The popular speednetworking sessions are a central feature of the conference again this year, and will take place on the afternoon of Thursday 26 November, simultaneously with the Mayors' Debate. The purpose of these sessions is to provide conference participants with networking opportunities and serve as a platform for the exchange of knowledge and experience.
Around 25 tables will be set up, each led by a city delegation who will present a project inspired by the broad theme "Urban Challenges - Sustainable Solutions". Each session will be run 3 times, lasting 30 minutes and including time for questions and discussions. 9 of the speednetworking sessions will be held by the EUROCITIES Awards nominees..
Please note that the speednetworking sessions are intended as a forum for discussion and networking, apart from a short introduction by the hosting city. There will be no facilities for the use of IT equipment or PowerPoint presentations during speednetworking.
Below you will find descriptions of the featured projects . The first 9 on the list are those also nominated for a EUROCITIES Award.
NOMINATED PROJECTS AWARDS
Projects nominated in the Innovation category:
Reykjavik: Cost savings without Cutbacks
The City Council was challenged with drastically lowering costs to meet a significant fall in revenue following the economic crisis of autumn 2008, without compromising basic public services, raising service charges or laying off staff.
The project’s pivotal objective was “cost savings without cutbacks”.
The key approach was to activate the city’s employees to find ways to safeguard the city’s welfare system and jobs. Approximately 3,000 employees - some 40% of the city’s workforce - played an active role in workshops or meetings or by submitting suggestions via e-mail to suggestion boxes. Another innovation was to make employees responsible for the implementation of their own suggestions. All this has enhanced cost awareness among employees in their everyday work. Among the 1,500 ideas were important suggestions regarding energy savings, green transportation and green procurement.
Approximately 300 reform projects have been implemented to date.
Malaga: Interactive atlas of solar irradiation
The Municipal Energy Management Agency of the municipality of Málaga, Spain, offers on its website a highly accurate tool for computing the amount of solar energy that can be captured at each point of the terrain of the city. This tool has two main advantages. The first consists in providing a high level of detail by computing the captured solar energy on an extraordinarily high resolution Digital Elevation Model of 1meter x 1meter. The second consists in further increasing the precision of the data by considering the shade produced by all elevations that surround each single point of the terrain, including infrastructure and buildings elevations.
Utrecht: Cargohopper
The 'Cargohopper' is a special system for the distribution of goods around inner cities, running in Utrecht since April 2009. The Cargohopper itself is a miniature, 16-metre long solar powered electric train riding on pneumatic tires that is used to deliver goods around Utrecht's inner city quarters. The Cargohopper is part of a logistical concept to consolidate goods in urban distribution.
The unique character of Cargohopper is emphasised even more by the fact that since 18 August 2009 it runs completely on solar power energy with the necessary panels attached on the vehicle itself. Where it started by recharging batteries from the normal power grid, it now is independent from any external power supply.
Cargohopper has zero emissions and is allowed any place in the inner city at any time, which is part of it’s advantage. Cargohopper is developed especially for use in historical inner cities. It is also quite narrow: only 1.25 metres wide, so when it stops to make a delivery in narrow streets, most of the other traffic is able to pass, where it would have been trapped by a regular van.
The Cargohopper removes up to 100.000 van kilometres from the inner city streets and saves approximately 30 tons of CO2 on an annual basis.
Projects nominated in the Participation category:
Lisbon: Participatory Budgeting – You speak, you decide, you vote
The Participatory Budgeting of Lisbon is a process of co-responsibility and commitment between the Municipality of Lisbon and its citizens. It gives an effective power of decision to the citizens to decide which projects to include in the city budget, up to an amount of 5 million euros.
During the first phase of Participatory Budgeting (October 2008), citizens could present up to three proposals on the website – a total of 577 proposals were presented.
The municipal services reviewed these proposals and transformed them into investment projects, with estimated costs.
The second phase of Participatory Budgeting took place in November, when the citizens could vote for the projects. There were five winning projects, which the municipality is now implementing.
Dublin: Online FREE Trade Service
In August 2006, the FREE Trade service, which is hosted on www.DublinWaste.ie, was officially launched. The web based service allows users to post notices for unwanted household goods and advertise them to other site users. All items are posted for free, and there is no charge to use any part of the service. The service aims to encourage the reuse of items in the community rather than throwing things away. To date over 21,800 items have been reused through the service. The FREE Trade Service, which is funded by the four Dublin Local Authorities provides a valuable reuse option with significant environmental, social, financial and climate change benefits for the community.
Birmingham: Eco-Village
Summerfield is a culturally diverse, inner-city area of Birmingham, located in one of the UK’s most deprived neighbourhoods. In 2004, residents formed Summerfield Residents Association (SRA). Their aim is to make Summerfield a thriving community. They were particularly keen to reduce household turnover, improve the local environment and tackle ‘eco’ issues in order to encourage a more cohesive and sustainable community. Over the past few years, Family Housing Association (FHA), Birmingham City Council (BCC), Be Birmingham and Urban Living (UL) (a Housing Market Renewal Area Pathfinder project) have worked together in partnership with Summerfield residents to secure funding and deliver a range of innovative programmes of work that address these key issues. Summerfield is now recognised as Birmingham’s first ’Eco Village’.
Nominated projects in the Cooperation category:
Birmingham: Accelerating Decentralised Energy Networks
The creation of new low carbon decentralised energy networks to improve energy efficiency and to reduce energy imports in Birmingham, required significant political and technological leadership and cooperation amongst partners. Following initial feasibility work (2004), an ESCO (Energy Services Company) partnership with Utilicom was set up in 2006. The first of a series of city centre CHP (Combined Heat and Power) decentralised energy networks was completed in 2007. Two further networks are under construction with operational commencement in 2010/11. In February 2009, the construction programme to renew and rebuild the city’s 89 secondary schools was agreed (the “Building Schools for the Future” programme). Each school will provide the focus for new CHP community based energy networks. The first phase schools will have biomass installations (with outlined CHP expansion capability) in 2010/11.
Dortmund: Consultation Circle for Energy Efficiency and Climate Protection (CEC)
Long-term effective climate protection is only possible when there is intensive and coordinated cooperation between all stakeholders. The City of Dortmund has set itself the target of reducing CO2 emissions by 40% by the year 2020. It is only possible to implement this successfully if the expert knowledge and commitment of the City, science, business, politics and, last but not least, all Dortmund citizens can be combined. A project group has been formed to achieve this – the “Consultation Circle for Energy Efficiency and Climate Protection” (CEC). It comprises high-ranking representatives from different organisations which represent the broad range of competencies and areas of activity required for climate protection. By bringing the different fields of competency together synergy effects are generated which promote integrated solutions in the areas of climate protection and economic growth. The task of this committee is, among other things, to inform the citizens and stakeholders about the status of the climate protection measures, to involve them, to coordinate project ideas and projects and to submit future measures for decisions.
Rotterdam: Rotterdam Climate Initiative
The RCI is the climate programme of the City of Rotterdam, the Port of Rotterdam, the corporate sector within the City Rotterdam united in Deltalinqs, and DCMR Environmental Protection Agency Rijnmond. The main objective is to achieve a 50% reduction of CO2 -emissions in the city, the port, and the industrial complex by 2025 as compared with 1990. It also promotes the economy and helps to make the City of Rotterdam an attractive place to live. Additional tasks of the RCI include (1) promoting innovation and knowledge development in the area of sustainability; (2) promoting sustainable energy production and (3) generating commitment and support among citizens and the corporate sector. The RCI programme is implemented in a five-pillar approach. The objectives of this approach include a reduction in energy consumption and more efficient energy consumption, an increase of the share of sustainable energy, and capture and storage of CO2.
Košice Interface 2013: Creative City-Making in Central Europe
City: Košice
Focus of the session:
Briefly presenting the concept behind the project Interface 2013; city transformation and sustainable economic growth through culture and the creative industries in this particular context. The project also includes a focus on the environment.
EuroPetition – transnational eDemocracy
City: Malmö
Focus of the session:
The EuroPetition project will pilot trial the coordination and submission of local and European petitions to the European Parliament. Over 4.9 million citizens across 5 regions are involved in this initiative to strengthen and broaden citizen’s participation in democratic decision-making and contribute to better legislation.
Agenda 21 for culture
City: Barcelona
Focus of the session:
At a global level, culture is becoming one of the crucial elements of globalisation and an important element of substantial international cooperation. In 2004 some European cities together with cities in other continents launched the Agenda 21 for culture. This document is now at the heart of the work of the worldwide Committee on Culture in United Cities and Local Governments.
Integrating sustainability into city-policy
City: Ghent
Focus of the session:
The balance between ecological (planet), economical (profit), social (people) sustainability and participation along with good governance. Ghent as a city seeks to integrate these four pillars of sustainability into its policy and management and will give examples of what has been accomplished, and possible new projects and strategies to help the city achieve long-term sustainability.
Communication & participation in a sustainable city
City: Ghent
Focus of the session:
Involving the population in long-term strategic planning as a city. How can you stimulate people to get involved and think about the future? Ghent will present a multimedia campaign, the outcome of it and the process that they are working on at present.
Vital cities and urban strategies
City: Amsterdam
Focus of the session:
Vital cities will remain important in the future in order to resist shrinking and other threatening trends. Therefore cities need to be innovative in how they guarantee a sustainable future. How can cities remain vital in the future in a changing climate (environmental, economical and social)?
Road charging in Oslo
City: Oslo
Focus of the session:
General information about the objectives and development of the Toll-Ring scheme and its three main phases. Questions about the Toll-ring itself, organisation, government contributions, and the use made of revenue will be discussed.
Presentation of the project “EUROCITIES Network of Local Authority Observatories on Active Inclusion (EUROCITIES – NLAO)”
City: EUROCITIES
Focus of the session:
An example of how coordinated, practice-driven research on local policy and practice across several countries can shape the development of policies for the European institutions directly through by providing grass-root experience and knowledge.
Peer Review Methodology
City: EUROCITIES
Focus of the session:
Introducing the concept to participants looking at the steps involved in setting up a peer review structure and the various steps to be followed to carry out the process.
Participants will learn how being involved in such an exercise gives the opportunity of self-assessment and peer assessment in a particular policy area, governance structure or practice.
Green Digital Charter
City: Manchester
Focus of the session:
Green Digital Charter - a ‘Green Shift’ for European Urban Sustainability in order to promote intelligent digital planning and services to support action on climate change. Developing action at a local level is essential to make action on climate change effective and consequential. Cities have a crucial role to play in this, working in partnership with the EU institutions and the Member States.
Barrier-free Cities
City: Berlin
Focus of the session:
The idea of the “Barrier-free City for All” Working Group within the EUROCITIES network is an exchange of experience on developing and designing cities without barriers. The objectives are to learn about interesting experiences gathered by other cities, bring together a network of players and thus help to drive conceptual and practical developments in the field of barrier-free cities.
Berlin Europe Suitcase
City: Berlin
Focus of the session:
The European Union has developed into a much discussed topic in European classrooms. However its policies and initiatives are often perceived by the students as highly complicated and difficult to communicate by the teaching staff. The purpose of the suitcase is to support teachers in conveying information and knowledge on the complex topic of Europe in general and the European Union in particular.
Downsizing cities for decreasing populations
City: Parkstad-Limburg
Focus of the session:
Parkstad-Limburg is a region in decline. Now that we would like to act, we discover it is difficult to find new and creative ways to build and demolish in a sustainable way.
How can this be dealt with and what important aspects should not be forgotten in the process?
Stockholm: European Green Capital 2010
City: Stockholm
Focus of the session:
Stockholm has been awarded first European Green Capital 2010 by the European Commission. During 2010, Stockholm will do its best to exchange practices and inspire other cities. During the speednetworking session we are eager to find out what expectations you have of the first European Green Capital, what would you like to know? How can we share ideas? How can we make the best of 2010?