A renowned expert and practitioner expert in public/private innovation partnerships, Henrik Morgen initiated in 2015 the consortium now known as EIT Urban Mobility. After winning the 350 MEUR EU tender in 2018 he served as its Innovation Hub Director for Northern Europe until joining BABLE Smart Cities - Europe's leading facilitator for smart city solutions and a spin-out Germany's Fraunhofer Research Society.  Since April 2022, Henrik is BABLE's country Lead for the Nordics & Baltics and a Principal Advisor for Climate, Mobility and Urban Digitization. 

Henrik is a professional in technology-based project development for more than 25 years and has worked for and across both industry, academia, government, RTOs, and as an independent consultant. His special technical expertise in the transport, ICT, energy, climate- and clean-tech sectors.

He has large-scale project management experience from multiple business and urban transition projects and has performed numerous EU consultancy assignments for a wide range of public sector authorities and institutions from across Europe.

As an EU senior official, he helped launching the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT) before being appointed COO for Europe's largest climate innovation partnership. After establishing EIT-Climate-KIC's pan-Nordic climate innovation hub, he was invited to lead the international partnerships of DTU – Technical University of Denmark.

Earlier in his career Henrik worked in government administration, industry, and tech companies. He has served in multiple supervisory boards and as elected councilor for the City of Copenhagen.

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I am an experienced and motivated senior expert on the production of the built environment and on urban regeneration in general.

More specifically, my credentials comprise,

-  Extensive knowledge and deep understanding of the design, construction and social aspects of sustainable urban development,

- 40+ year experience in architectural, urban design, planning and

international development projects in most cases as a team leader or coordinator,

- 38 years after being awarded my doctorate status from Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh, based on my research titled ‘Environmental Information & Cognitive Needs’,

- 24 years academic experience in teaching architecture, landscape architecture, urban design and cultural heritage management both at undergraduate and postgraduate level in the Department of Planning & Regional Development of the University of Thessaly in Volos, Greece, having been elected and serving as the Head of the Department until September 2020,

- 24+ year experience in dealing with vulnerable social groups, and housing affordability, also serving for 13 years as the representative for Greece in the European Observatory of Homelessness organized for the European Commission by FEANTSA, paired with,

- recognised communication, organizational, multi-tasking and problem-solving skills, extensive networking capacity with EU as well as South-eastern European bodies.

It is needless to say that, after my retirement from academic work, I am thrilled to be among the URBACT experts, looking forward to be engaged in novel challenging assignments.

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Dr. Bernard GINDROZ is, since 2014, an independent consultant on Energy, Environment, Climate Change, Smart Cities and Communities and Transport, with a special focus on innovation, policies, standardization and digitalization.

Dr. Bernard GINDROZ is very active in standardization, as Chairman of several Technical Committees and bodies, including in the energy sector (CEN/CENELEC SFEM), smart cities (ISO TC 268 and CEN/CENELEC/ETSI SF SSCC), hydrogen (CEN/CENELEC JTC6), blockchain.

Among its smart and sustainable cities and communities related activities, he is chairing an international club of cities (ISSCC), contributing to UN SDGs and towards carbon neutrality.

He is also active in the Coordination Groups for, respectively, Circular Economy, Eco Design and resources efficiency.

He coordinated an international consortium of stakeholders towards developing battery swappable systems for urban e-mobility (Light cat of vehicles).

Bernard is an EU expert in Adaptation to Climate Change, hydrogen technologies and infrastructures, as well as in circular economy and smart & Sustainable Development of Cities and Communities (with several mandates, including in support of setting national circular economy strategies and framework programs), a projects’ evaluator of several EU research and innovation programs, and initiative leader in the Smart Cities Market Place, former EIP SCC (European Innovative Partnership on Smart Cities and Communities), on Integrated Planning, Management, KPIs and benchmarking (Best practices towards replication and scaling-up). He has been the EU representative of EEA – European Energy Award – for 10 years.

Dr. Bernard GINDROZ has been involved in Innovation, policy and competitiveness issues for more than 30 years. He has been working for the French Navy, then the French Environment and Energy Management Agency (ADEME) as Regional Director, Head of Industry and innovative technologies Department, Deputy Director Sustainable Cities and Territories and Director Energy, Air and Noise.

Dr. Bernard GINDROZ is a Mechanical Engineer (EPFL). He got a master in applied/industrial mathematics and a PhD in the field of energy at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (EPFL).

Dr. Bernard GINDROZ has been teaching and leading research programs as Professor in several technology Institutes, engineering schools and at the French Naval Academy.

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In my work, I am inventive and creative, I think outside of the box and dare to go against the mainstream. I am sincere, reliable and motivated to support good causes selflessly. I would rather focus on others and work on common goals, than putting myself first. This will help me to be a good Lead Expert for any type of URBACT-project. I would like to coach and assist (public) organisations in developing strategies for development of diversity, equity and inclusion. It is a skill I have learned also because I myself belong to a minority, and therefor am familiar with this topic.

Through my experience with the European Regions of Gastronomy network I have been able to share my knowledge on the agricultural sector and the transition taking place in that field. Any food-related project will be in good hands with me.

Last but not least, with 30 years of experience in public administration (about half of that period I was involved in EU project as well) I als know my way around organisational development, mainly focussing on the cultural aspects of any organisation.

For me open mindedness is key, getting to know new points of views and angles, with a good sense of humour. A day without a smile simply is not an option for me!

Besides fulfilling my professional duties I spend most of my time with my teenage children and walking with our dog Pip. Further, I like a good evening out (dancing, just go out for a drink, a movie or theatre, all fine by me). I am a big football fan (#PSV EINDHOVEN) and although it says nothing of my qualities an expert for URBACT-project I would like to finish saying that I am an absolute chocolate lover (#guilty pleasure).

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As an architect and international projects consultant, I have been active for over 30 years in architectural design and urban planning as well as in programme and project management within European territorial and development cooperation. I have led international teams of experts and practitioners in planning and implementing complex cross-sector cooperation projects involving stakeholders from academia, the public sector, the civil society and the private sector.

Italian / French citizen, based in Vienna, I provide advisory services to urban and regional authorities, national institutions and international organizations carrying out long and short-term missions in several European countries and beyond. I deliver expertise in project planning and design as well as in monitoring, evaluation and learning (MEL) in multistakeholder partnership programmes. My field of expertise focuses amongst other on integrated urban regeneration with emphasis on heritage, culture & development and sustainable tourism.

Implementing and monitoring stimulating activities in the field of urban societal dynamics within interregional territorial cooperation and urban development networks, I came across effective sharing of experience and good practices in integrated urban sustainable policies and promoted innovative instruments for territorial cooperation. Continuous exchange, learning and networking in an international context have always been my bug, especially in relation to joint capitalization activities on urban-related projects funded through relevant EU programmes.

Having worked within interreg programmes for several years, I gained a good understanding of the ERDF, the EU cohesion policy and the actual challenges of territorial cooperation, and could provide a contribution to promoting territorial development and cohesion trough striving more efficient cooperation management. I was involved in developing exchange and learning activities in the urban sector within all strands of ETC, sharing experience with practitioners, participating to advisory and working groups on capitalization, partnership and knowledge exchange. As such, I cooperated with URBACT since 2009, sharing experience on projects showing concrete evidence of innovative and transferable good practice in different fields of urban and regional development and I supported the development of a project network focusing on sustainable and cultural use of recovered historic real estate.

I coordinated and supervised activities related to the management of cultural heritage assets and conservation districts in the Mediterranean region, aimed at fostering sustainable urban development and regeneration for promoting the local economy through cultural tourism and for improving the quality of life in deprived residential areas. Supervising and implementing inspiring projects focusing on cultural and creative industries or cultural expressions made me aware about the great relevance of culture and intangible heritage in promoting employment and job creation, as potential powerful vectors of economic development and social inclusion.

To date, as a free-lance consultant I am engaged in the preparation, management and evaluation of international cooperation projects commissioned by private and public clients, promoting best practices as well as innovative partnership-based approaches in diverse thematic areas, including territorial cooperation and local development, city-to-city cooperation, urban regeneration and historic urban landscape, participatory governance in cultural heritage, culture in external relations, innovation and creativity.

Besides performing final reviews for Horizon 2020 coordination and support action projects or project evaluations for the Council of Europe, my recent assignments with governmental development agencies and consulting firms include supporting projects proposals promoting reforms and capacity building in sustainable tourism development in Greece or addressing efficiency in ESI funds absorption and urban municipalities in Slovenia.

In 2022 I was appointed by the Italian Region Emilia-Romagna as expert for built heritage management, building construction and urban planning, and joined the multidisciplinary experts’ Task Force that was set up to provide advisory services and capacity building to municipal, supra-municipal and provincial authorities within the Next Generation Italy National Recovery & Resilience Plan (PNRR).

I look forward to sharing expertise and experience with project networks within the URBACT IV programme!

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Having 32 years of experience, I was selected as an URBACT III LE (May 2015) and Urbact IV LE (April 2023).

I worked as LE with the City of Rome supporting 2 Waves of a Transfer Networks called RU:RBAN.

I followed since April 2018 the URBACT Method guiding the 11 participating cities and their ULGs to transfer the policy topic of the project. https://urbact.eu/networks/rurban. 

I was also the core Technical Advisor for the city of Trikala in the VILAWATT UTM project: Innovative local public-private-citizen partnership for energy governance, among the only 5 projects approved for this special call that succesfully compined UIA and URBACT programs https://urbact.eu/networks/vilawatt.  

In addition to my strong involvement in URBACT III I took part in other activitiies in the framework of URBACT III:

1. Transfer Network Campus moderation, being evaluated as the best moderators in all countries Campuses 

2. URBACT City Festivals (Lisbon and Paris),

3. Moderating capacity building online workshops for cities representatives        and also 

4. The official evaluation of the EU National URBACT Points for their performance during URBACT III period (in high program level).

5. The adaptation of the new URBACT IV TOOLBOX AND TOOLS FOR EFFECTIVE TRANSFER, along with 6 other very experienced Lead Experts.

I am a business expert in sustainable integrated urban development (since 1992). Mine specialties are in urban & regional development, integrated and participatory policies, EU Structural Funds programs support, Multilevel governance, Integrated approach for urban regeneration and local -regional RIS3. My long-time experience in urban and regional projects includes more thematic expertise as equality, inclusion, diversity - job & skills & other ESF related policy issues (structural and national funds).

During 2021-2022 I worked as project manager and facilitator in 2 massive exchange programs by EU, having prepared the proposals and the exchange framework: 

A. The International City Partnerships: Acting for Green and Inclusive Recovery is a project of the European Union and managed by DG REGIO of the EU -      City pairings with Gwangu & Athens Metropolitan Areas  https://c.ramboll.com/international-city-cooperation     Themes of Cooperation: Air Quality & Climate change  

B. International Urban Cooperation programme (IUC) (2016-2020), IURC aims to lead and develop a form of decentralised international urban and regional cooperation in the fields of sustainable urban development and innovation. Region pairings with Attica, Greece & Colima,Mexico.  https://www.iurc.eu/about/

Since July 2023 I am working with the city of Trikala as LE for APN TechDiversity Netowork.

 

more can be found:  https://kkc.gr/

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Passionate about actionable solutions, I actively contribute to finance and citizen engagement in my current role as a board member of the EU Mission on Climate-Neutral and Smart Cities. I am keen to put my knowledge, experience and network to good use through ad hoc expert missions.

 

Funding and Finance

My expertise is based on close collaboration with cities over the years, not only as an expert, but also during my time in energy trading and crowdfunding.

Having co-founded and grown a clean energy crowdfunding platform, I have gained hands-on experience.  I have worked closely with utilities, municipalities, ESCOs and schools over the years to help them finance and implement energy transition projects. This includes a thorough understanding of all stakeholders, including cities, citizens, financiers, SMEs and others.

My previous work as an energy trader and training as an economist deepens my understanding. 

 

Engaging stakeholders

An integrated participatory approach is based on several practical steps. In my experience, peer learning and the efficient use of modern tools are prerequisites for sustainable stakeholder engagement.

In crowdfunding, we have worked closely with UNDP, UKAID, ICLEI, GIZ and others to effectively engage relevant stakeholders. I look forward to contributing to effective exchange and learning through the URBACT network.

 

Experience as an expert

Alongside my commercial work, I have regularly advised the European Commission as an expert on sustainable cities, with a focus on finance and stakeholder engagement. Examples of my work include:

- Co-authoring the Joint Research Centre's Handbook on Territorial and Local Development Strategies Chapter on Finance and Funding

- Organisation of a workshop on financing during the ESPON seminar on the 'Territorial Perspective of Green Industrialisation'

- Authoring an expert study for the Directorate-General Regional and Urban Policy on the challenges faced by Smaller Cities in Accessing Private Finance for clean energy projects

 

 

 

 

 

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I am a mobility and transport expert working in the field for 20 years. My work focuses on supporting cities in their strive to turnaround today’s mostly car-oriented traffic regimes in favour of developing a sustainable urban mobility reality.

Thanks to my work in a range of international cooperation projects (FP7, H2020, Intelligent Energy Europe, Public Health Programme, Interreg, URBACT), I can provide vast experience on cities’ transport and mobility challenges and needs as well as on good solutions present in the EU and beyond. My work assignment history allowed me to build up knowledge on specific fields of urban transport and mobility ranging from classical aspects like walking, cycling, public transport and parking management to the more recent developments of sharing services, Urban Vehicles Access Regulations and micromobility. Contracts on travel choice and travel behaviour, site-based mobility management and the role of urban nodes in the frame of the TEN-T network complements my capacities to cover the “human factor” in urban mobility as well as its connection to long-distance transport.

I had the pleasure to serve two URBACT III Action Planning Networks as Lead Expert: CityMobilNet focusing on the creation of Sustainable Urban Mobility Plans and Space4People addressing the use of public space by transport. Thanks to these two networks, I gathered valuable experiences to support an action planning network in the design and delivery of a transnational exchange and learning story that well connects to the participation driven integrated planning processes at local level. My role as the training lead in the ELTIS contract 2017-2021 added substantial experiences on capacity building and knowledge exchange at different national backgrounds.

My ambition is to support municipalities and cities to become places of a high quality of life with public space designed for people and their wellbeing in the first place. Recently, I could contribute to create a valuable guiding document in this as the co-author of the "URBACT Walk’n’Roll Cities guidebook “Innovations in mobility and public space”.

I look forward to support municipalities and cities in their capacity building and knowledge exchange on any challenges related to urban mobility!

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Mr. András EKÉS, transport service planning engineer and landscape architect, managing director of Mobilissimus, a Budapest based mobility planning and consultancy company (mobilissimus.eu) composed of young planners, engineers, and consultants. He has been involved in a wide range of projects focusing on sustainable mobility and urban development. He is committed to a smarter, greener, and socially more inclusive mobility both in planning and implementation. He is participating in SUMPs (Sustainable Urban Mobility Plans) as author or consultant creating the first Hungarian documents in this professional area for several cities. He is committed to help the public transport stakeholders to share experiences and find new solutions during the strongly challenging periods. 

He is a SUMP trainer and participates in the PROPSERITY project (H2020) and contributed to the URBACT “Motivating Mobility Mindsets” workstream and he was invited as an external expert to the BUMP (Boosting Urban Mobility Plans) project. Among others, he is participating in the Magyar CIVINET network as member of the secretariat and trainer under the CIVITAS CAPITAL and the SATELLITE project. András is participating in the Interreg CE project, SHAREPLACE, targeting new and shared solutions for cities both in public transport and in everyday home-to-work mobility chains. András is active now in different newly started, mobility related Interreg CE projects, NXTLVL Parking and DREAM_PACE. 

He is also working on renewal of local public transport services (networks, schedules, public involvement, communication, operation) for several cities in Hungary and abroad. He has been leader of several Budapest-wide traffic and passenger counting and survey projects. András is active on improving the public transport systems in terms of quantitative and qualitative parameters, passenger information systems, ticketing, participatory planning, and communication activities in order to have climate friendly and sustainable mobility frameworks.

András has been speaker in different EU-wide urban and mobility conferences and fora, among others ECOMM, Open Days of the Regions, CIVITAS Forum, POLIS, Calypso Forum, Fast Track Conference. He is invited to hold university lectures and often participates in awareness raising events to share the sustainable mobility knowledge for many stakeholder groups. 

András is working with a wide scope of activities from strategic planning to operational tasks, synthetizing the synergies from all layers of the mobility planning and consultancy. He is an urban and mobility photographer for decades, being author of several illustrations and colourful presentations, planning documents and papers. He is proud to use the bike for home-to-work and for other journeys, and all of his colleagues choose climate friendly modes for their everyday travels due to their high-level sustainability commitment. 

Since 2022 András is also working for FAIRTIQ, the Swiss mobile ticketing company as sales and business development manager for CEE countries.

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