Networks and cities' news

Energy Poverty Intelligence Unit: an innovative energy poverty reduction solution designed and implemented in the city of Getafe

In 2018, it was estimated that around 15% of Getafe’s households – approximately 30,000 residents – could not keep their homes warm in winter. Additionally, rising climate change impacts and increasingly frequent heatwaves made summer conditions more extreme. Yet, fewer than 1,000 residents (234 households) in Getafe sought assistance – revealing a significant gap between those in need and those receiving help.

“This was a clear sign we have to act,” says Fernando González Ferreira, one of the key developers of the Energy Poverty Intelligence Unit. “But the more we searched for the solution, the more we realized that there was none suitable for our situation. So, we knew we had to get innovative and do it ourselves in close collaboration with our community.”

And they did it! Since 2022, when it became operational, the Energy Poverty Intelligence Unit assisted over 2,750 households (more than 6,850 citizens) and, on average, reduced their energy bills by 20%, improved the internal coordination between municipal services, and established fruitful cooperation with a diverse array of external partners like universities, NGO’s, consultancies, etc.

URBACT GenProcure promotes equality in public procurement and society

On the eve of International Women's Day, we spoke with Matea Brajko, the leader of the URBACT project GenProcure for the City of Zagreb. Matea revealed to us the benefits of applying gender equality principles in public procurement, as well as specific findings, results, and future plans for the implementation of the URBACT network GenProcure.

Albacete Successfully Hosted The Re-Gen Civic Hackathon 2025

On Saturday, 5 April 2025, the Re-Gen Civic Hackathon was held at the Albacete Youth Centre (Spain). The event was part of the European Re-Gen initiative, organised by CEEI Albacete in collaboration with Emilia Parra from Vértice Cultural, Laura Gómez Serrano, youth officer at the Albacete Youth Centre, and Carmen Gómez, also from the Youth Centre. The aim was to involve young people aged between 16 and 22 in the creation of innovative projects to regenerate underused urban spaces through social and sporting activities designed for teenagers aged between 10 and 18.

Quality of Life in shrinking cities, part two - Measuring and Monitoring

This article is based on the workshop “Quality of Life: what is it and how to promote and measure it” delivered by URBACT Expert José Costero for the URBACT network Residents of the Future in Alba Iulia (Romania) on 25 March 2025. The session gathered about 25 participants from the nine cities involved in the network, fostering discussions on how to integrate quality of life principles into urban planning and policymaking.

Guimarães Spring Festival 2025 fills the Penha Mountain with nature, joy and over 2,000 visitors

After being postponed for a week due to rain, the Guimarães Spring Festival 2025 took place on the 29th and 30th of March on the Penha Mountain, a vital ecological asset in Guimarães, featuring 10 conservation-worthy habitats and hosting over 320 vascular plant species and 120 terrestrial vertebrate species. As part of the city's biocultural corridor, the Penha Mountain connects natural and urban areas via the Biodiversity Route, enhancing ecological connectivity and supporting both wildlife and community well-being.

The 4th Central Meeting of the European Partners of the Re-Gen Cities Network in Corfu on April 1st and 2nd, 2025.

The 4th Central Meeting of the European Partners of the Re-Gen Cities Network, within the framework of the European Program URBACT IV 2021–2027, was successfully completed in Corfu on April 1st and 2nd, 2025. The meeting was organized by Kapodistriaki Development S.A. – Local Government Development Organization, as a European Partner of the Program.