On the 11th of December, the first climate contracts in Europe were signed by nine Swedish cities, four Swedish government agencies and Viable Cities. The contracts mean that the cities must reach their set climate goals, and lead the path to sustainable cities to be climate neutral by 2030.
The climate contract, signed by the cities during the European Viable Cities Day last week, is a tool to enable investments in climate and sustainability issues in cities. The purpose of the contract is to speed up the work in creating climate-neutral cities and will help the cities to evaluate and follow up their progress. The cities will also get improved possibilities to take part in EU financing in sustainable development.
The contract has already inspired other European cities and one goal is to have 100 climate neutral cities in Europe by 2030.
Climate-neutral cities 2030 initiative
The contract has been developed by Viable Cities, a Swedish innovation programme for smart and sustainable cities. The programme aims to accelerate the transition to inclusive and climate-neutral cities by 2030 with digitalisation and citizen engagement as enablers.
Nine Swedish municipalities and their partners (Enköping, Gothenburg, Järfälla, Lund, Malmö, Stockholm, Umeå, Uppsala and Växjö) are part of the initiative Climate-neutral cities 2030. The cities have taken it upon themselves to test new solutions and ways of working and to learn from each other. They all work toward one mission: to create cities that work well for the people who live in it, that are good for the economy of citizens, businesses and society and that are good for the climate.
In 2021, there will be opportunities for more cities to join the venture.
Read more about Viable Cities and the initiative here.
