE ! » organized in September 2022 to share the networks experiences, to raise European cities’ awareness on food sovereignty and to call on Europe to consider the need for a food exception in public procurement.

     

    Read the full document HERE and start your revolution!

  • Is the compact city model endangered?

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    Is the compact city model endangered? Article COVER
    20/01/2023

    Three Action Planning Networks (2019 - 2022) came together to gather inspiration on how people can experience and move through the city.

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    The Walk’n’Roll initiative, 27 different towns, cities and metropolises from the RiConnect, the Thriving Streets and the Space4People networks had a common mission. Together, they reflected about how mobility can play an important role when building better public spaces and increase the quality of life for local communities.  Iván Tosics, URBACT Expert who followed their exchange and learning journey, shares with us some of the key take-aways, findings and open questions that were raised during the Walk’n’Roll many and which are compiled in a brand new Guidebook. Take a ride with us and enjoy the read!

     


     

    URBACT Walk'n'Roll

     

    The recent pandemic was an important episode in the history of urban development. Much can be learnt from the immediate reactions to the health crisis, especially in dense cities. There were many brilliant examples about innovative tactical interventions in public space, inclusive housing policies, new types of economic support and social protection mechanisms, from which we can take stock.

    As the peak of the pandemic has slowly come to an end, the life in cities has quickly returned to its pre-Covid pace. A negative legacy is the incessant growth of suburbanisation, a process that has exploded over the last two years not only in Europe, but also in almost all parts of the world...

     

    A common effect in different cities

     

    In Oslo (NO), internal movements in and around the city, have shown an increased outmigration in the past two years with people aged between 25-30 and 60-70 moving away from the city, towards its outskirts and beyond. The “working from home effect” can partially explain this phenomenon. People with higher wages had a tendency to move away. It’s interesting to note though that most of the outmigrants were people who were not born in Oslo, according to studies.

    Likewise, in American cities, a substantial reallocation of housing and office demand has become tangible. People chose to move to the suburbs, away from dense city centres. Some analysts have called this as the “doughnut effect”. Meaning the rise of the suburbs and the slump of the city centre, driven by a fear of crowds and the opportunity of working from home.

    In a very recent analysis on the situation of the Paris urban area (FR), the academia has tried to collect all available information about internal residential migration, using unusual data. Information from rural associations, from the post office regarding permanent re-direction of mails to new address, or even schools' registrations were used as unexpected, yet rich sources. As evidence shows, migration flows from the downtown to the urban fringe are visible. According to this analysis, such movement of people cannot be considered as an urban exodus though. So, if not an exodus, what are these new forms of migration then?

     

    The new intra-urban migration tendencies

     

    First of all, research suggests that no direct, causal links exist between the spread of the virus and urban density. According to an OECD, it’s not density alone that makes cities vulnerable to Covid-19, but rather a mix of factors. The structural economic and social conditions play a role in this regard with overcrowdness, inequality, insufficient living conditions and the spatial concentration of the urban poor.

    The consequences from this new suburbanisation, on the other hand, are very clear: growing climate and energy problems due to increasing car-use, intensification of social disparities, since those who are leaving the city centre are the ones who can afford to do so. Moreover, there are also more and more problems in places where people tend to move out from. In the Budapest area (HU), for example, there are growing complaints in the agglomerational settlements with physical and human infrastructure problems, caused by the quick, unplanned growth of new residents.

    That being said, the post-Covid city presents us with a silver lining, an opportunity to rethink the principles of the urban compact development. For instance the British professor, Greg Clark, offers us a vision with blended cities and a more spread planification process. He argues for a wider distribution of activities between urban areas to offer second and third tear cities more chances. He also makes the case for better disposition of services within functional urban areas, based on the growth of "neighbourliness" and the emerging social capital.  

    Clark argues that people living in the fringes might still travel to the larger city centers from time to time, and acknowledges that they might not always work from home. At the same time, they will also get a taste for the local life where they live. People will spend more time – and money – in their neighbourhoods and, by consequence, new opportunities might arise for towns, suburban and secondary downtowns. So, these are not simply places where people sleep and work from home, but also places of exchange and for gatherings. Where, eventually, communities might thrive.

    This idea raises challenges for future urban development, for instance, issues related to metropolitan planning. Where to build new housing and dwellings? And how to regulate transport fares? These are just a few of the questions that were discussed during the Walk’n’Roll conference in Barcelona (ES), held in July 2022. The findings are summarised below.

     

     

    How to improve existing dense areas?

     

    The most widely accepted definition for adequate urban density is the one that acknowledges the need for an accessibility shift: changing urban transportation and land-use planning on the basis of people's ability to reach destinations, rather than on their ability to travel fast. This vision relies on the principle of re-humanising cities.

     

    The proximity aspect

     

    In the Walk’n’Roll conference the topic of proximity was at the heart of the discussion. In order for residents to give up the frequent use of car and, in perspective, also the ownership of a car, urban areas have to be changed. They must allow people to reach the most important everyday-destinations in a short time on foot, by bicycle or using public transport rides. There are many ideas raised for this shift, like the concept of the 15-Minute city. Besides the innovative practices of superblocks, Tempo30 and parking management – which are thoroughly described in the Walk’n’Roll Guidebook, Booklet 2 – you can find below two other ideas.

     

    The pedestrian-priority city

     

    Pontevedra (ES) is a medium-sized city with 83 000 inhabitants. In 1999 it was just another car-oriented city, but things started to change with the election of a new mayor – who still holds this position until this day. Mr Miguel Anxo Fernández Lores told citizens back then that the act of buying a car didn’t magically grant people with 10 square meters from the public space for a parking spot.

    His ideas consisted of making a distinction of the need for mobility, according to social criteria. He put people in the foreground, with at least half of the surface of all original streets turned into pedestrian areas. Intersections without lights and raised promenades were created, alongside he limited of parking hours in the downtown to a maximum of 15 minutes. In addition, underground parking was built under a concession and free public parking spaces were provided within a 15-20 minute walk of the centre.

    The results of these interventions were staggering: a decrease of motorised traffic by 77% in the dense urban area and by 93% in downtown, besides a decline in traffic accidents with no fatalities at all. Pontevedra became a high quality place to live with all public spaces serving the people, instead of the cars.

     

    Car-free places in every neighbourhoodURBACT Walk'n'Roll

     

    Back in 2014, in collaboration with 24 parish councils, the municipality of Lisbon (PT) started a programme called “Uma Praca em Cada Bairro” (“A space in every neighbourhood”). Currently being implemented, the programme is helping to renovate areas in the city to get people out of cars and to create new public spaces. The squares and streets will become the meeting point of the local community and “microcentres”, concentrating activity and employment.

    Henceforth, walking, cycling and public transport will be favoured, as the car traffic will be significantly restricted. The citywide programme in 150 squares and streets, practically in all neighbourhoods of Lisbon, could only be carried out with the support of the population. The programme counted with strong public participation processes.

     

    Potential externalities of public space improvement policies

     

    It goes without saying that the improvement of living conditions, with more public spaces and fewer cars, can lead to raising rents, pushing the most vulnerable residents away from the city. This is why it’s fundamental for the public sector to control the gentrifying effects. The efficiency of the public intervention depends on the willingness and political power of the municipal leadership, as well as on the housing system of the given city. A good example is the city of Vienna (AT), where the majority of the housing stock is under direct or indirect public control, with little or no gentrifying effects as a consequence of mobility and public space improvements.

    The situation is slightly more difficult in Barcelona, where the share of rental housing represents 31% of the housing sector. Only a small portion of these houses is actually owned by the public sector, making it almost impossible for the municipality to defend tenants. To tackle this challenge and avoid a “New York Highline effect”, the municipality provides subsidies to the urban poor, regulates private rents, oversees the housing market and even negotiates with landlords.

     

     

    How to create efficient metropolitan cooperation in blended cities?

     

    In the post pandemic world it’s not enough to make the dense urban cores more attractive, attention has also to be paid to those peripheral locations where many families aim to move to. Planning in larger territories can bring to light different questions, as to where new housing stock should be constructed or how to regulate and tax different forms of transport. The key aspect for public intervention in wider territories is a metropolitan coordination, which can be illustrated by the examples below.

     

    Turning highways into urban boulevards

     

    The classic period of suburbanisation started in the late 1950s in the USA, with the construction of 40 thousand miles of motorways financed by enormous central state grants. Urban planners were unstoppably carving highways into the urban structure, eradicating vulnerable neighbourhoods with fewer abilities to resist and, finally, ensuring the separation of functions following the leading planning concepts of the time. A similar car-oriented “modernisation” wave also reached most of the European cities. During the Walk’n’Roll conference, city practitioners showcased examples of recent efforts to reverse this phenomenon.

    In the course of the work done by Metrex for the From Roads to Streets learning platform –with support from Eurocities and URBACT – many European cases are analysed, including the transformative strategies adopted in Helsinki (FI), Oslo (NO), Lyon (FR) and Brussels (BE). In these dynamically growing cities the leading model is the urban intensification to concentrate growth and avoid urban sprawl. One way to achieve this principle is to direct new development to areas along the highways – provided that these are transformed into urban boulevards, with more space given for non-motorised vehicles. In Utrecht (NL), for example, two alternative projections were calculated for future scenarios and, according to them, the "A Proximity Model" foresee 20% less car-use.

    The opportunities and challenges of these new urban boulevards are gathered in a project to humanise the N-150 road, which is the central element of Barcelona’s Integrated Action Plan for the RiConnect network. This project deals with the motorway-like national road at the fringe of the metropolitan area, which created a division between the settlements and was putting the speed of mobility as the top priority. In order to restore old connections between the peripheral municipalities, the concept of metropolitan roads was born: without building new roads the extinct links between areas should be revived. This shall calm down traffic on the national road and even enable people to cycle from one town to another, which was not previously possible with the highways.

     

    URBACT Walk'n'Roll

     

    Improving the rail network to ensure metropolitan cooperation

     

    The Krakow (PL) Integrated Action Plan for the RiConnect network shows another way how metropolitan cooperation can be created. The Skawina Mobility Hub aims to create a connection point in one of Krakow’s satellite cities, on the line of the fast speed agglomerational railway that is under construction.

    Besides exploring the future functions of the evolving mobility hub, the intermodal links, park and ride (P+R) facilities and how to connect the station with city centre of Skawina, many efforts are being made to change the mobility mindset of people. This includes co-creation workshops, which resulted in the establishment of the integrated ticket system.

    Krakow is a good example for bringing public transport to the overall reflection on the metropolitan area. Such strategies, however, have to face the financial challenge of running public transport. During Covid times the ridership of public transport decreased almost everywhere and the rebouncing is still slow.

     

    Bringing planning and governance together at metropolitan level

     

    The Metropolitan Area of Barcelona (AMB) is a great example of how planning and governance can come together, not only at city, but also at metropolitan level. The AMB, the Lead Partner of the RiConnect network, is an agency with competencies in terms of mobility and public space in the metropolitan area – which counts with the double of inhabitants in comparison to the city itself. AMB is managing a very innovative mobility plan covering different aspects, such as generating safe and comfortable spaces for pedestrians, and sustainable methods of mobility, while reducing the use of private motorised transport.

    Unfortunately, not all cities have powerful metropolitan governance systems and/or strong agencies for planning and mobility. In the lack of these, urban planning cooperation between the municipalities of the urban area can help a lot. Sometimes these are initiated in bottom-up process, in combination with the national level, in order to use efficiently the EU Cohesion Policy resources. The Kraków Metropolitan Area (KMA), for instance, is responsible for coordination of transportation investments, which are implemented in the Integrated Territorial Investment (ITI) framework for the city and and its 14 surrounding municipalities.

     

    How to move towards an accessibility shift?

     

    Action Planning Networks labelThe new Walk’n’Roll Guidebook is split in three booklets – WHY, WHAT and HOW – and brings to light solutions that any city, regardless of its size, can use as a reference to drive change towards more blended and less compact cities. In order to tackle the most recent challenge of post-Covid suburbanisation, however, the practical interventions that are presented have to be combined with territorial visions. Regulation, planning and the support of governance institutions are equally important. Although this might sound challenging, there are different resources that can be particularly useful. Take for instance the EU Cohesion Policy, where investments in urban transport have more than doubled – from 8 billion EUR in 2007 - 2013 to 17 billion EUR in the 2014 - 2020, with even more opportunities in the next programming period.

    The first URBACT IV (2021 - 2027) call for Action Planning Networks is also a great occasion for cities to find partners to exchange, pilot ideas and develop an integrated set of actions at local level. While URBACT stresses the importance of the priorities of green - gender - digital, the RiConnect, the Thriving Streets and the Space4People networks are living proof of the wealth of themes that can be tackled within the spectrum of any urban subject, as today’s mobility challenge. These projects are in the crossroad of building more inclusive cities – for women and all – while also promoting the reduction of carbon emissions.

    Cities that wish to apply to the call are welcome to choose whichever network topic they deem relevant to their context. URBACT welcomes – and always will – bottom-up approaches that look at the big picture. Walk’n’Roll is bear fruit of the past round of Action Planning Networks and, hopefully, the next batch of URBACT cities will carry on its legacy and put its knowledge into action.

    URBACT Walk'n'Roll Guidebook

  • What’s in for future Action Planning Networks’ cities?

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    COVER what's in for future Action Planning Networks APN
    11/01/2023

    Taking stock and looking ahead, we delve into the insights and reflections coming from the past round of URBACT III networks.

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    Standing at the starting line for URBACT IV, we wonder to what degree URBACT has helped cities to develop an integrated set of actions for sustainable change in the recent past. We asked city practitioners and leaders who participated in the last round of Action Planning Networks (2019 - 2022) about their integrated action-planning journeys – highlights, experiences, perceptions and suggestions for change. Here are the key findings and lessons for creating an even better fitting support environment for municipalities and partners seeking to take part in URBACT IV. 

     

    Integrated action-planning for better urban futures is considered one of the strong pillars of the URBACT Programme. The main objective is to help city leaders, practitioners and stakeholders to develop plans and strategies that have the strong potential to make a positive difference in the future of local citizens and communities. The unique value proposition comes from its distinct approach to planning. URBACT namely creates a conducive framework and provides proven tools to mobilise strong horizontally linked local partnership coalitions geared up to tackle important or novel local challenges.

     

    Grounded in principles of integration, participation, action-learning and transnational exchange, many European cities have over the years evidently benefited from this soft and relational instrument of the Cohesion Policy. Let’s take a look back at the experience from our last 23 networks that concluded their work last year and check how well URBACT has actually helped our cities to deliver high-quality sustainable local strategies, the Integrated Action Plans.

     

    Taking stock: tracking and analysing local URBACT journeys

     

    Reasons for joining URBACT - Source: APN 2022 Closure Survey
                        Source: 2022 Closure Survey Analysis Report

    Let us zoom-in by posing a simple starter question: why should European municipalities join URBACT? The figure to the right gives some convincing answers.

    Following a closure survey, the former beneficiaries cited the attraction of a relevant, interesting and appealing topic as the top priority when deciding to participate in an Action Planning Network. Involvement has also been incentivised by the prospect of transnational co-learning for advancing local processes and practices. Without doubt, becoming an URBACT Lead Partner or Project Partner is not primarily about the money, but about learning together how to best tackle local challenges by means of cross-border exchange of useful knowledge, good practices and fitting processes.

    But what actually drives URBACT locally? Certainly, the heart, soul and engine of the URBACT project is the URBACT Local Group. This grouping brings together dedicated and influential city leaders and different stakeholders in an effective and fit-for-purpose project setting. It’s the leadership, structure and governance of this entity that – combined – chiefly impacts on project performance and progress. One of the most challenging tasks in this matter is maintaining the active involvement of local stakeholders, especially after the initial high-intensity engagement phase. Concerning long-term success, it’s the continuation of a Local Group-like structure after the official project funding period is over, and a trust-based, synergetic relationship with the municipality that seems to matter the most.

     

    Solid action-planning, ultimately, is about both the process and the output. The ultimate output of the almost three-year long URBACT journey is the local Integrated Action Plan, which is co-designed by each Project Partner with their respective URBACT Local Groups. This document summarises the planned future actions in the chosen intervention field. The survey respondents were asked about the relative importance of the corresponding planning steps. Most significance has been assigned to the task of clearly defining actions, followed by accurate problem definition, setting the right objectives and creating a commonly shared vision. Put differently, having a sense of direction and a clear focus appear to distinguish the Integrated Action Plans that can make a real difference from those that become more easily side-lined, watered down or even forgotten. 

    The past round of networks has counted with a novelty: the possibility of running testing actions, also known as small scale actions. This is an occasion for cities to experiment new approaches and practices, and feed lessons immediately into their Integrated Action Plans. So how well have project teams embraced this opportunity and successfully incorporated this testing dynamic into the action-planning journey? Findings are positive as say two thirds of respondents claimed very good and good integration outcomes, which validates the relevance of these pilots and justifies further in-detail refinement.

    While URBACT provides Action Planning Networks with a safe space for soft interventions, without adequate resources, well-designed strategies often underperform during implementation. Resourcing provides the fuel for positive local change. Project Partners, asked about the relative importance of various funding sources, which highlighted the significance of public funding – be it from municipalities, national governments or European institutions. In contrast, private financial support and crowdfunding are less important, confirming the fact that URBACT is mainly a public service and common good-oriented programme. Yet, resourcing is not just about financing. In the summary, most action Planning Networks associated resourcing mechanisms to human resourcing as the number one priority, followed by funding and knowledge.

    At last, to take stock of the networks’ experience, projects are often assessed against their change impact. For URBACT cities, impact can take many forms. Prompted to rate different dimensions of the overall outcomes, Project Partners saw as most beneficial the improvement of understanding in certain topics. Almost as important has been the increased cooperation at European level, followed by the opportunity to pilot new practices and approaches as well as stakeholder relationship building.

    Still according to the survey, for structural change institutional capacity building is foundational. Here the largest improvement has been achieved in the area of transnational – local knowledge exchange, followed by action-learning. Noteworthy improvements occurred across the board (see the image below). Clearly the proven URBACT-formula once again bore good fruit.  A defining feature of the recent years has been the deeply felt disruption of the Covid-19 pandemic. It caused significant challenges for the whole URBACT community, but also forced local teams to re-prioritise goals and adapt traditional work styles. The open responses confirmed the formidable impact on stakeholder engagement and a rapid shift to online communication and coordination, even with review of original objectives and plans.

     

    APN Capacity Building - before and after URBACT
    Capacity-building levels of Action Planning Networks' cities before and after URBACT - Source: 2022 Closure Survey Analysis Report

     

    Overall, the URBACT Secretariat and the networks proved to be resilient and adaptative under these trying circumstances. During their journeys, cities are never left on their own. In fact, the URBACT support infrastructure, tools and methods are considered one of the great benefits of the programme. Leaders and practitioners validated the exceptional support role of URBACT as 84% of survey respondents stated strong and quite strong support. This feedback demonstrates that the dedication and efforts of the URBACT Secretariat clearly pays off.

    Moreover, besides sound programmatic and methodological support it has been soft characteristics such as friendliness and approachability that have received special praise. There is an informal truth that the URBACT ecosystem constitutes more of a family than any other European programme. The 2022 Action Planning Networks closure survey powerfully validates this point. 

     

    Looking ahead: what’s in for future Action Planning Networks’ cities

     

    The survey unpacks the added value URBACT has provided to policy making and urban practice in cities. Three messages stand out. First, URBACT projects chiefly leave a local mark, for example the active consolidation of a particular administrative approach or a highly visible inner-city event. Second, URBACT-processes and support may foster beneficial personal development and skill acquisition, for example on digital skills and in leadership areas. Third, co-learning opens new spaces for better understanding the world, and our agency in the world. The essence of the added value may be defined as structured peer learning in pan-European trusted relationships.  

     

    2022 APN Closure Survey reportAnother finding puts the spotlight on which types of cities – from an income and population perspective – gains the most from the action-planning experience. It was found that local expectations were better met in less developed regions than in more developed regions. Quite fascinatingly, it is the smaller cities (up to 100 000 inhabitants) that seem to do best in relation to meeting and exceeding project expectations. Regardless of size and other circumstances, as it was previously mentioned, cities aspire to join the URBACT community predominantly because of a distinct policy theme or topic that resonates with their current needs, ambitions and/or policy priorities. The current call for Action Planning Networks encourages the mobilisation of the topics that particularly matter for lasting local impact.

    Crosscutting themes that can support sustainable impact – such as diversity, inclusion and equity, climate-safety and health as well as resilience are no-brainers in this regard.  Yet, the trademark of URBACT remains its bottom-up approach, which allows cities to choose whichever urban matter or challenge it’s deemed relevant for their proposals and future networks. The same applies to the URBACT IV crosscutting priorities – green, gender and digital – which shall be taken into account in a holistic way, without compromising the original intent of prospective Action Planning Networks. From a methodological perspective, the programme will carry out its proven URBACT-principles for improving urban policy and practice.

    Guided by the foundational values of integration, participation and hands-on action-learning – the so called URBACT Method – hundreds of European cities have seen local advances and win-win outcomes for almost twenty years now. These principles will matter even more in times of vexed multi-crisis challenges. These normative and practical reference points have the potential to continually unlock local pathways to reach better outcomes by encouraging strategic co-learning, by stimulating path-finding experimentation as well as boosting shared capacity-building across the transnational-local transmission points. URBACT-principles and associated tools have repeatedly shown their potential to inform positive local transformation. Let us build on this.

    Before anything, an honest appraisal of URBACT Action Planning cannot be conducted without tackling the thorny issue of what holds participating cities back. Put differently, what are the persistent barriers for URBACT-project success. Critical feedback was received from many angles, for example, on the difficulty of meaningfully combining the communication with citizens AND companies. Another point that was raised is how URBACT Local Group leaders can be easily overloaded with work and expectations and a – surely familiar – issue to all of us is the stifling shortage of human resources. 

    In response, future Action Planning Networks will be guided by new thinking on stakeholder engagement, notably using different capacity-building events and materials, better aligning resources and the local and transnational levels. Most importantly, the post-pandemic era calls for creative hybrid forms of communication and coordination, work modes that combine physical and digital exchange. We need in-presence meetings for trust, depth and motivation. And we need digital meetings for efficiency, scale and novelty. Let us co-design effective engagement formats for times where carbon footprint reduction is pivotal for sustainable futures.

    Redesigned engagement and co-learning processes should – even more than previously – help to ‘break-up’ institutional and organisational silos. As horizontal integration is both greatest URBACT-benefit and hardest task for local actors let us more strategically foster cooperation across different policy areas and departments in participating cities.  For an unpredictable future, Integrated Action Planning needs to pay much greater attention to building resilience. Central tasks are managing risks and designing prevention and mitigation measures. Three risk types deserve particular attention.

    Political and prioritisation risks are about foreseeing and responding to changing political and administrative agendas that may not align well with URBACT-interventions. Financial risks surround every resource allocation decision, yet URBACT-tools on resourcing may help to circumvent negative surprises; finally, we are forced to respond creatively to human resource and skills shortages that often stand in the way of implementing well-meant strategies and plans. Surely, no responsible public steering can afford to ignore the unsettling “worst-case scenarios” and “what if” questions. Still, some of the risks can be spotted ahead of time.

    Finally, the next round of Action Planning Networks – and more broadly, the URBACT IV Programme – will be informed by three related dimensions that evidently underwrite local success. On a normative and policy level, the objective remains to foreground further the relational qualities that evidently achieve synergetic change and transformation: dialogue, cooperation and trust-building. On a thematic level, the overarching angles for cities to decrease their carbon emissions, take the leap towards the digital transition and reinforce gender equality will be further mainstreamed. This shall support the alignment of the programme’s objectives with future local strategies. At last, on a legal, procedural and practical level let us explore the full possibilities of municipal procurement as key strategy that directly and strategically influences local futures. After all, this bundle of aspirations may be pivotal for switching local and regional pathways in Europe from “challenge to opportunity”.

     

    2022 City Festival - Driving change for better cities

     

    Continually adding value and building local legacies

     

    While this present article provides a stock-take from within participating Action Planning Networks by confronting the question of how well the latest cohort of URBACT cities – from their own perspective – travelled the path of the action-planning cycle, other studies on the local Integrated Action Plans and small scale actions are on the making. All these material will also feed the journey of the next round of Action Planning Networks (2022 – 2024). Interesting findings allow informed judgements to make about what went well and where future actions and processes can be improved.

     

    The unforeseen disruptor of the Covid-19 pandemic has left a strong mark on local and transnational engagement, yet our networks showed great ingenuity and developed robust resilience in their Action Planning efforts in the past years. Today, we wish them all the best for keeping momentum during implementation of their local Integrated Action Plans, and hope that they can build a positive legacy like so many cities before. To all those seeking new opportunities for shared transnational learning with proven methods, formats and structures, and complimented by good vibes, rich encounters and plenty of good fun, join the URBACT community now – the next call for Action Planning Networks is open until 31 March!

     

     


     

     

    URBACT open call - Join [u]s!

  • URBACT programos kvietimas ekspertams jau greitai

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    31/12/2022

    Norite tapti URBACT IV patvirtintu ekspertu? Naujas konkursas prasidės 2023 m. sausio 12 d. ir tęsis iki 2027 m.!

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    Prisijungimas prie mūsų ekspertų būrio atveria duris įvairioms ekspertų misijoms, skirtoms remti patvirtintus URBACT tinklus ir URBACT sekretoriatą. Patvirtinti ekspertai dažniausiai kviečiami prisidėti prie finansuojamų projektų ir miestų veiklos projektuose.

    Būsimas kvietimas kurti veiksmų planavimo tinklus yra puiki proga pagrindiniams ekspertams paremti miestus. Pagrindinis ekspertas atidžiai seka 2,5 metų miestų mainų ir mokymosi kelionę, kuriant vietinius integruotus veiksmų planus. Arba ekspertai taip pat gali būti kviečiami atlikti "ad hoc" misijas, kad būtų laiku teikiama pagalba miestams arba URBACT sekretoriatui, siekiant prisidėti prie programos veiklos, pvz., URBACT universitetų, URBACT miesto festivalių, URBACT žinių centro veiksmų.

    Suinteresuoti kandidatai gali pateikti prašymą tapti pagrindiniu ekspertu, galinčiu atlikti atitinkamą vaidmenį URBACT tinkluose, be "ad hoc" misijų, arba tapti išskirtiniu "ad hoc" ekspertu. Daugiau informacijos rasite čia.

  • Miestų forumas 2023 m. vyks Turine (Italijoje)

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    Cities Forum 2023 in Turin.
    31/12/2022

    Miestų forumas yra viena didžiausių tvarios miestų plėtros konferencijų Europoje. Kas dvejus metus vykstantis renginys, kurį organizuoja Europos Komisijos Regioninės ir miestų politikos generalinis direktoratas, suburia miestų suinteresuotąsias šalis Europos, nacionaliniu, regioniniu ir vietos lygiu. Kitais metais penktasis Miestų forumas vyks 2023 m. kovo 16–17 dienomis Turine, Italijoje.

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    Kalbant apie turinį, renginys siūlo galimybę keistis nuomonėmis apie dabartinius miesto iššūkius ir sprendimus. Daugiausia dėmesio bus skiriama „žaliajam perėjimui“ ir socialinei įtraukčiai. Taip pat renginiu siekiama sustiprinti mažų ir vidutinių miestelių bei funkcinių zonų vaidmenį ieškant atsakymų į vietos iššūkius. Be kita ko, sanglaudos politikos urbanistinė dimensija, ES miestų darbotvarkė, ES misija „100 klimatui neutralių ir pažangių miestų“, miestų vaidmuo įgyvendinant Europos žaliąjį kursą ir Naujojo Europos Bauhauso iniciatyva. Taip pat ES atsakas į Teritorinės darbotvarkės iki 2030 m. urbanistinį aspektą. Be to, Europos miestų iniciatyva (EUI) oficialiai prasidės MIestų forume, o pirmasis EUI renginys bus skirtas struktūroms ir kompetencijoms kurti (gebėjimų ugdymas).

    Čia galite rasti daugiau informacijos. Registruotis į Miestų forumą galite nuo 2023 m. sausio mėn.