SPARCS addresses the following 9 objectives:
1. To enable, inform and support the efficient urban transformation of cities into carbon free societies, including especially smart networks, low carbon transport solutions, a sustainable energy transition, and improved air quality. SPARCS Cities have identified and developed Use Cases toward sustainable energy transition and Positive Energy Districts, and formulated their bold City Visions for 2050.
2. To deploy 44 wide scale demonstration of innovative technologies for integrated, mixed-use, positive energy building blocks in the lighthouse cities, Espoo and Leipzig, and selected feasibility tests in 5 fellow cities.
3. To roll out an extensive monitoring and evaluation programme with associated Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), for the holistic assessment of SPARCs interventions. A holistic framework for monitoring and impact assessment is developed and implemented, and the interventions are evaluated.
4. To implement community engagement actions and promote a citizen-centric approach for enabling inclusive, integrated, and sustainable urban development, planning and management practices and governance models. SPARCS cities tested and utilised a broad range of social engagement tools and procedures (
https://www.citizen-engagement.eu/(se abrirá en una nueva ventana))
5. To replicate smart and integrated energy solutions in fellow cities and lay the foundations for European wide adoption and upscaling. Information packages on energy and mobility solutions enable replication in different local contexts. Analysing and benchmarking SPARCS cities for replication potential, and developing replication plans for 5 fellow cities with concrete selected projects. Lighthouse cities developed upscaling plans.
6. SPARCS Cities have developed the bold city visions for 2050 with roadmaps for short, medium and long term plans addressing sustainable, low carbon urban and energy development.
7. To pro-actively cooperate with Scalable cities (SCC projects) and other relevant projects, networks and initiatives, and create joint recommendations in order to maximize impact, replication, and scale-up of smart city solutions.
8. To support the development of competitive new services, business models and financing instruments for sustainable, forerunner energy positive smart districts, and the creation of business ecosystems. Supporting cities and their stakeholders through business models, new services and funding schemes at PED scale.
9. To actively and efficiently promote the SPARCs project and its outcomes on local and European levels, raise awareness of the European smart city concept, and support wide-spread knowledge sharing across solutions. The highlights of the SPARCS results have been published in a packaged format, identified the relevant contents for different stakeholder groups in:
https://sparcs.info/en/results-details/(se abrirá en una nueva ventana).
