Sector 2 of Bucharest is part of the EU’s “100 Smart and Climate Neutral Cities by 2030” Mission (M100), an ambitious European initiative designed to help cities become innovation hubs and achieve climate neutrality by 2030. Participating cities will act as role models for the rest of Europe, paving the way for all urban regions to achieve neutrality by 2050.
To support this goal, Sector 2 has been included in the second NetZeroCities cohort, part of the EU Climate Neutral Cities Mission. The European Union funded program supports cities in implementing innovative decarbonization solutions. As such, Sector 2 aims to raise local awareness and develop projects to achieve climate neutrality.
UrbanWise is a project coordinated by The City Hall of Sector 2, run by UrbanizeHub, Climato Sfera, the Technical University of Constructions Bucharest and the University of Architecture and Urbanism “Ion Mincu” within NetZeroCities, with the aim of supporting the community through urban regeneration activities and citizens’ involvement in decarbonization initiatives.
Through awareness raising workshops and direct community consultation sessions, UrbanWise will integrate the voice of citizens in the planning and implementation of sustainable solutions for Sector 2.
What does UrbanWise entail?
UrbanWise is a strategic partnership for a greener Bucharest, where the City Hall of Sector 2 will coordinate the work of the partners to implement a range of activities, including community awareness workshops based on the importance of reducing the carbon footprint and facilitating administrative capacity to support sustainable development in Sector 2.
Main project pillars
UrbanWise will pilot new approaches to transform the way residents live and work, through improved public transport, buildings, energy systems and waste and green space management. These solutions will be tailored to the needs of the sector, applying a layered approach across three dimensions – social, spatial and administrative – to achieve sustainable impact.
The pilot area in Sector 2 will be used to test and monitor these solutions in order to obtain concrete data on the impact of the project and to assess greenhouse gas reduction indicators.
An example for Europe
NetZeroCities is a unique Europe-wide initiative, bringing together 79 cities that are experimenting and testing innovative solutions to combat climate change. The project gives cities the opportunity to share experiences, learn from best practices and replicate successful solutions in other urban contexts.
Sector 2 Bucharest is thus not only a beneficiary of the program, but also a contributor to European efforts to accelerate the transition towards climate neutrality, in close partnership with other cities across the continent.
How can you get involved?
The next phase of the project will start with the activation of the Tei area, where the community will be invited to actively participate in urban regeneration initiatives. To this end, we are launching a citizens’ survey to collect opinions and suggestions on decarbonization and urban regeneration initiatives. This will provide a platform for active community involvement, ensuring that citizens’ voices are heard in the planning and implementation process.
The survey includes questions on community priorities for sustainability, perspectives on decarbonization solutions and ideas for improving public spaces and energy efficiency. It will be open for 6 weeks until December 6th and can be accessed at the following link: https://urbanizehub.typeform.com/urbanwise
To keep up to date with news from the UrbanWise project and find out how you can contribute, we invite you to follow the official UrbanWise page. Here you will find up-to-date information and useful resources.
Together, we can build a greener and more sustainable Sector 2!
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UrbanWise is a NetZeroCities project, financed by European Union funds through the Horizon Europe program. The project is coordinated by the City Hall of District 2 Bucharest, together with the partners UrbanizeHub, ClimatoSfera, Technical University of Construction Bucharest, University of Architecture and Urbanism “Ion Mincu”.
NetZeroCities is a consortium of 34 partners from 27 European countries supporting European cities to achieve climate neutrality by 2030 by providing access to expertise, funding and innovative solutions for urban transformation. More details are available here: https://netzerocities.eu/pilot-cities-cohort-2-2023/
