Report

Teaser, summary, work performed and final results

Periodic Reporting for period 2 - FosterREG (Fostering public capacity to plan, finance and manage integrated urban REGeneration for sustainable energy uptake)

Teaser

The lack of proper coordination of aspects related to regulation, financing and management of energy efficiency measures within urban regeneration initiatives, as well as the frequent misalignment of public stakeholders at different levels, are hindering the potential benefits...

Summary

The lack of proper coordination of aspects related to regulation, financing and management of energy efficiency measures within urban regeneration initiatives, as well as the frequent misalignment of public stakeholders at different levels, are hindering the potential benefits of addressing these processes from an integrated perspective. FosterREG aims at enhancing public capacity at local, regional and national levels to plan, finance and manage integrated urban regeneration for sustainable energy uptake, through capacity building, promotion and articulation of effective multilevel coordination, and national as well as European network strengthening. These objectives were achieved through public stakeholders’ engagement in a collaborative analysis and knowledge development activities, as well as creation and dissemination of targeted training materials and activities across Europe.
FosterREG relates to the Work Programme objectives by:
1) Focusing on the integration of energy efficiency measures within urban regeneration plans, with especial emphasis on building retrofitting while promoting synergies with other sectors such as transport and land-use planning.
2) Enhancing multilevel coordination (European, national, regional and local) of public authorities in the reduction of EU energy consumption.
3) Building capacity for civil servants at national, regional and local level in relation with policy design, planning, financing and management of energy efficiency measures within urban regeneration plans.
4) Fostering the implementation of the Energy Efficiency Directive, in particular Articles 4 and 7

Work performed

The project began by setting up the appropriate framework for collaborative work among different levels of the public sector (local, regional, national and European) in the implementation of energy efficiency measures in urban regeneration. Existing policies, regulation framework, planning, management and financial mechanisms in each of the national clusters of FosterREG participating countries (Spain, Netherland and Croatia) at European, national, regional and local levels were analyzed to identify the barriers as well as identify potentials for integration. This part also included the identification and mapping of the main public stakeholders as well as a significant sample of the related private and civil sectors in each country to be engaged during FosterREG activities.
Once the framework was stablished a collaborative analysis process was carried out to build a collaborative understanding of the main challenges, and formulate a collective strategy to overcome the barriers to integrate energy efficiency objectives in urban regeneration plans.
Three national clusters in Croatia, the Netherlands and Spain, completed this process. Main findings developed in the national clusters were later discussed in an EU wide workshop held in Brussels to help formulate the conclusions on where to focus upon in the next project WP capacity building.
Last period, FosterREG focused on raising civil servants’ capacity and skills, at national, regional and local level, in relation with policy design, planning, financing and management of integration of energy efficiency measures within urban regeneration plans. Different approaches from national clusters in the capacity activities allowed embracing the wide range of realities in the whole of Europe. Some countries have the urban regeneration as one of their priorities while others’ main interest is focus on energy systems transition with a new sustainability perspective.
One of the main conclusions from these capacity building activities is that in any case all approaches need of an integrated district scale approach and there is not a one generic way to do it but requires a lot of effort from all government levels. Different methods have been used to achieve this interdisciplinary approach during the capacity building activities incorporating new stakeholders to the FosterREG networks.
All these activities are widely documented in the English version video and partners’ national languages videos (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9d8JB5Bz9s )

Final results

The following elements have been developed in the framework of the FosterREG project beyond the state of the art in the area of integration of EE measures in urban regeneration processes:
‐ A general framework for the problem has been developed, identifying barriers, instruments and mechanisms, and tools to approach the problem
‐ A stakeholder Map with identification of organizational structure in the public sector in each country as well as in the private and civil sectors has been created. These key stakeholders have been engage in the performance of the FosterREG project activities.
‐ A method of Collaborative analysis has been developed and documented, so it could be potentially replicated in other EU countries.
‐ The collaborative analysis processes have been jointly carried out with relevant stakeholders in Croatia, the Netherlands and Spain. Main outputs (barriers, solutions and strategies to be implemented) have been discussed at EU level to formulate the conclusions.
‐ Capacity building activities have been carried out in Croatia, the Netherlands and Spain focused in the Collaborative analysis conclusions, producing material which is available through the FosterREG website (http://www.fosterreg.eu/index.php/training )
‐ To reach EU level stakeholders the Final conference was broadcast in live streaming and recorded as webinar for capacity building purposes, available in http://www.fosterreg.eu/index.php/final-conference. More than 250 people followed this event.
‐ The knowledge gained through the project has been implemented in the cities’ strategies to facilitate integration of EE in UR projects.

Website & more info

More info: http://www.fosterreg.eu/.