By implementing the eea programme, municipalities strongly enhance their local energy- and climate policies. Existing plans and conceptual work, which had already been done by the pilot municipalities, are efficiently integrated into the eea-process since it is an instrument that consolidates, reactivates and monitors the initiatives and its implementation. IMPLEMENT has furthermore the aim to have an impact that goes beyond the scale and scope of the project by enabling policy, preparing the ground for investment and building capacity and skills.
The project enables policy
IMPLEMENT introduces a process that requires municipalities to create working plans that are continuously monitored and reinforced. IMPLEMENT supports public authorities to foster multi-level governance. IMPLEMENT takes the regional/national authorities on board to ensure a broad roll out of the programme. In this way IMPLEMENT helps raising the capacity of countries.
The project prepares the ground for investments
IMPLEMENT contributes to preparing the ground for public and private investments in sustainable energy measures. The Energy Policy Programmes based on the eea handbook contain measures on environmental standards for buildings, modernisation of buildings and increasing energy efficiency, local production and supply of renewable energy creating incentives for private and public investments in these fields.
The project helps building capacity and skills
The IMPLEMENT partners received training in order to qualify and operate as certified eea-advisors, who consult the pilot municipalities in the eea-process.
Each implementing partner brings together various stakeholders in national steering committees and thus transfers acquired knowledge to a broader group of influencers. Furthermore, in every pilot municipality an energy team takes the lead in implementing the eea. The eea-advisors guide the energy team members through the eea process, who in turn identify relevant measures and delegate work amongst colleagues.
The municipality communicates the importance of energy efficiency to its citizens, actively involving them through participatory projects.
Overall the skills, competencies and abilities of all people involved will be strengthened and the course of action towards sustainable energy and climate policy enhanced, throughout and after the timeframe of the IMPLEMENT project.
Consequently, IMPLEMENT has the aim to have an impact that goes beyond the scale and scope of the project since (1) the pilot municipalities established a programme that allows them to continuously monitor, update and reinforce their energy and climate policy and (2) the implementing partners will be equipped with the right skills and instruments to establish a sustainable eea structure allowing the roll out of the quality management and certification programme in their countries so that more municipalities can follow the path of the IMPLEMENT pioneers.
