- This is one of the initiatives of the EU Mission ‘100 climate neutral and smart cities by 2030’.
- Madrid, Valencia, Valladolid, Vitoria-Gasteiz and Zaragoza already obtained the ‘Mission Label’ in 2023
- All these cities have been supported by the citiES 2030 platform, launched by MITECO.
The European Commission, through the EU Mission to the European Union, has 100 climate-neutral and smart cities by 2030has awarded Seville and Barcelona the Mission Label at the European Research and Innovation Days (R&I Days), held in Brussels from March 18 to 21. This term recognizes the initiatives implemented by cities to achieve climate neutrality by 2030 and has among its goals to facilitate access to public and private financing.
With these, there are now seven Spanish metropolises with this label. Madrid, Valencia, Valladolid, Vitoria-Gasteiz and Zaragoza obtained it in 2023 after signing, together with the Government of Spain, the Declaration Climate-neutral cities in 2030 and prepare its climate agreements, subsequently evaluated by the European Commission.. For their participation in the Mission, these cities have also had the support of the citiES 2030 platform, launched in 2022 by the Ministry for Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge (MITECO), through the Biodiversity Foundation and the Spanish Climate Change Office.
100 CLIMATE-NEUTRAL CITIES BY 2030
The 100 Climate Neutral and Smart Cities by 2030 Mission aims to support the transformation of cities to accelerate compliance with the Paris Agreement. Thus, it aims to be both a catalyst and driver of the European Green Pact and a demonstration that it is possible to achieve climate neutrality by 2050.
In particular, European cities can contribute substantially to the Green Pact’s goal of reducing emissions by 55% by 2030 and, in more practical terms, offer cleaner air, safer transport and less congestion and noise to their citizens.
The participation of cities is a clear political commitment, not only to the European Commission and national, regional and local authorities, but also to citizens. It includes a general climate action plan in the different sectors, such as energy, buildings, waste management and transport, together with the corresponding investment plans. These agreements also include the commitments of the Spanish Government in this area.
This process is also carried out in close collaboration with civil society as a whole and with citizens, which details the strategy for deploying and monitoring innovative and digital solutions to achieve climate neutrality.
EU MISSIONS
The European Commission has created EU Missions, new ways to bring concrete solutions to some challenges under the Horizon Europe research and innovation program for the years 2021-2027.
The Missions set ambitious, concrete and measurable objectives within a well-defined time frame. Its aim is to achieve tangible results for all Europeans with new forms of governance and collaboration, involving citizens.
