An unprecedented initiative - Climate Neutral Cities 2030 is stepping up

- When we talk to international colleagues, they are surprised by our work. The scope of this initiative is unprecedented in the world. But much work remains, and now we will focus on scaling up and implementing concrete measures in the cities, and a lot will happen during the year, says Lars Johansson.

Tough goals drive action

A central part of the Climate Neutral Cities 2030 initiative is that the stakeholders together contribute to the faster scaling up of solutions, working methods, and learning, both within Sweden and internationally. The initiative is carried out in collaboration with the EU's mission for climate-neutral cities, the EU Cities Mission. A central part of the work is the Climate Contract 2030, which is a process where the cities, together with six authorities, accelerate the transition.

- To participate in the initiative, your city must have the ambition to become climate neutral by 2030. It is a tough goal, but tough goals are needed for the transition to happen. Each city must also develop a climate roadmap, which outlines what they will do to reach the goal, including which emission reductions are significant and should be prioritized. This also includes the city looking at the financing of the transition, says Lovisa Vildö, Innovation and Process Leader at RISE, who also works at the Viable Cities program office.

An example of how a city is working is Lund. Here, the city has identified that transportation and agriculture are the largest sources of emissions, and therefore they will work with targeted measures such as sustainable travel to and from schools, as well as the reuse of building materials, energy efficiency of street lighting, and super cycle paths that are bike lanes through the entire city center. In collaboration with the neighboring municipality of Lomma and SLU Alnarp, Lund is also exploring strategies for increased carbon sequestration in both the municipality's own and privately-owned agricultural land.
RISE contributes in Lund with expertise on the efficient use of energy and power at the neighborhood level, for example by looking at how energy communities can function in the local energy system. Additionally, RISE also supports the mobility area, including parking issues and by creating its own green travel plan.

At first glance, it may seem like isolated measures, but all parts work towards the larger goal within the city, says Lars Johansson.

- Within Climate Neutral Cities 2030, we also support cities in governance innovation. This means leadership, management, and organization where the entire city transitions, including both the municipality and all other actors operating there. Otherwise, there is a risk of only carrying out isolated projects that may not lead to any significant results in the end, he says and continues:

- For example, it involves establishing transition teams and transition arenas to strengthen the capacity to work more horizontally and with network governance to meet the complex challenge that the climate transition entails. In this change work, RISE contributes with capacity in change management (how to create mandates and orchestrate change with, for example, boundary-spanning and interstitial leadership).

Different conditions require different solutions

An important part of Climate Neutral Cities 2030 is the wide range of municipalities with partners involved. All have different conditions for succeeding with the transition and how it should be done. The lessons learned are shared between the cities.

- A good example is Ulricehamn, which aims to create a sustainable everyday life for its residents and develop the business sector while working on the climate transition. Ulricehamn has a large proportion of subcontractors to the industry in West Sweden, such as larger companies that demand increased sustainability efforts from their suppliers. Through local climate agreements, municipalities can both support and mobilize companies in the transition. Our work strengthens the municipality's business sector in the long term, which is positive, says Lars Johansson.

RISE's broad expertise – a strength in Viable Cities

RISE is part of the Viable Cities board and staffs part of the program office. Additionally, RISE participates in about ten local transition teams. The latter are working groups that drive the transition work forward at the local level in the various cities.

- The transition teams are composed based on the needs of the specific municipality and region. At RISE, we have thousands of experts in various fields, ranging from energy and materials to mobility, sustainable construction, and water issues, among others. They become a very good resource in this context, as experts and system actors who help to keep the whole together and see the significance for the entire initiative in each city," explains Lovisa Vildö and continues:

- One of the advantages of us at RISE is precisely the ability to look up and find synergies and see the big picture, so we work more efficiently and smarter together with the cities. The lessons and knowledge developed within Viable Cities are spread across Sweden and even Europe and the rest of the world.

- It is a fantastic export opportunity for Sweden to spread the experiences and lessons learned within Climate Neutral Cities 2030 to other countries and their cities. The context, with the network and knowledge that exists here, is an enabler for a transition and development that contributes to Swedish expertise being in demand and contributing to a good life for everyone within the planet's boundaries. By scaling up the initiative in Sweden, and we believe that all 290 municipalities can and want to participate, we contribute to a faster transition from the local to the global," concludes Lars Johansson and Lovisa Vildö.

* A boundary crosser is a person who has understanding and knowledge of different contexts such as academia, the public sector, and business, with the ability to cross real or imagined boundaries

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>> Please contact maja.manner@ri.se for more information on how RISE kan support your city or municipality in the transition work.