Overcoming difficulties and working on strengths to improve the local management of 5 priority areas in 5 European cities and showcase a successful implementation of the Green City Accord

Introduction

Since the launch of the European Green Deal in 2020, the EU has increased the ambition of environmental targets to combat global change. However, the linear economic model still endures, and the trends of emissions of greenhouse gases are still far from achieving a 2050 neutral Europe. Many challenges remain, and the change of paradigm towards more sustainable lifestyles needs the commitment of all public administrations.

Role of Local Authorities

Considering that more than 70% of Europeans live in urban areas, local authorities play an important role in pursuing shared environmental objectives and in building the path for a greener Europe. Most European cities are showing their commitment by:

• Approving local plans and strategies
• Joining climate-friendly networks
• Implementing actions

However, there is a need for a comprehensive vision of what to achieve, which actions to take, and how to monitor and coordinate the efforts.

Green City Accord

The Green City Accord (GCA) represents an excellent mechanism to do so, as it includes five pillars that compile the main environmental problems of cities:

1. Air
2. Biodiversity
3. Noise
4. Waste
5. Water

The initiative was launched by the European Commission in October 2020 to encourage cities with more than 20,000 inhabitants to take further action to protect the environment and improve the quality of life of their citizens. Around 90 EU cities have joined so far, but some problems and challenges have been identified by signatories when putting the accord into practice.

LIFE GreenMe5

LIFE GreenMe5 aims to facilitate the implementation of the Green City Accord by working on the resolution of those difficulties. This will enable local authorities to be better prepared to commit to the requirements of this voluntary approach, and the decision-making process will be easier thanks to the data collection and strategic planning provided by the GCA.

The territorial cooperation between the five participant cities will set the ground to exchange experiences, improve capacities, and find solutions to common challenges.