UIA Knowledge Lab

Urban forests for cleaner air - The final journal of the CLAIRO project

In Ostrava, Czech Republic, as part of the CLAIRO project, two plots of land were afforested in the city's most polluted neighbourhood to improve air ...

The CLAIRO approach to be rolled out across Europe

The CLAIRO project of the City of Ostrava has been promoting the use of greenery for local air quality improvements. It was a pioneering initiative in...

CLAIRO pilots novel solutions to improve plant health

When the goal is to capture air pollutants with newly planted urban vegetation at an industrial site exposed to various pollutant types, then proper g...

CLAIRO confirms that sensor networks open new fields in air quality monitoring

Research results indicate that low-cost air quality sensors offer an attractive alternative to conventional monitoring instruments, as they can be rob...

CLAIRO Zoom-in 3: Modelling air pollution removal by urban greenery in Ostrava

Outdoor air pollution is a major environmental health problem affecting almost everybody in the globe, as around 99% of the world's population live in...

Urban green spaces are needed for public health

The CLAIRO project demonstrates the positive impact of urban greenery on air quality. Apart from reducing air pollution, urban vegetation provides a r...

CLAIRO International Conference: Building human-centric cities through promoting greening and active mobility

People-friendly cities can be developed by careful and smart planning of urban mobility, by combining hard surfaces with vegetation and water, or by a...

The CLAIRO Project Journal N°3

In the past 12 months CLAIRO project has entered its final phase with key project outputs starting to materialize. This third edition of CLAIRO Journa...

Cookbooks were published by CLAIRO for cities on using vegetation to improve air quality

CLAIRO aspires to develop, test and disseminate a unique methodology for using greenery to improve locally urban air quality. With a view to summarize...

CLAIRO study on behavioural changes: Mass planting for clean air is more popular than other air quality related measures

The general attitude towards air quality and urban greening is significantly influenced by age, level of education and gender. This was one of the key...

CLAIRO Zoom-in 2: Plant hormones help planted trees withstand unfavourable environmental conditions in Ostrava

Urban greenery can be used for filtering air pollutants in an industrial area only as long as trees can survive or remain healthy for a longer time. I...

CLAIRO National Conference: A system of green spaces contributes to a sustainable and healthy city

Green spaces in a city are particularly relevant in stormwater management, as they help absorb water decreasing runoff rates. During heavy downpours b...

Designing greenery for pollutant capture under CLAIRO

According to a recently published international survey of the European Commission, Ostrava is one of those cities in Europe that have the most visible...

The CLAIRO Project Journal N°2

This is the second Journal of Tamas Kallay on the CLAIRO project covering an implementation period during which Ostrava was setting the scene for the ...

CLAIRO Zoom-in 1: A modular sensor network to quantify air pollutant capture by greenery

The first Zoom-in of the CLAIRO project explores how a low-cost, flexible sensor network with a high modularity supports the modelling of the future c...

CLAIRO public opinion surveys: Results reveal concerns about air quality and openness towards urban greening in Ostrava agglomeration

The majority of the people in the Ostrava agglomeration are interested in air quality and consider the topic to be highly relevant. At the same time, ...

CLAIRO Journal 1: Key activities and interim results

UIA Expert Tamas Kallay provides a first glimpse of the project’s challenges, lessons learnt and successes. ...

Final journal of the UIA project “E-Co-Housing”

Moving into E-Co-housing! The first experiences in community living and housing

On 25.10.2023, the newly refurbished house in Mexikói út 11/B in Budapest's district Zugló was handed over to its 40 new residents within the framewor...

Improving social housing in Zugló: Not just the hardware, also the software!

The mentoring programme for social housing tenants E-Co-Housing is about refurbishing an old building into an environmental-friendly, smart and inn...

Not a worm this time: a virus and the wood sector

How can a global sanitary crisis affect a single construction project in Budapest? A taste of the housing crisis in 2021 in Budapest: “The renta...

Cities engaging in the right to housing

Urban Innovative Actions (UIA) and URBACT are joining forces to push the right to housing...

E-Co-Housing Journal 1: More than a house

UIA Expert Annette Kuhk “elaborates on the ambitions of the E-Co-Housing project, with a zoom-in on the specific location (Gizella út), the programme ...

Journal 4: Home Silk Road - A Final Look Back

This final journal looks back at the successes and failures of the Home Silk Road project and shares some lessons for other Urban Authorities. ...

Journal 3: Home Silk Road - 1 Year On

Home Silk Road's implementation officially ended in October 2002. However, the project did not suddenly stop. Ending the temporary occupation has been...

The End of the Home Silk Road

At the end of October 2O22, the Home Silk Road project officially came to an end. Six months later, this article looks back at the project’s achieveme...

Meet CCO Villeurbanne: A Laboratory for Cultural and Social Innovation

An interview with Harout Mekhsian, Director, CCO Villeurbanne. ...

Promoting the Social and Solidarity Economy in the Home Silk Road Project

An interview with Mathieu Fortin, Social and Solidarity Economy & Entrepreneurship Officer at the City of Villeurbanne. ...

Zoom in 3: The Situation of Homeless Families in the Home Silk Road project

This Zoom-In digs into the inclusion dimension of the Home Silk Road by exploring the current situation of the homeless families who are being accommo...

Temporary Urban Planning to Address Homelessness Gains Ground in Villeurbanne, Grand Lyon

This article shows how the Home Silk Road project is part of a bigger strategy to use temporary urban planning and architecture to provide solutions t...

Cooking up an Inclusive City!

Article on the opening of BaklAAVA restaurant/caterers on the Home Silk Road site...

Innovating in the time of COVID19

A look back at the impact of COVID19 on Home Silk Road ...

Point de CHU…T: Rap, Slam & the City for All!

Point de CHU...T is a rap and slam project developed at the initiative of young people living in emergency shelter on the site of the Home Silk Road U...

Home Silk Road Journal 2: Get an update about Lyon's project

This journal describes implementation challenges in the second phase of the Home Silk Road project. This project is testing an innovative housing solu...

Home Silk Road and Housing First in the Metropole of Lyon

This Zoom-In takes a close look at how the Home Silk Road UIA Project fits into the broader Housing First strategy of the Metropole of Lyon. Housing F...

Journal 1: Putting vulnerable people at the heart of the city

UIA Expert Ruth Owen presents Lyon’s initial challenges, the most relevant of which is “the participative approach for co-implementation. Using cultu...

BRICK-BEACH: a missed opportunity ? Zoom-in 3

The BRICK-BEACH project is in a delicate situation due to problems related to the delay in obtaining the pertinent administrative authorizations and t...

Zoom-in video on BRICK-BEACH project

Construction and demolition waste is always seen as one of the main barriers for implementing a circular economy. Instead, in Velez-Malaga they saw it...

BRICK-BEACH: A new impetus for the project, but will be it enough?

In this 5th Journal, Miguel Lucena will guide you through the most relevant news of the last 6 months for BRICK-BEACH project. With the approval of th...

BRICK-BEACH journal - facing Covid 19 and other challenges

In this fourth Journal of BRICK-BEACH project, UIA Expert Miguel Lucena reports on the advancement of the project till March 2020. With the project at...

A circular economy project for the citizens, with the citizens: BRICK-BEACH engagement process - ZOOM IN 2

The first Zoom-in published in January 2019, was intended to give an overview of the BRICK-BEACH project and collect the opinion of the partners invol...

BRICK-BEACH Journal 3: overcoming some of the challenges related to its infrastructural activities

In the third Journal of BRICK-BEACH, UIA Expert Miguel Lucena shows how the project is currently overcoming some of the challenges related to its infr...

BRICK-BEACH UIA Expert Journal – tackling illegal dumps and recycling waste to recover its lost beach

UIA Expert, Miguel Lucena, gives a first look on how the project is being implemented ...

BRICK-BEACH Journal#2

This second Journal of BRICK-BEACH reports on the advancement of the project till March 2019 and focuses on the activities realised in different areas...

Journal 4 Earth Cycle

Industry is back to the city: Earth Cycle could be a model for urban sustainability! - Zoom in 2

“The workshop noises have disappeared, overalls too, replaced by white collars and screens and click workers”. Pierre Veltz, French territorial econo...

Journal 3 Earth Cycle

In this third journal, we will present a questioning about the replication and upscaling of the Earth Cycle model in the Parisian Region by placing it...

Earth Cycle Zoom-In 1: An urban developer for a circular economy based on ‘Georesource’

One of the key players of the project Earth Cycle is the urban developer as he is an end user and promotor of new technologies. ...

Earth Cycle Journal 2: New challenges and new perspectives

UIA Expert Youssef Diab presents “the major recent evolution of the project, regarding the new implementation site and the business model (partnership...

Earth Cycle Journal 1: Building blocks to re-localise economy

Policy context, objectives, current questions and future perspective of Sevran’s project....

Developing a new business culture for circular economy - Zoom in 3

One of the components within the Urban Soil 4 Food (US4F) project in Maribor has been the support to innovative products in the field of circular econ...

US4F Journal 6

The Urban Soil 4 Food (US4F) project reached its end, and this last Journal aims at reconstructing its journey and the impacts it has reached. The Cit...

US4F Journal 5: Successful and active urban community gardens

UIA Expert Daniela Patti reports on the period between February and November 2020 during which “all sorts of contests were carried out for the product...

US4F Journal 4: How cities should organise their food production and distribution systems

UIA Expert Daniela Patti explores Maribor’s experience with “what has happened to the urban gardens, mainly focusing on the possibilities of the futur...

US4F Zoom-in 2: How to setup a short food chain distribution platform?

UIA Expert Daniela Patti provides details how Maribor “wants to improve the local food distribution chain through the development of an online platfor...

US4F Journal 3: Community gardens are open!

UIA Expert Daniela Patti reports that “Urban Soil 4 Food has entered the operational phase! Just like the preparation of the soil for the planting, ju...

UrbanSoil4Food Zoom-in 1: Soil for our future!

UIA Expert Daniela Patti “explores the importance of soil and how the project is creating new one through urban organic and construction waste (excava...

Urban Soil 4 Food Journal 1: Read about the project’s initial progress

Get to know what Maribor is doing in the first UIA Expert journal!...

URBAN SOIL 4 FOOD Journal 2: The new urban gardens are blooming

Maribor is ready to open up for the next stage of the project! ...

Ljubljana Journal 6: A recap of what has happened since the project officially finished in December 2020

This journal focuses on the post-project phase of APPLAUSE. What activities have continued now that the project has officially finished? How partners ...

APPLAUSE Zoom-In 3: Circular business models for IAPS management

UIA Expert Jorgina Cuixart shares insights around the APPLAUSE business models. Take a look at Zoom-in 3 and learn more about Ljubljana’s case study o...

APPLAUSE Journal 5: Delivering public services and urban innovation in times of COVID-19

UIA Expert Jorgina Cuixart reports “COVID-19 has had a noticeable effect on APPLAUSE and the plans the consortium had for this last phase of project i...

Ljubljana Journal 4: Preparing the legacy of APPLAUSE

UIA expert Jorgina Cuixart reveals how “APPLAUSE is heading towards the last few months of implementation. Some activities such as the harvesting camp...

APPLAUSE Journal 3: Up and running!

UIA Expert Jorgina Cuixart reports that “after two years since the start of the project, most processes and planned activities in APPLAUSE are up and ...

APPLAUSE Zoom-In 2: Engaging citizens in the circular economy

UIA Expert Jorgina Cuixart reveals how “through a variety of educational and awareness raising actions, citizens are encouraged to participate in diff...

APPLAUSE Journal 1: The project’s first achievements and lessons learnt

Check out Ljubljana’s initial steps in the first UIA Expert journal...

APPLAUSE Zoom-In 1: Setting up a new circular approach to IAPS management in cities

In her first Zoom-in, UIA Expert Jorgina Cuixart presents Invasive Alien Plant Species (IAPS) and their impact on cities. ...

APPLAUSE Journal 2: A new system to tackle Invasive Alien Plant Species

Ljubljana has been progressing in the development of its circular model for IAPS management. ...

Journal n 06: Urban Infra Revolution: The Urban Infra Revolution project implementation

The article summarizes the project implementation and comments the most important problems that occurred during the project. Despite the difficulties,...

The Urban Infra Revolution project Journal 5: get an update about Lappeenranta's project

The fifth edition of the Journal describes and analyses the progress of the Urban Infra Revolution (UIR) project in the last six months, from March 20...

Virtual and Augmented Reality as Innovative Tools for Supporting Project Implementation - ZOOM-IN 3

3D modelling makes it easier for citizens to understand and comment on planned developments in the Urban Infra Revolution project. The use of modern A...

Get an update about the Urban Infra Revolution project - Journal 4

In this fourth edition of the Journal, UIA Expert Kinga Korniejenko describes and analyses the progress of the Urban infra revolution project from Oct...

Do we need innovations? 3D printing technology for construction materials - ZOOM IN 2

The second zoom-in of Urban Infra Revolution, UIA Expert Kinga Korniejenko focus on exploring the technology of 3D printing geopolymer composites and ...

UrbanInfraRevolution: technical solutions and challenges in the last 6 months

The third Journal of Urban Infra Revolutions describes and analyses the progress of the project in the last six months, from March 2019 to end of Sept...

Mechanical activation of geopolymers at Lappeenranta-Lahti University

The development of a new kind of circulative geopolymer composite material based on side streams of local industries is strongly promoted by the Urban...

Urban Infra Revolution UIA Expert Journal – reducing emissions in urban construction development

UIA Expert, Kinga Korniejenko, gives a first look on how the project is being implemented....

Durability of the materials used and other technological challenges faced by Urban Infra Revolution

In the second edition of the Urban infra revolution Journal, UIA Expert Kinga Korniejenko provides an overview of the development of the project by fo...

Do we need innovations? Zoom-in on geopolymers composites

Making the construction sector circular is one of the main challenge for the implementation of a full circular economy. The Urban Infra Revolutions pr...

The CitiCAP (citizens' cap and trade co-created) Project Zoom In 2

The work on Lahti Direction combines transport and land-use planning in a new way, and builds a sustainable city in cooperation with citizens, stakeho...

CitiCAP Expert Journal: Get an update on what has been happening in the last 6 months in Lahti

In his 3rd journal of CitiCAP, UIA expert Philip Turner describes his take on the project over the last 6 months, which included a stimulating and enr...

CitiCAP Journal 6

In his 6th and concluding journal of CitiCAP, UIA expert Philip Turner describes the final results and takeaways from the project, which includes the ...

CitiCAP Journal: Get an update on what happened in the last 6 months in Lahti

In his 5th journal of CitiCAP, UIA expert Philip Turner describes his take on the project over the last 6 months which saw the start of the transition...

How does CitiCap project promote sustainable mobility through citizen engagement?

CityCap is getting a lot of attention, both EU- and internationally-wise. It was awarded with the Gitex 2019 Smart City series (biggest technology exh...

CitiCAP Expert Journal 4: Get an update on what has been happening in the last 6 months in Lahti

In his 4th journal of CitiCAP, UIA expert Philip Turner describes his take on the project over the last 6 months, which included the testing and user ...

CitiCAP Expert Journal: testing the Personal Carbon Trading Scheme

In his 4th journal of CitiCAP, UIA expert Philip Turner describes his take on the project over the last 6 months, which included the testing and user ...

CitiCAP UIA Expert Journal – Learn more about the experiment with a Personal Carbon Trading scheme

UIA Expert, Philip Turner, gives a first look on how the project is being implemented ...

A critical friend's view on Lahti's Personal Carbon Trading scheme

This Zoom-in aims to take a critical view of personal carbon trading  (PCT), outlining some of its core components with a particular focus on the chal...

CitiCAP Expert Journal: Get an update on what has been happening in the last 6 months in Lahti

In his 2nd journal of CitiCAP, UIA expert Philip Turner describes his take on the project over the last 6 months, which included a stimulating and enr...

Super Circular Estate Project, Journal no. 5, Municipality of Kerkrade

Super Circular Estate (SCE) Project illustrated potential of reactivation of resources within existing built environments and helped us understand bet...

Kerkrade Zoom-in 3: The monitoring process and its results

UIA Expert Elma Durmisevic interviews Michiel Ritzen from ZUYD University on the monitoring process of the Super Circular Estate project and its resul...

SCE Journal 4: State of the art construction of three circular houses

UIA Expert Elma Durmisevic explains how the “three new houses have been constructed by reusing more than 90% of materials from the existing building a...

Super Circular Estate Journal 3: Kerkrade’s challenges

UIA Expert Elma Durmisevic tells us how “the SCE consortium is already finalising the construction phase of the three new houses made of reused materi...

Super Circular Estate Zoom-in 2: How BRX could support reuse of building materials

One of the lessons learned from Kerkrade’s project “regarding future buildings, is that reuse potential of building products need to be embodied into ...

Super Circular Estate Journal 1: Get to know the project’s first steps

The UIA Expert unveils Kerkrade’s initial achievements in the first journal....

Super Circular Estate Zoom-in 1: Circular versus conventional building process

UIA Expert Elma Durmisevic zooms into the differences between circular and conventional building process through interviews with the key members of th...

Super Circular Estate Journal 2: Next steps

Take a look at the latest developments around Kerkrade’s project. ...

A2UFood Journal 6 - Looking back, learning for the future

Bioplastics from Food Waste - ZOOM IN

The A2UFood project proposes a holistic approach to food waste management in the Municipality of Heraklion. It includes food waste reduction (awarenes...

A2UFood Journal 5: The progress of Heraklion during COVID-19

Digital tools, bioplastics laboratory trials, composting, awareness raising, dissemination and tendering have progressed. Heraklion is getting ready f...

A2UFood Zoom-in II: The implementation of the RMF Tool

UIA Expert Christina Marouli goes into the details of the RESOURCEMANAGER-FOOD (RMF) tool for the hospitality units....

A2UFood Journal 4: Promising efforts – extremely tight time frame

UIA Expert Christina Marouli reveals that in the past months, Heraklion’s “primary focus has been the resolution of licensing and tendering challenges...

A2U Food Journal 3: New lessons learnt

UIA Expert Christina Marouli reports that “this third period constituted a continuation of the first year, with the primary focus being on implementat...

A2UFood Journal 1: The UIA Expert presents the project’s first steps

Get to know the initial achievements of Heraklion in the first UIA Expert journal....

A2UFood Zoom-In: Food waste and stakeholders’ views

The first Zoom-in of the A2UFood project has just been finalised! UIA Expert Christina Marouli presents the many different dimensions of the problem o...

A2UFood Journal 2: The project moves forward

Discover the latest updates around Heraklion’s project. ...

TMaaS Final Journal

The final version of the TMaaS project Journal...

The TMaaS Project Journal No 4

The present fourth edition of the TMaaS Journal aims to provide interested readers with information concerning the project’s final achievements and re...

TMaaS web article No 5 - The TMaaS products

TMaaS web article No 5 - The TMaaS products ...

TMaaS web article No 4 - Interview with Sophie Gillaerts, the TMaaS project coordinator

TMaaS web article No 4 - Interview with Sophie Gillaerts, the TMaaS project coordinator...

TMaaS web article No 3 - TMaaS Replicator City program Part 2: lessons learnt

TMaaS web article No 3 - TMaaS Replicator City program Part 2: lessons learnt...

TMaaS web article No 2 - TMaaS Replicator City program Part 1: process and results

TMaaS web article No 2 - TMaaS Replicator City program Part 1: process and results...

TMaaS web article No 1 - TMaaS notifications for travellers

TMaaS web article No 1 - TMaaS notifications for travellers...

TMaaS & LINK.Gent from a public transport user's behavior perspective

In his first Zoom-In, UIA TMaaS expert Dr. Evangelos Mitsakis, presents an animated story that highlights the decisions that travelers need to take on...

TMaaS UIA Expert Journal – Learn more on how the city of Ghent aims to better manage the urban mobility system

UIA Expert, Sofia Taborda, gives a first look on how the project is being implemented ...

TMaaS Expert Journal: Get an update on what has been happening in the last 6 months

The 2nd TMaaS Journal accompanies the project in its past half year of progress. By giving an account of the main activities and achievements of each ...

LINC Project Journal 6 - looking back one year after

In her 6th and concluding journal of LINC, UIA expert Dr. Anna Pernestål describes the final results and takeaways from the project, which include the...

Testing the future of driverless vehicles already today

A dialogue with the test design coordinator in the LINC project by Anna Pernestål, UIA Expert for the TUPPAC-LINC project 5first zoom in)...

LINC Project Journal 5 - finalizing the driver less shuttle tests

The six months long test with self-driving shuttles at DTU Campus has just ended, and in journal 5 we summarize the first learnings from these tests....

Financial Models for Shared Sustainable Mobility Services- ZOOM IN

Shared mobility services that utilize novel technology such as digitalization and automated driving can contribute to sustainable traveling, decreased...

LINC project Journal 4 - get an update about the Albertslund project

In Journal 4 we analyze the progress towards getting the self-driving buses ready to run in the LINC project. In particular, we explore challenges enc...

Understanding the legislative framework to test autonomous vehicles on public streets -ZOOM IN 2

In her zoom-in, Linc UIA Expert Anna Pernestal, develops an infographic that compares the current autonomous vehicle approval framework between Denmar...

TUPPAC/LINK Expert Journal: Get an update on what has been happening in the last 6 months

In her 2nd journal of TUPPAC, UIA expert Anna Pernestal gives us a taste of how the project has progressed in the last months, focusing on the operati...

TUPPAC UIA Expert Journal – Learn how the use of autonomous collective transport will transform urban planning

UIA Expert, Dr. Anna Pernestål, gives a first look on how the project is being implemented ...

LINC-TUPPAC Expert Journal: Get an update on what has been happening in the last 6 months

In her 3rd journal, UIA expert Anna Pernestal guides us through the progress of the LINC-TUPPAC project during the last six months, focusing on the pr...

Last UIA Antwerp Circular South Journal: Circularity as a new framework for cities

This last journal of the UIA Antwerp Circular South project accounts for the evolution of the project after UIA funding was stopped. It details the di...

Making the most of solar energy in the new residential area of Antwerp Circular South (3rd Zoom-In)

This Zoom-In presents the different features of the solar energy system in Antwerp Circular South as well as the challenges it has faced due to the cu...

Antwerp Circular South Journal 5: Last Mile and Wrapping Up

“The Antwerp Circular South project is entering its final stage in strange times. As the rest of society, it has been affected by the current Covid-19...

Antwerp Circular South Journal 4: Well into the project, but far enough?

UIA Expert Marcelline Bonneau reveals that “some specific aspects are becoming more prominent now: showing the added value to both residents and owner...

Antwerp Circular South Zoom-In 2: “What if you could see how much energy you consume at home and that you could change it?”

UIA Expert Marcelline Bonneau reveals how “the Circular South Project started with their “nudging experiments” to test innovative ways of supporting c...

Antwerp Circular South Journal 3: Half-Way Through State Of The Art

In her latest Journal, UIA Expert Marcelline Bonneau reports that “almost everything is ready, and the experimentation can start. It is finally becomi...

The difficult transition for consumers towards more sustainable practices

Read the opinion of Marcelline Bonneau, UIA expert for the Antwerp Circular South project, on supporting sustainable consumption practices....

Antwerp Circular South Zoom-In: CIRCUIT in the focus

UIA Expert Marcelline Bonneau presents the first steps of CIRCUIT – the Circular South Community Centre. As she explains, “the Antwerp Circular South ...

Antwerp Circular South UIA Expert Journal – changing consumption behaviours for a more circular economy

UIA Expert, Marcelline Bonneau, gives a first look on how the project is being implemented ...

Antwerp Circular South Journal 2: Moving towards direct implementation

Antwerp Circular South has begun unfolding. ...

The VILAWATT currency

The Vilawatt currency, which is born from the European project of energy transition Vilawatt, is not a currency in itself isolated from the project, b...

Final Journal UIA VILAWATT project

The VILAWATT project was implemented to secure a stable energy transition process through the setting of an innovative governance structure (local pub...

Implementing the VILAWATT project in Viladecans: the use of gamification to communicate on complex energy projects

UIA Expert Lucia Fuselli has been collecting the knowledge stemming from the implementation of the innovative solution proposed by the City of Viladec...

VILAWATT Journal 1: Hear from the project’s UIA Expert how it is implementing its bold solution

Get to know better what Viladecans is doing on the topic energy transition in this UIA Expert journal....

Vilawatt Zoom-In: Exploring the project’s communication and stakeholders engagement strategies

UIA Expert Lucia Fuselli has developed a PPT slide show to discuss how the Vilawatt project in Viladecans has approached communication, stakeholder pa...

Vilawatt Journal 3: New insights on the progress of the project

Stay up-to-date with the latest achievements of Viladecans...

An update on the implementation of the Public Private Citizen Partnership and on the virtual currency

Vilawatt is currently considered to be a Spanish example in social innovation and community energy, at a time when energy poverty and energy access ar...

CoRDEES Journal 1: Hear from the project’s UIA Expert how it is implementing its bold solution

Get to know better what Paris is doing on energy transition in this UIA Expert journal. ...

Implementing the CoRDEES project in Paris: Get an update on the activities carried out in the second UIA Expert journal

UIA Expert Juan de las Cuevas has been collecting the knowledge stemming from the implementation of the innovative solution proposed by the City of Pa...

CORDEES Journal 3: Update on the project progress

Get the latest news about Paris’ innovative action...

CoRDEES Zoom-In: Video sheds light on the project

UIA Expert Juan Ramon de las Cuevas and the CoRDEES team have produced a video to explain the main elements of this Energy transition project. ...

FED Journal 6: A view on the functioning FED system

UIA Expert Zeno Winkels provides insights on the legacy of the FED project one year after its successful end. As he mentions: “The main legacy of the ...

FED Journal 5: End of the project

UIA Expert Zeno Winkels describes how “at the Chalmers campus in Gothenburg, the 6500 kW steam boiler was installed, as well as the more novel PCM (Ph...

Market design for local energy systems of the future

On the last day of October 2019, the Fossil-free Energy Districts (FED) project will be completed. The collaboration has, during three years, designed...

FED Journal 1: Hear from the project’s UIA Expert how it is implementing its bold solution

Get to know better what Gothenburg is doing on the topic energy transition in this UIA Expert journal....

Implementing the FED project in Gothenburg: Get an update on the activities carried out in the second UIA Expert journal

UIA Expert Zeno Winkels has been collecting the knowledge stemming from the implementation of the innovative solution proposed by the City of Gothenbu...

FED Journal 3: Tackling silo-thinking

Check out how Gothenburg is implementing effective cross departmental working....

FED Zoom-In: Video sheds light on the project

The UIA Expert Zeno Winkels has produced a video to discuss what UIA is and explain the main elements of this Energy transition project....

FED Journal 4: The FED system becomes operational

Gothenburg is heading towards a successful closure. ...

INNOAIR Final Journal

INNOAIR Journal 3: Launching and scaling-up the green mobility services

This report provides an overview of the 2023 activities for the INNOAIR project, spearheaded by Sofia, Bulgaria, and supported by the Urban Innovative...

INNOAIR Journal 2: Putting the green mobility options on the road

This journal summarizes the progress of activities of the project INNOAIR implemented by the city of Sofia, Bulgaria, with the support of the Urban In...

INNOAIR Journal 1: Towards on-demand green mobility

This journal summarizes the progress of activities of the project INNOAIR implemented by the city of Sofia, Bulgaria, with the support of the Urban In...

Air-Break Final Journal

This final Journal provides an overview of the progress and long-term impact of the Air-Break project in Ferrara, focusing on the key components that ...

Citizen Science – A double-edged blade. Perspectives from the debate emerged in Ferrara

Citizen science, a method that brings non-experts into the fold of scientific research and data collection, has emerged as a powerful tool in addressi...

Insights Unveiled: Air-Break Ferrara's Data-Driven Policymaking

Air-Break's comprehensive dataset transforms Ferrara's urban planning, providing real-time air quality and mobility insights....

Advancing Urban Mobility: Challenges, Progress, and Policy Implications of Air-Break Motivational Campaigns – Zoom-In 2

In this Zoom-In, UIA Expert Pietro L. Verga navigates through the transformative impact of FBK's Air-Break Sustainable Mobility Motivational Campaigns...

AIR BREAK Journal Nr. 3

With the project approaching its end in December 2023, this Journal Nr. 3 reflects on a number of core lessons learnt during the implementation of Air...

Data-Driven Cities: Air-Break Ferrara's Real-Time Air Quality Insights for Informed Citizens and Policymakers

In the pursuit of creating smarter and more sustainable urban environments, the Air-Break Ferrara project has embarked on a mission to revolutionize t...

Air-Break Datathon: a gathering of creativity and analytical exploration

How to actively engage youth, researchers, and experts in exploring innovative solutions to contemporary environmental challenges? ...

Playing Together Towards Sustainable Mobility. The Air-Break Gamification Experience

Through a set of playful activities and gamified rewarding campaigns, the Air-Break project sets to bring about positive change in citizens’ mobility ...

Analysing Commuting Patterns in Ferrara towards Better-Informed Policy Decisions

In order to better understand the commuting practices, habits, and trends of Ferrara’s citizens and city-users, and ultimately to inform policy decisi...

AIR BREAK Journal Nr. 2

This second Journal focuses on the achievements of- and challenges for all the core realms of the Air-Break project until October 2022....

An Urban Forest is Growing in Ferrara

Since March 2022, a new urban forest is growing in Ferrara, thanks to the plantation of nearly two-thousands trees and shrubs in five selected areas o...

AIR BREAK Journal Nr. 1

The Air-Break project seeks to reduce by 25% air-pollution in selected strategic areas of the City of Ferrara. The city lays in one of the most air-po...

An Alliance for Air in Ferrara

The air we breathe can contain a variety of pollutants released into the atmosphere as a mixture of solid particles, liquid droplets, and gases from a...

Cargo bikes: a family alternative to car ownership in Brussels

In Brussels, nine out of ten families with children rely on cars. Cargo bikes offer a sustainable alternative for school runs, groceries, and more. Di...

Rethinking parking: How Brussels is making space for cargo bikes

As cargo bikes gain popularity, Brussels is addressing the challenges of parking, theft, and accessibility through innovative policies and collaborati...

How Brussels is leveraging cargo bike potential for delivery and service trips

In European cities, up to 50% of urban trips for professional activities could be made by cargo bike, yet many lack the awareness, infrastructure, and...

Journal #2: Moving the City on Two Wheels

Incorporating partner feedback, the second edition of the journal traces the progress of each challenge, documents enhancements, and outlines actionab...

Cairgo Bike - Focus on air quality, black carbon exposure

The Cairgo Bike project is designed to boost measures being applied by Brussels Capital Region to structurally improve air quality in the city. It tar...

Incentive: Powering Cargo Bike Take-up

The Cairgo Bike project is designed to boost measures, being applied by the Brussels Capital Region to structurally improve air quality in the city. I...

The CAIRGO BIKE project Journal N° 1

The Cairgo Bike project is designed as a tool to help tackle persistent conditions of poor and damaging air quality experienced in many European citie...

Cairgo Bike working on 3 Ts: Training, Testing and Trial

The Cairgo Bike project is designed to boost measures being applied by the Brussels Capital Region to structurally improve air quality in the city. It...

Contaminated air, public health and Cairgo Bike

The Cairgo Bike project is designed to boost measures being applied by the Brussels Capital Region to structurally improve air quality in the city. It...

Cairgo Bike extending innovative action in Brussels Capital Region

The Cairgo Bike project is designed to boost measures being applied by the Brussels Capital Region to structurally improve air quality in the city. It...

Journal 4 - RE/SOURCED

Final Journal on the UIA RE/SOURCED Project...

RE/SOURCED - Journal 3

Our third RE/SOURCED Journal, covering Q1 2023 to Q1 2024...

A viable Energy Community at Transfo

Does circularity help to reduce carbon emissions?

This articles considers whether there is a link between circularity and carbon emissions. It also uses the RE/SOURCED project as an exemplar to show ...

Challenges adopting Circularity in Energy projects

RE/SOURCED aimed to construct a DC Smart Grid using circular principles at Transfo, a former coal fired power station site in Belgium. The original pr...

RE/SOURCED: Zoom-In 2

This video presents the second ZOOM-IN article for RE/SOURCED. It summarises the progress made by the project consortium in delivering the RE/Sourced...

RE/SOURCED - The Educational Perspective

RE/SOURCED is defined by a number of innovative but highly technical aspects of the project. This article presents a different perspective - the proj...

RE/SOURCED Journal 2

This article presents the second UIA Journal for Renewable Energy SOlutions for URban communities based on Circular Economy policies and DC backbones...

What are Energy Communities?

Energy Communities have had considerable press coverage recently and RE/SOURCED always had an Energy Community as one of the integral elements of its ...

Tenacity pays dividends for RE/SOURCED - ZOOM IN

This article sets out the regulatory challenges faced by the RE/SOURCED project team and the steps taken to overcome them. It highlights how regulatio...

What is the RE/SOURCED Smart Grid

This article describes the key elements of the RE/SOURCED Smart Grid...

RE/SOURCED Journal 1

UIA RE/SOURCED Journal - 1...

Journal #4: The final year for DIAMS

This is the fourth and last journal for the UIA project DIAMS (Digital Alliance for Marseille Sustainability). The Aix Marseille Métropole has led thi...

Zoom-in #3. Evaluation and monitoring innovative environmental projects involving citizen participation: the DIAMS approach

Monitoring and evaluating the impact of projects is essential to determine the success in implementing the action plan, achieving the objectives, and ...

Journal # 3: The challenges for the UIA DIAMS project

This is the third journal for the UIA DIAMS (Digital Alliance for Marseille Sustainability) project led by the Aix Marseille Métropole. In terms of a...

ZOOM – IN #2 - ENGAGEMENT OF CITIZENS AND STAKEHOLDERS IN THE FIGHT OF POOR AIR QUALITY: THE UIA-DIAMS APPROACH

The UIA DIAMS project, led by the Aix-Marseille Métropole, aims to engage the different parts of the society to improve the policies related to air qu...

DIAMS Journal 2: get an update about Aix-Marseille project

This second journal discusses the challenging times faced in this exceptional year, marked by the Covid-19 global pandemic, and how the DIAMS partners...

The DIAMS digital platform: Towards a collaborative approach to improve the air quality governance- Zoom-in

The UIA DIAMS project, lead by the Aix Marseille Metropole, aims to engage the different parts of the society to improve the air quality problems in t...

Diams Project Journal 1

In this first journal about the DIAMS project, UIA Expert Anna Font provides a general overview of how DIAMS fits within the existing European, French...

The living lab: a lab in the air, a space to create on earth

The Living lab opened its doors in October 2019 in Aix-en-Provence, one of the main cities of the Aix Marseille Metropole. It was conceived to be an i...

The quays are prepared for nature to take over - Journal 4

Breda's GreenQuays project served as a pioneering initiative to infuse more nature into the densely built medieval city centre by revitalising the riv...

Green Quays from a citizen perspective

Green Quays offers valuable lessons for harmonising urban developments with the desires and needs of their citizens. It has been a radically innovativ...

"You have to take risks to advance - also as a politician."

It is done! September 2023 – the GreenQuays have been built. In the middle of Breda, a new stretch of the river Mark has been uncovered and a new type...

The GreenQuays project on its last mile - Journal 3

The third Journal of GreenQuays explores how the project continues to deal with seven general implementation challenges of innovative project as well ...

Volunteers play an important role in GreenQuays’ biodiversity monitoring

The main innovative feature of the GreenQuays in Breda is to build them nature-inclusive. For achieving this, the construction will lay the foundation...

Bringing to life Breda’s nature-inclusive quays

This Zoom in 2 looks into the experience, challenges and lessons learned with developing the multifunctional design and the implementation. Can it be ...

Ideas from the GreenQuays project start stretching beyond the initial plans

While most of the innovative tasks of planning the quays and testing different technical solutions have finished, GreenQuays is still running with the...

Finally digging of the GreenQuays starts

After 2,5 years of preparation the construction of the GreenQuays has started end of June 2022. A first stretch of the covered river Mark in Breda‘s c...

City safari and Map of opportunities – testing new co-creation forms in Breda

Breda is on the way to re-open its first pilot section of the broader river Mark projects, in which the city will bring back the old river Mark in the...

Making Breda’s nature-inclusive quays also climate-responsive

GreenQuays will be a first stretch of the reopened River Mark project in the city centre. The project will enable nature to take the space despite t...

GreenQuays Journal 2: Progress on tackling the major implementation challenges

The second Journal of GreenQuays explores how the project continues to deal with the seven major implementation challenges of innovative projects....

Making trees and wall plants thrive at steep quay walls

Building nature-inclusive quays is the task of the GreenQuays project and, at the same time, its challenge. How can nature be offered space in a dense...

Finding the right design for nature-inclusive quays

The mindset on designing and using public urban space has changed in Breda in the 1990’s. Earlier, the city had decided to cover completely the origin...

The brickwork story behind GreenQuays

Nature-Inclusive Quays (NIQ) are the core of innovative solutions of the GreenQuays project in Breda. The vertical quay walls of the reopened river Ma...

GreenQuays Journal 1: the seven major implementation challenges

The first Journal of GreenQuays explores how the project deals with seven major implementation challenges of innovative projects....

An innovative partnership for innovative GreenQuays in Breda

Coming to the GreenQuays project team in Breda for the first time in June 2020, I have been hooked by the creative design of the planned nature-inclus...

Enabling nature to take over – green quay walls in Breda

Breda is a lovely city. The dense middle-age centre has many small streets and places to stroll around. This density does, however, leave only little ...

SPIRE Final Journal

Reducing the burden of pollution-related diseases in cities

SPIRE Journal 3: Overcoming the challenges

Following the triple bottom line (TBL), the SPIRE project initially tackles the challenges urban ecosystems suffer at the nexus of the economy-society...

SPIRE Start-Ups Mentoring Programme: building a culture of innovation

How do culture and creativity influence innovation in our cities? What is the role of technical and economic knowledge? Building a culture of innovati...

Transforming Geospatial Information (GIS) into urban knowledge in Baia Mare

Geospatial Information Systems (GIS) are infrastructures to capture, store, manage, analyse, chart, and visualize information, data, and indicators of...

SPIRE Journal 2: The project moves forward

This is the second journal of the Smart Post-Industrial Regenerative Ecosystem (SPIRE) project since its creation on 1st September 2019. The impact of...

What do E-WALLETS have to do with environmental protection?

If we consider money as a social technology, we could agree that it should never be "neutral". Now as the world is immersed in this global pandemic an...

Baia Mare community in action

The ecological transformation and recovery of five contaminated areas in Baia Mare, along with the significant environmental behavioural shift from ci...

Resilient cities after COVID-19: the need for green infrastructure

The impact of the current COVID-19 pandemic and the severe climate trends has shown how visionary the SPIRE project is, reclaiming and enhancing Baia ...

Re-naturing cities through phytoremediation: How Nature Based Solutions can make a difference.

One of the essentials of the SPIRE project that appealed all the parties involved from the beginning, as well as the newcomers, is “the magical” abili...

SPIRE Journal 1: get to know the latest project achievements

This is the first journal of the Smart Post-Industrial Regenerative Ecosystem (SPIRE) since its start on 01/09/2019. SPIRE, led by the Municipality of...

Creating new social and economic value: Restoring the urban ecosystem

This article is the first to review Baia Mare and the SPIRE project (Smart Post-Industrial Regenerative Ecosystem), financed under the 4th call of the...

Urban soil decontamination for citizens’ health

Pollution is one of the most significant environmental challenges worldwide; according to the European Environmental Agency, the management of pollute...

Final Journal DIACCESS

This final journal provides an assessment of the DIACCESS project. It starts with brief update of the activities in the DIACCESS project since it’s en...

Unemployed youth and refugees as IT talent

There is a lot of work to be done in digitalization, in the private and the public sector. Companies and governments everywhere are doing their best t...

Växjö gives waste bins a brain for better waste collection and sorting

Digital technology can make household waste collection in cities more efficient and speed up the circular transition. Putting sensors in waste bins ca...

The slippery road of innovation procurement

Journal 3 DIACCESS project

Executive Summary The project has entered its extension stage; the digital lab and IT platform are completed. Three innovation partnership procurem...

Scaling up smart city innovations: how it is done in Växjö

This zoom-in focuses on the challenge of upscaling, with illustrative examples from the DIACCESS project. In that project, the Swedish city of Växjö i...

Växjö meets Amsterdam to discuss innovative procurement: some takeaways

This article reviews how the cities of Växjö and Amsterdam adopt innovative procurement methods, and the challenges they face. ...

DIACCESS Zoom-in 1: Developing smart city solutions using the Innovation Partnership method: how does it work? Lessons from Växjö

This zoom-in focuses on the innovation partnership (IP) model. This model opens new avenues for public bodies, including cities, to co-create solution...

Journal 2 DIACCESS project

This journal provides an update of the progress of the project at the time of writing (November 2021) in the three main domains: the innovative public...

Challenge-based procurement: but how to find the challenges?

A cornerstone of the DIACCESS project in Växjö is to run a series of innovative public procurement (IPP) processes/rounds, in which companies are aske...

Procurement for innovation in action: DIACCESS Journal 1

This journal gives an account of the first experiences in the DIACCESS project in Växjö, Sweden...

Digital innovations for Växjö: some first results and challenges of the DIACCESS project

If a soccer field is covered with a thick layer of snow, it’s better to close it for use or remove the snow; otherwise the field gets broken and repai...

PUJ Prato Urban Jungle Journal N°4

The Prato Urban Jungle project has come to an end! It has been a very long journey, the project has overcome a series of challenges (from a pandemic...

Citizens’ participation and co-creation experiences in environmental issues 

Over the past years an increasing attention towards environmental justice is gaining more public attention through media, activism and civic participa...

Prato Urban Jungle - Journal #3

The PUJ project has continued experimenting and testing nature-based solution to create urban jungles and forests in Prato! ...

Prato Urban Jungle a case study for Integrated Territorial Development

The PUJ project in Prato has been selected as one of the twelve good practice cities within the study on Integrated Territorial Development (ITD) as p...

Upscaling the PUJ project through the Cities Mission 

Recently the City of Prato was recognised under the EU Mission for Climate-Neutral and Smart Cities, which offers a great potential towards the upscal...

The Via Turchia social housing Jungle! 

The Prato Urban Jungle project tested nature based solutions (NBS) in different pilot sites of the city in order to carry out innovative strategies to...

The Estra headquarter building Urban Jungle! 

The Prato Urban Jungle project tested nature based solutions (NBS) in different pilot sites of the city in order to carry out innovative strategies to...

The Macrolotto Zero Urban Jungle!

The Prato Urban Jungle project tested nature based solutions (NBS) in different pilot sites of the city in order to carry out innovative strategies to...

Create your own Jungle! 

Within the Prato Urbact Jungle project, Legambiente developed the "Create Your Own Jungle" course, where during the classes, participants learnt how t...

Green is health

The green interventions at “Nuovo Ospedale Santo Stefano'' of Prato will create a new urban park within the city bridging the gap between health and b...

Urban Jungle: Prato truly means it

Legambiente is a non-profit association, made up of citizens who care about the protection of the environment in all its forms, the quality of life an...

Prato Forest City: a tree for every citizen

Prato Forest City is the new strategic approach to urban planning, developed by the Municipality of Prato....

Prato rewards sustainable behaviours

greenApes is a digital platform that engages and rewards actions and sustainable lifestyles: users accumulate reward points through their sustainable ...

PUJ - Journal 2: Prato Urban Jungle implementations

Impacts of urban forestry: innovative, socio-ecological and economic added values - ZOOM-IN

PUJ - Journal 1: Project activities development

UIA Expert Daniela Patti focuses her first journal on presenting the main objectives of the Prato Urban Jungle project, the pilot sites, the consortiu...

Prato Turns Green - From the master plan approval to the creation of urban jungles

Prato Urban Jungle – PUJ – project will renew its city districts with greater social, productive and environmental dimensions turning itself into an u...

Journal 3 - UPPER

The most important goal achieved by the Upper Project is that knowledge of NbSs and their potential impact on marginal areas has been gained by the lo...

Journal 4 – UPPER

The Productive parks and Demonstration sites included in the Upper project today represent milestones from which the current and future government of ...

Ce.R.S.I.Te.S. and the importance of NbS monitoring for strategic planning

The results of the UPPER project demonstrate how NbS (Nature Based Solutions) offer the opportunity to practice transdisciplinary dialogues, to spread...

Demonstration Sites – an operational laboratory for UPPER's environmental challenges

There were various environmental critical issues highlighted by the UPPER project for the territory of the Municipality of Latina, for which a range o...

UPPER faces - Zoom-In 2

Synergies for a sustainable and resilient territory

UPPER's first urban production park is underway

Journal 2 UPPER project

The UPPER project for the urban natural park of the Acque Medie canal

The Canale delle Acque Medie (The Canal of the Middle Waters) symbolizes an element of structural interest for the urban center of Latina, representin...

Another summer of play, health and wellness with UPPER SEEDS!

After the success of the 2021 edition, the 2022 UPPER SEEDs were kicked off on 13 June. The activities in which citizens, schools and all those who h...

UPPER JOBS: innovative skills for employment and social inclusion

The selection of participants in the second edition of UPPER JOBS has been completed. The participants selected by the Labirinto Social Cooperative ha...

An innovative platform for environmental monitoring

Thanks to the creation of two innovative platforms developed by the partners and integrated into a common observatory, the UPPER project is able to co...

Journal 1 UPPER project

The Journal is aimed to describe the activities of the UPPER project and the results achieved during the first period of implementation. It also descr...

First activities and results of the UPPER project at Latina

UPPER project aims at transforming misused and abandoned urban green areas into Productive Parks (PP) devoted to research, technological development a...

Green Minds Journal 1: Insights on first significant urban rewilding actions in Plymouth

This Journal 1 of the Green Minds project is providing insights on the first significant advancements in favour of rewilding and nature-based solution...

Covid as an opportunity for Green Minds & nature-based solutions

How the implementation of the Green Minds project successfully continued over the tough period of the pandemic by seizing the embedded opportunities ...

CartujaQanat - Journal 3: A 10°C reduction with ZeroNet energy consumption in open spaces is possible. Sevilla made it.

The Sevilla CartujaQanat program is by design, an ambitious and particularly relevant program for regions facing extreme heat phenomena and for urban ...

Co-management and activation of large urban spaces in the era of climate transformation

This zoom-in article focuses on the New Governance and Social Innovation component of the project Cartuja-Qanat in Sevilla, which aims to propose an i...

CartujaQanat – Recovering the Street Life in a Climate Changing World Journal 2: How is Sevilla moving the needle in the fight to urban climate transformation

Sevilla in Spain, will be the battleground of Europe for extreme urban heat. A pilot space containing an amphitheatre, an underground gallery and open...

The Urban Commons in the era of public health emergencies: How Sevilla and the UIA community is problem-solving for safeguarding public space and public life in the face of increased risk

While images of empty cities made the world-tour and provoked understandable owe, empty and limited public space is in fact an imminent if not ever-pr...

More than sewage and water pipes. How a water company in Spain becomes a driver of urban transformation

The Metropolitan Water Supply and Sanitation Company of Sevilla (EMASESA) is the coordinating Partner in the Urban Innovative Actions Program ‘Cartuja...

Bringing together the key areas of Climate change, Social Innovation and Public Space revitalisation

In this Journal, UIA Experts Kostantina Karidi explores the achievements of the first year of the Sevilla CartujaQanat project across eight selected g...

RESILIO smart Blue-Green roofs: looking into the future

RESILIO was completed in April 2022 and the developed roofs are flourishing. A year and a half later, we explore the legacy the project left behind fo...

Zoom-In article: Are smart blue-green roofs climate-proof themselves?

While RESILIO roofs contribute to climate adaptation (heat, flooding, biodiversity), we need to be sure that the green infrastructure is drought proof...

Journal 3 – Completing and delivering the RESILIO smart blue-green roofs

Finalised roof of the Premselahuis Innovation Lab, used to test alternative design options and evaluate their efficiency. ...

Are Amsterdam’s blue-green roofs good value-for-money for the city? Applying a Total Economic Value framework to urban Nature-based Solutions

Assessing the hydraulic performance of Blue-Green Infrastructure: the case study of Amsterdam's adaptive smart network blue-green roofs

A stepped process to evaluate the true potential of adaptive-blue green roofs for reducing flood risk ...

Engaging citizens in the development of multi-purpose Nature Based Solutions: how the RESILIO blue-green roofs project connects with communities

Why, how and when to engage citizens in the development of NBS? what are the challenges of engagement to be aware off?...

RESILIO's Journal #2: From planning to development

This is the 2nd Journal article describing progress of the RESILIO activities and associated implementation challenges. The purpose is to provide a nu...

Blue-Green roofs as accessible space in a 1.5-meter distance world?

Photo of the De Boel smart blue-green roof at Amsterdam Zuid (photo credits: De Dakdokters)...

RESILIO Journal: developing a network of innovative and smart rooftops in the city of Amsterdam

Through an analysis and contextualization of the 7 implementation challenges, UIA expert Leon Kapetas presents the RESILIO project, which aims to deve...

Smart Blue-Green Roofs of Amsterdam: Why you should be interested and how to get involved in the RESILIO project

RESILIO is the new Climate Adaptation project that takes place in Amsterdam and will install 10,000 m2 of Blue-Green Roofs on social housing complexes...

Creating Healthy Air Quality in Schools

In this zoom-in, the issue of outdoor and indoor air quality in schools is discussed on the occasion of the project GBG_A2CC of the City of Barcelona....

A blueprint of actions at the city scale for a successful adaptation plan to climate change - Recommendations from the Barcelona GBG_AS2C project

This Web article presents a blueprint of actions for cities to draft their own adaptation plan to climate change, also exploiting their local knowledg...

Evaluation - An indispensable component of innovation projects

Evaluation is an indispensable component of any project, especially innovation ones. It provides an understanding of the reliability of the applied me...

Upscaling with a vision - The school yard as a school

In this Web Article, the upscaling plan of the Climate Shelters project of the City of Barcelona is presented. The plan reflects a vision, namely to c...

Journal No. 3 The “final mile” of the Climate Shelters project: communication, evaluation and replication

The Journal (the 3rd for the Climate Shelters project) aims to provide an overview of the progress of the Climate Shelters project, with emphasis give...

Cultivating a School Culture for Climate Action - The Barcelona example

In a world that’s becoming increasingly complex, there is a need to prepare especially young people for a future that will require good knowledge, an ...

Indicators as tools for Adaptation to Climate Change at the city scale - The Climate Shelters project of the City of Barcelona

In this Web Article, the approach of the City of Barcelona towards the development of Performance Indicators as tools for Adaptation to Climate Change...

Changing the lens in urban design to cope with the impacts of climate change to health - The Barcelona approach

Protecting citizens at the neighbourhood scale in the event of heat waves is at the core of the Climate Shelters project of the City of Barcelona. Rea...

Barcelona’s pilot project to beat the heat

It is only 10 am but air temperature in Barcelona is already high; another heat wave has hit the city, causing the further enhancement of the heat isl...

Barcelona: a city in climate action

Image of the Can Fabras school yard following the conversion of the school to Climate Shelter ...

Adapting Barcelona to Climate Change: A multi-criteria approach for the selection of schools to be converted to Climate Shelters - Zoom In

This zoom in focuses on a challenging feature of the Barcelona “Climate Shelters” UIA project, namely the methodology and criteria for the selection o...

Barcelona’s Climate Shelters project The challenge of communicating unwelcome messages on climate change

To connect with people and communicate climate change effectively, one should convey more than climate facts to people. Instead, there is a need to un...

Science in the City

Image of Barcelona by Kaspars Upmanis on Unsplash...

GBG_AS2C journal: Climate shelters in Barcelona

In this journal, UIA Expert Constantinos Cartalis provides a contextualization of the Climate Shelters project within the policy context of the Europe...

AIR-HERITAGE biomonitoring: Interesting facts and results!

AIR-HERITAGE aims to improve the City of Portici’s knowledge on local air pollution, through monitoring and modeling air quality, so that the city can...

Actively engaging people during the pandemic: AIR-HERITAGE info points

AIR-HERITAGE aims to address air pollution in the City of Portici. A key element of the project is actively engaging citizens throughout the process. ...

Two UIA projects working together to tackle urban challenges

AIR-HERITAGE aims to address air pollution in Portici. A key element of the project is actively engaging citizens throughout the process. In this cont...

Biomonitoring: An alternative way to monitor air pollution in Portici

AIR-HERITAGE aims to improve the City of Portici’s knowledge on local air pollution so that the city can more effectively address this issue. More spe...

Air Heritage Journal 2: get an update about Portici's project latest achievements

This second Journal presents AIR-HERITAGE key achievements to date and describes how the various challenges faced, have evolved over time, as well as ...

Making better decisions, faster, to tackle air pollution

The first AIR-HERITAGE zoom-in focuses on the technical aspects of the project. It aims to present the Decision Support Tool developed for supporting ...

Air-Heritage journal 1

Andriana Stavrakaki, UIA expert for the AIR-HERITAGE project, in this journal edition describes the measures put in place by the City of Portici to ov...

Actively engaging students to improve the quality of life of residents, even during a pandemic

Ecostreets 2.0 – upscaling of a successful IGNITION practice

It was not in the plan of the IGNITION project, but under the COVID 19 restrictions, the project had to review its citizen engagement activities. It h...

The IGNITION Green Infrastructure Explorer turns data into a powerful practical urban planning tool

Over the course of the IGNITION project, it became evident that not only the financing schemes and business models to implement nature-based solutions...

The project ended, but the journey has just started - IGNITION Journal 4

After three years of intensive work, the IGNITION project came to an end in spring 2022. It started with the idea of developing innovative financing m...

The legacy of IGNITION: Multiple support tools making co-investment for nature-based solutions work

The goal of IGNITION, which started in November 2018, was to develop innovative financing schemes for the implementation of large-scale nature-based s...

Ecostreets – How small-scale action can inspire large-scale solutions

Over summer 2021, the IGNITION partner Groundworks in collaboration with the charity We love Manchester organized a competition among local communitie...

First tangible results and a continuous learning loop - IGNITION Journal n3

With roughly half a year left to its end, the project’s results are taking shape, such as the fully functioning Living Lab with its multiple interconn...

The long and winding road to financing nature-based solutions

Unlocking innovative sources of finance for nature-based solutions is a critical but challenging goal facing many city regions across Europe....

The IGNITION project: How support for greenspace has increased during Covid-19 pandemic

The multiple and immensely negative impacts of the COVID-19 crisis are felt almost everywhere and at all times. When the IGNITION project started in 2...

IGNITION’s Living Lab for nature-based solutions - more than a nice experiment

“The Living Lab at the University of Salford will be a critical element of the project.” That is what I was told at the beginning of the IGNITION proj...

IGNITION Journal 2: get an update about Greater Manchester's project

IGNITION is mid-way on its journey to develop innovative financing for nature-based solutions. In this 2nd Journal, UIA expert Birgit Georgi sees a su...

How IGNITION found an innovative approach to collaborate with its diverse team

Finding innovative solutions goes beyond business as usual approaches, though the driving partner might lack the specific skills and expertise require...

Knowledgeable citizens push for more green - Zoom In 1 IGNITION

First Zoom In of the UIA project IGNITION and visualisation of the project’s citizen engagement activities....

IGNITION Expert Journal 1: Get to know the project and what happened in the first 6 months!

In her 1st Journal, Birgit Georgi, UIA expert of the GSIP project, discusses all key activities that you need to know about, what the project is about...

How to convince investors that nature-based solutions are good to invest in?

IGNITION aims to develop innovative financing of nature-based solutions for climate resilience. The lead partner Greater Manchester Combined Authority...

The legacy of HOPE – final journal

After closing in April 2022, the UIA HOPE project leaves behind a lasting legacy. The project piloted in Helsinki a next generation of air quality mon...

HOPE Journal 1: Helsinki on the path towards cleaner air

UIA Expert Alena Bartonova shares insights about the first months of implementation: “the first 16 months were dedicated to development of the complex...

The GUARDIAN Project - Journal nº4

Prescribed burning in GUARDIAN project: what could have been but never was…

In this article the UIA expert Elsa Pastor delves into the significance of prescribed fire, an activity initially programmed in GUARDIAN, a vital comp...

Demonstrating GUARDIAN economic feasibility

In this article the UIA expert Elsa Pastor digs into the ecosystem services’ valuation of La Vallesa forest to demonstrate the economic viability of t...

Zoom in: GUARDIAN community engagement - How can residents contribute to fire resilience

In this zoom-in the UIA expert Elsa Pastor digs into the participatory approach that GUARDIAN has implemented to engage communities within the global ...

Looking at the GUARDIAN system’s “brain”: The NetSense SIDEINFO platform

In this article we show the main features of the monitoring, control and intelligence system that Medi XXI has designed for the GUARDIAN project. This...

GUARDIAN is officially inaugurated!

In this article we provide all the details of the GUARDIAN official opening event that took place at Riba-roja and Paterna last April 7th. It was a gr...

GUARDIAN Journal 3: get an update about Riba Roja de Turia's project

In the third Journal of the Guardian project UIA expert Elsa Pastor reports on project progress during year 2021. She also analyses cross-cutting impl...

Zoom-in: Interview to Ferran Dalmau, MSc on Wildland Fire Science and Integrative Management, Medi XXI CEO

In this Zoom-in we summarize the conversation that we had with Ferran on less visible yet important aspects of the GUARDIAN project. During the interv...

Analysing the economic viability of GUARDIAN: current challenges and expected outcomes

In this article we present a preliminary overview of the methods and challenges that prof. Francesc Hérnandez and his team at Universitat de València ...

Innovative fuel management at GUARDIAN: the green firebreaks

The main axis on which GUARDIAN's integrated fire management strategy pivots is the construction of green firebreaks, a fire management infrastructure...

GUARDIAN works are in the spotlight!

GUARDIAN works are progressing at full speed this spring, as the initial commissioning of the entire hydraulic infrastructure is expected in 3 months’...

GUARDIAN Journal 2: get an update about Riba Roja de Turia's project

In the second Journal of the Guardian project UIA expert Elsa Pastor reports on project progress during year 2020. She also analyses cross-cutting imp...

Unsupervised irrigation, how GUARDIAN scientists satisfy their thirst for innovation

Automatic preventive irrigation through water canyons is one of the several fire management actions that GUARDIAN is implementing at La Vallesa Wildla...

The smart use of water to fight WUI fires

Water scarcity is increasing in many European countries, being the climate change crisis and the growing water demand in urban areas their main driver...

GUARDIAN Expert Journal 1: Get to know the project and what happened in the first 6 months!

In her 1st Journal, Elsa Pastor, UIA expert of the GUARDIAN project, discusses all key activities that you need to know about GUARDIAN, what the proje...

Learning to live with WUI fires

While fire has been one of the most relevant elements for the advancement of mankind, paradoxically it has also been -and still is- the responsible fo...

OASIS takes off! - Final Journal

In spring 2023, the OASIS Schoolyard project concluded with its UIA pilot phase of transforming and evaluating the performance of 10 schoolyards. Toda...

How does it feel to be the Director of an OASIS School?

Four School Directors share their experiences of being in charge of a not-so-mainstream schoolyard that introduces a new role of this outdoor space in...

Tips n’ Tricks for a Green and Playful Schoolyard! Join us at the upcoming webinar and learn about the OASIS recommendations.

The City of Paris, in collaboration with the CAUE75 - the consortium partner responsible for the design of the schoolyards’ transformation, has compil...

From co-design to co-implementation of the OASIS Schoolyards

Leveraging on the experience gained by transforming other OASIS Schoolyards this past year, the OASIS partnership decided to explore a different parti...

OASIS Schoolyards Journal 2: Welcoming the newly transformed schoolyards

The OASIS journey: From the co-design process to the final transformation of schoolyards

In her first Zoom-in, Maria Sitzoglou, UIA Expert for the OASIS Schoolyards project, presents the project journey from the co-design phase until the a...

Aiming for Healthier Neighborhoods in your city? The OASIS approach is probably what you have been looking for!

The vision for healthy and cohesive neighborhoods lies at the heart of the OASIS Schoolyards project. As 9 out of 10 schoolyards are now transformed, ...

Back-to-School(yard)! How the OASIS Schoolyards offer a solution to the global dilemma for re-opening schools.

OASIS Expert Journal 1: Get to know the project and what happened in the first 6 months!

In her 1st Journal, Maria Sitzoglou, UIA expert of the OASIS project, discusses all key activities that you need to know about it, what the project is...

Paris is creating an OASIS in the heart of its neighborhoods and why more cities should follow.

AirQon Final Journal

Events before and after AIRQON; how well they work? The case of Breda Barst

The AirQon solution is fundamentally based on community participation. It is a crowdsourced powering solution for events. Therefore, engagement is the...

AirQon Journal 2022: get an update about Breda's AirQon Project

AirQon Zoom-in 3: The challenge of powering greener events

Breda Barst is an extraordinary example of innovative spirit, sustainable commitment, and collaborative approach. Just as AirQon is! But, why is Breda...

Sprinting towards zero emission!

In 2019 everything was ready for La Vuelta to depart from the Netherlands for the 2020 edition, and with this, it was planned to pass through Breda. W...

A greener solution is a must! The influence of diesel generators on air pollution

Diesel generators are the main source of environmental pollution in events. In fact, mitigating their effects is the raison d'être of the AIRQON proje...

Counting cars for powering with AIRQON; how many do I need?

An event organizer may have heard about AIRQON but, what about taking a step forward and considering using it? AIRQON, apart from being a sustainable ...

AirQon Zoom-in 2: The challenge of addressing a community

The objective of this Zoom-in 2 is to delve into the role that the community plays in AIRQON as a crowd powered solution. This is not performed from a...

From well-to-wheel, to EV-to-event

AIRQON: A new paradigm in improving local air quality...

AirQon, Breda: Win a sustainable EV taxi drive!

One of the best practices done in this way is the organization of a social media giveaway with the aim of attracting the attention of target groups to...

Building a community. A survey on EV drivers about AirQon

A crowd-powered energy solution like AIRQON is inextricably linked to the community. It does not matter how sophisticated it may be technically. If th...

Plug it in! Powering much more than events with AirQon

The AirQon solution is a versatile powering option for eventual energy demands, with a first class set of potential applications. This means that AirQ...

AirQon Journal 2: Events and More

In this Journal, UIA Expert Javier Leiva reveals that “AIRQON is facing a short future conditioned by getting back to normality. Meanwhile, the activi...

AirQon Zoom-in 1: Not only for mobility purposes– towards the car as a service

The purpose of my first visit to the city of Breda was to learn firsthand about the AIRQON project. Anyone may think that a technology-based project l...

Cars with a battery, or batteries on wheels?

Diving into technical details of AIRQON solution...

Ready… Set… Go!

How is a typical event with AIRQON in Breda?...

AIRQON Journal 1: First challenges

UIA Expert Javier Leiva reveals how the Breda project addresses the first implementation challenges: “One of the key aspects being addressed is the pa...

The challenge of evaluating an innovative housing project

The city of Mataró has developed an innovative housing project to provide affordable housing in the private rental market. In order to learn from the ...

Promised land, the future of urban consumption - takeaways

The Municipality of Milan organised in June a two day event to discuss the future skills, new technologies, narratives and policies with which cities ...

IoT’S POTENTIAL: AVEIRO'S DEVELOPMENTS IN THE AREAS OF MOBILITY, ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY

Many municipalities all over the world turn to the Internet of Things (IoT) in order to prevent environmental deterioration, mitigate traffic congesti...

A Circular Europe with EU cities: new EU action plan and UIA bold approaches

The new circular economy action plan put the cities at the core of EU’s intentions. UIA projects tackle the challenge of circular waste with innovativ...

Owners, make your empty apartments available!

In order to acquire apartments for the 'Yes, we Rent!' housing scheme, the first information campaign measures were started and first apartments visit...

Mataró has kicked off its project for a larger audience: The Learning event!

Mataró faces the problem of “people without flats and flats without people”....

UIA projects experimenting bold solutions for a Circular Economy – Part 1

As part of the 2nd Call for Proposals, the UIA initiative has supported eight projects under the Circular Economy topic. This article will tell you mo...

Circular Cities: UIA projects at the 4th Circular Change Conference

Check out the conclusions from our Circular economy workshop in Maribor!...

UIA projects experimenting bold solutions for a Circular Economy – Part 2

In January the European Commission and the UIA Initiative announced that Circular Economy will be among the topics for the last UIA Call for Proposals...

Innovation and Circular Economy – Bold Approaches from UIA

Circular Economy is at the centre of many UIA projects. At the moment, UIA funds eight projects within the topic of Circular Economy under Call 2. Out...

Electric minibuses offering on-demand and zero-emission public transport options to citizens in Sofia

The INNOAIR Podcast episode #4 is covering the on-demand green public transport service that he Bulgarian capital of Sofia has started to test with a ...

Sofia Coin: Rewarding healthier travel behavior for cleaner air

INNOAIR Podcast Episode #3 presents the concept of Sofia Coin, a smart phone app that rewards its users for walking and cycling instead of driving whi...

Artificial Intelligence: Can smarter transit prevent Sofia from car overkill?

INNOAIR Podcast Episode #2 is covering the opportunities and challenges of using artificial intelligence in managing sustainable on-demand mobility so...

INNOAIR hackathon: How to make urban mobility in Sofia smart and green?

INNOAIR Podcast Episode #1 is reporting on a hackathon aimed at ideas and solutions making Sofia's urban mobility smart and green....

The Added Value of Air-Break to the City of Ferrara

In this podcast series I will be discussing the concrete experience, challenges and learnings of the Urban Innovative Actions project Air-Break Ferrar...

The Air Fest: an Open Platform for Engaging Citizens and Stakeholders around Air Quality in Ferrara

In this podcast series I will be discussing the concrete experience, challenges and learnings of the Urban Innovative Actions project Air-Break Ferrar...

Introducing Air-Break Ferrara's Smart Hubs

UIA Expert Pietro L. Verga interviews Gabriele Mengozzi (HERA Group) on the main features of the Smart Hubs developed in Ferrara to support and facili...

The construction of Ferrara’s new Smart Bike Lane. Adapting to new conditions and challenges

The Smart Bike Lane is part of the infrastructural upgrades plan through which the Air-Break project is facilitating slow mobility within the city of ...

AIR BREAK Participatory Air-Quality Monitoring – Zoom-In 1

This Zoom-In describes in detail the participatory air-quality monitoring system designed and implemented by the AIR BREAK Ferrara project....

Podcast: the benefits and challenges of cargo bike and trailer sharing systems

Join us in this podcast as we delve into the groundbreaking cAIRgo Bike project, an initiative transforming Brussels with cargo bikes to improve air q...

On the road: cyclist vs motorist pollution exposure - Zoom-In #1 on Service trips

On the road: cyclist vs motorist pollution exposure - Zoom-In #2 on Families

What is RE/SOURCED?

The RE/SOURCED Project & TRANSFO...

GreenQuays Zoom-in 1: Making Breda’s nature-inclusive quays health-inclusive

The GreenQuays project in Breda aims to develop and establish nature-inclusive quays. Although it was not in focus when developing the project, this Z...

SPIRE ZOOM IN 2 - WHAT - WHY - WHO - HOW

Do you want to know the specifics of a successful project like SPIRE in Baia Mare? Have a look at the What, Why, Who and How of SPIRE....

SPIRE Zoom In: Plantahlon and Phytoremediation in Baia Mare

The Plantathlons activities carried out in baia Mare during spring 2021 created a collaborative ecosystem supporting citizens-led actions and enhancin...

A Junglathon to imagine your urban forest

The City of Prato is experimenting urban forestation strategies through the Prato Urban Jungle (PUJ) project . The project foresees three pilot areas ...

UPPER Stories - ZOOM IN 1

The territory changes with physical work, but also through the story, the memory, the imagination of change. The UPPER stories are a collection of n...

Nature Based Leadership and the Green Minds systems approach - Zoom-in

Keeping the balance between doing too much and not doing enough is challenging, implicitly necessitating an overall integrated perspective and strateg...

Green Minds – rewilding people and places

How the Green Minds team aims to put nature at the heart of our decision making; encouraging individual connection with nature and a city-wide shift t...

The Climate Shelters project - Climate innovation to beat the heat

In his 2nd Zoom-in, Constantinos Cartalis, UIA Expert for the Climate Shelters (Adapting Schools to Climate Change through green, blue and grey Soluti...

Boosting green businesses and jobs in Greater Manchester

In this Zoom-in, UIA expert Birgit Georgi tells how the IGNITION project triggered the creation of new businesses, business segments and more jobs; ...

Finding innovative ways for local authorities to boost greenspace and nature-based solutions

This Zoom-in reflects on the lessons learned in the IGNITION project on the way to find wider options for local authorities – despite challenges - to ...

Experience and learned lessons from procuring innovative solutions – IGNITION’s Living Lab

A core element of the IGNITION innovation project is the Living Lab at the campus of the University of Salford. Here, different nature-based solutions...

The water reclamation plant

In the 1st zoom-in of the GUARDIAN project, UIA expert Elsa Pastor dives into the first piece of water infrastructure designed and implemented in GUAR...