In the framework of POCACITO's marketplace of ideas, Energy Cities and Joanneum Research Graz, organised last June a 1-week study to Croatia, Slovenia and Austria.

A unique co-learning experience with a multi-perspective added value

The tour brought together a group of city practitioners coming from the project's case study cities of Lisbon, Barcelona, Turin, Milan, Istanbul, Litomerice and Zagreb, plus a representative of Clean Air Asia, an international NGO based in Philippines. With diverse profiles in energy management and climate mitigation, environment, architecture and urban planning, the participants experienced a unique occasion for co-learning, confronting their local practices and projects through vivid exchanges.

Plenty of solutions to implement the transition towards European post-carbon cities

In order to cover a wide range of topics linked to climate mitigation and the energy transition in different national and local contexts, the program addressed: participation and citizen involvement (in Zagreb and Ivanic-Grad, Croatia) and urban planning and mobility (in Maribor, Slovenia), as well as smart city developments, climate protection, energy efficiency in buildings, energy transition and the use of local and renewable energy resources (in Graz, Güssing and Vienna, Austria).

Numerous meetings and technical visits allowed participants to discuss with very motivated and active local stakeholders and experts, like Rene Lisac and Teo Budanko from the Zagreb Society of Architects, who shared with the group their experience in the City Acupuncture initiative, consisting in "small" sociocultural interventions involving inhabitants for the revitalization of public spaces.

Visiting Ivanic-Grad, a small town close to Zagreb, with Vlatka Berlan, from the City development department, the group discovered how the European ENGAGE campaign is helping the town reach its energy and climate objectives.  

In Maribor, a meeting with the Faculty for Civil Engineering and the Regional Energy Agency - EnerGap - provided the group with a global understanding of the development and evaluation of the new Sustainable Urban Mobility Plan of the city.

In Austria, the tour focused on the impressive developments of Smart City Graz, the stunning energy transition of Güssing, and the great Climate Protection Plan of the City of Vienna, including a visit to the World's first Plus-Energy-Office of Vienna Technical University (TU-Wien) and to the new Aspern Lakeside district, which is the biggest ecologic urban development in Austria at the moment.

Towards a roadmap for moving to a low-carbon economy in 2050

Two study tours have been planned in the framework of the POCACITO project (in 2015 and 2016) to facilitate the exchange of ideas, experiences, best practices, and socio-economic success factors and limitations of implementing post-carbon solutions among city representatives. These study tours will help assess the long-term trends and tensions in EU cities that impact urban development and explore innovative approaches for achieving sustainable post-carbon cities in the EU, thereby contributing to the Roadmap for moving to a low-carbon economy in 2050.

For further details on the visits, please download the full agenda of the tour.
See the study tour pictures on Flickr