Periodic Reporting for period 1 - PATH2LC (Public Authorities together with a holistic network approach on the way to low-carbon municipalities)
Periodo di rendicontazione: 2020-09-01 al 2022-02-28
The overarching objective of the PATH2LC project is to support policy makers and public authorities at local level in the transition process towards a low carbon society. Through a holistic network approach, stakeholders in public authorities are linked among municipalities in order to enable peer-to-peer learning and increase the engagement in the energy and climate transition. The network approach shall also accelerate the implementation of Sustainable Energy (and Climate) Action Plan (SE(C)AP) measures. The PATH2LC project will foster the exchange of existing knowledge and experiences among municipalities, enhance coordination among different administrative bodies within the municipalities and improve cooperation with local stakeholders and civil society.
It will furthermore provide stakeholders in public authorities with the necessary planning and monitoring tools to implement transition roadmaps. The following five existing networks are the starting point of the project: UCSA - Joint Office for Environmental Sustainability (Italy), Sustainable City Network (Greece), OesteSustentável (Portugal), Cities Northern Netherlands (NL), Rhône Network (FR). They benefit from a well-established network approach of the so-called learning energy efficiency networks (LEEN), supplemented with in-depth capacity building and support regarding heating and cooling topics. Due to the international composition of the networks, cross-country experiences can be shared. The respective societies are going to benefit through reduced carbon emissions, cleaner environment and resulting health benefits.
The Local partners, based in Italy, Greece, Portugal, the Netherlands and France, hold regular network meetings. Part of these meetings is an expert input on a specific topic agreed on by all network members prior to the meeting, as well as exchange on the implementation process of measures including success factors and barriers. Both scientific as well as local partners take part in the monthly committee calls to update the team on newest developments in their respective networks.
The capacity building aspect was achieved through webinars, peer-to-peer (P2P) sessions as well as trainings. The content of the events focused on:
- ways to approach the energy transition process and assistance in the preparation of transition roadmap elements,
- exchange of experiences and best practices in the P2P sessions and webinars as well as
- heating and cooling aspects in the trainings.
The main results so far consists of creating the network of European partners exchanging their approaches and learning from the existing expertise. Further, the PATH2LC homepage was launched and includes several resources: the five networks of the consortium are presented, and we set up a knowledge base which contains best practices and multimedia resources regarding decarbonization in communal settings. This knowledge base is accessible to the general public. For further information, see the PATH2LC website (https://path2lc.eu/). Throughout the project, we inform the public via dedicated pages on social media (LinkedIn and Twitter) about upcoming trainings, events and developments in the project.
Throughout the first phase of the project, we built capacity on heating and cooling planning in participating municipalities that will likely spill over to its respective societies. Through a training on financing of energy efficiency and renewable energies in the second phase of the project, participating municipalities will permanently improve their skills regarding the economic evaluation and feasibility of projects, suitability of funding schemes and how to identify and apply for funding. This capacity building allows effects on the local level long after the project has ended in August 2023. For the remainder of the project, we expect to accelerate the implementation of policies to support the transition to a low carbon society on the local level.