URWAN – Urban Regenerative Water Avant-garde(N)
Project duration: 1st January 2024 – 30th September 2026 (33 months)
Programme: Interreg Euro-MED Programme
Lead Partner: Regional Association of Italian Towns in Lazio – ANCI Lazio (Italy)
Partner countries: Italy, Portugal, Spain, Slovenia, Cyprus, Malta and Bosnia-Herzegovina
Total budget: € 2 836 118 – Interreg Funds: € 2 268 894.40
The project, approved within the framework of the Interreg Euro-MED program and under the mission of Promoting green living areas, addresses two primary challenges:
- Necessity to increase the green urban areas to mitigate the effect of the ongoing climate changes;
- Optimize the use of water for irrigation purposes.
Mediterranean areas face severe drought and water scarcity, becoming major issues and concrete societal challenges. Our living areas are highly vulnerable to the effect of climate change, experiencing more and more extreme events. At the same time, decision-makers plan investments in greening the cities without a long-term strategy on resource availability, impact, and related opportunities, while the transition towards a greener environment requires an integrated vision, harmonised knowledge and stakeholders’ empowerment.
In particular there is a lack of knowledge on the use of the existing nature-based solutions in order to support a rational use of water while transforming our cities in greener cities.
URWAN addresses the critical link between urban regeneration and resources, exploiting nature-based solutions’ role in integrating water management and climate change adaptation.
The project involves 9 partners from 7 MED countries, who will jointly implement activities affecting the decision-making process to multiply the impacts of public funds.
The partnership capitalises on innovative participatory approaches and existing NBSs while demonstrating the importance of making these solutions multifunctional.
The URWAN Catalogue for final users harmonises knowledge of NBSs using a creative style able to reach all the local players and support the co-design of the proper NBSs to face the challenges.
Further, URWAN transforms 3 public buildings into “water producers”, promoting green urban surfaces as a place-based transformative potential by implementing transnational experimental interventions. The project involves decision-makers and stakeholders in 6 cities to co-design multifunctional NBSs in a climate change scenario and deliver Road Maps towards adaptation.
Thanks to the Amplification Strategy and the nature-based solutions Enabler Pack, the partners demonstrate and transfer the joint solutions and mainstream NBSs.
The avant-garde idea is to inspire decision-makers to valorise NBSs as resources for generating urban sustainability, beauty, and social inclusion, i.e., “needs behind functionality”, as stated in the New European Bauhaus Initiative
Project website: https://urwan.interreg-euro-med.eu (available soon)
Follow us on social media: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/urwanproject/
This project is supported by the Interreg Euro-MED Programme with co-financing from the European Regional Development Fund
Τα Ευρωπαϊκά Ανταγωνιστικά Προγράμματα είναι χρηματοδοτικά Εργαλεία της ΕΕ που συμβάλλουν στην υλοποίηση των βασικών πολιτικών της. Σε αντίθεση με τα Ευρωπαϊκά Ταμεία, (Διαρθρωτικά), δεν γίνεται κατανομή κατά χώρα, αλλά η χρηματοδότηση γίνεται με βάση την ποιότητα των προτάσεων, χωρίς οποιοδήποτε περιορισμό στο ποσό που μπορεί να διεκδικήσει και να κερδίσει κάθε Κράτος. Οι προτάσεις υποβάλλονται για έγκριση απευθείας στις Βρυξέλλες, στην Ευρωπαϊκή Επιτροπή, χωρίς την παρέμβαση των θεσμών του Κράτους Μέλους. Η Ευρωπαϊκή Επιτροπή αξιολογεί όλες τις προτάσεις που υποβάλλονται από τα Κράτη Μέλη της ΕΕ (ανταγωνίζονται δηλαδή μεταξύ τους) και επιλέγονται οι καλύτερες, μετά από συγκριτική αξιολόγηση. Είναι κατά κανόνα διεθνικά, δηλαδή κατά την υποβολή και υλοποίηση μιας πρότασης απαιτείται η συμμετοχή συνεργατών από περισσότερα του ενός Κράτους Μέλους. Επίσης οι προτάσεις πρέπει να προωθούν παράλληλα με τους διακρατικούς στόχους και ευρωπαϊκούς, δημιουργώντας προστιθέμενη αξία σε ευρωπαϊκό επίπεδο.
Ο Δήμος Λάρνακας συμμετέχει σε διάφορα Ευρωπαϊκά Προγράμματα μέσω των οποίων προωθεί δράσεις και ενέργειες με απώτερο σκοπό την όσο το δυνατό μεγαλύτερη αξιοποίηση των διαθέσιμων πόρων από ευρωπαϊκά και εθνικά κονδύλια.
Προωθεί επίσης την ανάπτυξη Διεθνών Σχέσεων μέσω αδελφοποιήσεων με πόλεις του εξωτερικού και τη συμμετοχή του σε δίκτυα πόλεων και σε προγράμματα που παρουσιάζουν ιδιαίτερο ενδιαφέρον για την πόλη της Λάρνακας.
Οι πιο πάνω ενέργειες μελετώνται από την Επιτροπή Διεθνών Σχέσεων και Ευρωπαϊκών Προγραμμάτων του Δήμου.
TechDiversity: Diversity and Inclusion in Knowledge-based Digital and Tech Ecosystems
Project duration: 1st June 2023 – 31st December 2025
Programme: Interreg Euro-URBACT
Lead Partner: E-Trikala (Greece)Partner countries: Greece, Italy, Portugal, Spain, Poland, Cyprus, Romania and Slovenia
Total budget: € 839,950 – Interreg Funds: € 612,830
Project Summary
TechDiversity is an URBACT network of eight partners representing small and medium-sized European cities, that aim to boost and facilitate diverse local communities that are not active in Tech & Digital sectors, facing specific challenges in terms of diversity, gender equality and inclusion. Furthermore, the partner cities will mainly focus on an identified pressing issue and will support at least one diverse local group in each of the participating cities, through the action plans.
Links to the Cohesion Policy Objectives
The proposal to address the lack of diverse communities in small and medium sized EU Cities that are looking to grow knowledge-based, digital and tech ecosystems is strongly linked to several of the EU Cohesion Policy Objectives. First, by promoting the use of technology, the proposal contributes to the objective of a more competitive and smarter Europe by supporting innovative and smart economic transformation and regional ICT connectivity.
Second, by advocating for diversity and inclusion in technology, the proposal aligns with the objective of a more social and inclusive Europe, which includes implementing the European Pillar of Social Rights. Moreover, the emphasis placed in the plan on knowledge-based, digital, and tech ecosystems – and, by extension, on sustainable and inclusive urban development – supports the objective of a greener, low-carbon transitioning towards a net-zero carbon economy and resilient Europe both directly and indirectly. Directly, the network places special emphasis on the minimization of its carbon footprint that results from its traveling activities. Indirectly, a diverse and inclusive technology sector is capable of finding and creating solutions to environmental concerns like climate change and resource depletion by collaborating with people from a variety of backgrounds and areas of expertise. This may result in the creation of more environmentally friendly products and services as well as the adoption of environmentally friendly business procedures.
Finally, by supporting the sustainable and integrated development of urban areas and local initiatives, the proposal aligns with the objective of a Europe closer to citizens by fostering community-based initiatives and engagement in sustainable urban development.
Project Website: TechDiversity | urbact.eu
A Frontrunner of the Twin Transition – Larnaka Selected for The Intelligent Cities Challenge 2023-25 Edition
Larnaka, Cyprus, March 2024 This week, the Intelligent Cities Challenge (ICC) – an initiative spearheaded by the European Commission (DG GROW and EISMEA) – announced that Larnaka has been selected to join its esteemed support programme. The city will now start its two year journey to create an impactful strategy and develop innovative solutions that will place the city at the forefront of the green and digital twin transition through Local Green Deals.
The ICC programme will help cities to harness the power of cutting-edge technologies, while improving their economic competitiveness, social resilience and the European citizens’ quality of life. They will receive high quality, tailored guidance, expert support, access to advisory and city peer networks, and capacity building tools, to drive their city closer towards the twin transition.
Dana Eleftheriadou, Head Cities and Proximity Team, DG GROW at the European Commission, says “Cities are the beating heart of Europe’s economy. The new phase of the Intelligent Cities Challenge offers cities with the prime opportunity to put themselves on the map as a European Intelligent City and to turn their sustainability and technological ambitions into action, especially by launching their own Local Green Deals across city departments and with the local businesses. These will put your cities firmly on the path towards making the European Green Deal and the Green Deal Industrial Plan a reality, while scaling-up Europe’s net-zero industry.”
Larnaka Muicipality has extensive experience in developing projects which are aimed at improving the urban fabric of Larnaka and has participated in several EU funded networks. Larnaka is proud to be included in the Intelligent Cities Challenge, with a primary focus on mobility, transport and energy and truly believes that the advice and technical assistance that will be received as part of the initiative will be invaluable to its efforts for green and digital transition.
The previous ICC edition (2020-2022) saw €1.9 billion earmarked for ICC cities’ actions and €247 million in public funding from EU, national and regional sources was leveraged which helped facilitate 336 actions planned by the 136 Core cities. This new edition will build on the success of the previous ICC programme (2020-22) and Digital Cities Challenge (2018-20) and provide an extensive high-profile network, solid methodology framework and strong support mechanisms.
For the latest developments and more information, visit intelligentcitieschallenge.eu.
Press contacts:
Intelligent Cities Challenge Helpdesk helpdesk_icc@technopolis-group.com
Larnaka Municipality Contact Name:
Christina Orphanidou Kontopyrgou, Municipal Officer
c.orphanidou@larnaka.org.cy
+ 357 24 816567