Climate-Neautral and Smart Cities

The Cities Mission aims to establish 100 climate-neutral and smart cities by 2030, acting as innovation hubs to enable all European cities to achieve climate neutrality by 2050. Launched in April 2022, 112 cities - 100 within the EU and 12 from Horizon Europe-associated countries - were selected from 377 applicants. These cities test cross-sectoral approaches to citizen engagement, governance, and stakeholder management, leveraging local needs for climate action. A central aspect is the creation of Climate City Contracts, co-developed with stakeholders, outlining action plans and investment strategies for climate neutrality across energy, transport, waste, and other sectors.

As foreseen in its implementation plan, the Cities Mission takes a cross-sectoral and demand-led approach, creating synergies between existing initiatives and basing its activities on the actual needs of cities. 

Why this Mission?

This initiative addresses the urgent need for climate-neutral cities as part of the EU's broader sustainability goals by providing essential resources, technical assistance, and access to funding. By fostering innovation and collaboration, it accelerates the transition to climate neutrality and creates scalable models for other European cities.

Another important aspect of the Mission is the EU Mission Label which acknowledges successful development of Climate City Contracts, outlining the cities' overall vision for climate neutrality and contain an action plan as well as an investment strategy.

Who is it for?

The Mission is designed for cities ready to lead in climate neutrality efforts. It involves local authorities, citizens, businesses, and investors, ensuring broad collaboration. Support from national and EU entities further empowers cities to align with climate targets while engaging their communities effectively.

Mission Portal

The Cities Mission Portal is managed by the project NetZeroCities. The project works as a service-oriented platform supported by world-class practitioners and helps European cities by providing them with the support and solutions they need to achieve climate neutrality in a socially inclusive way. 

New and existing tools, resources and expertise are developed and promoted into a one-stop platform accessible to all cities through an online portal. It also includes dedicated services that are designed to support cities that are part of the Mission and supports a series of pilots to help drive rapid learning about how to achieve climate neutrality at city scale.

NetZeroCities also runs a Twinning Learning Programme for cities to enable peer-learning.

Funding

• All open calls for proposals can be found on the Funding and Tenders Portal.
• NetZeroCities also provides a useful Finance Guidance Tool.
• Additional funding opportunities can also be found in Horizon Europe Cluster 5: Climate, Energy and Mobility and the LIFE Programme.
• Greenet is the official network of NCPs for Horizon Europe Cluster 5: Climate Energy and Mobility and provides useful resources for applicants.