A landmark moment for Flagship Municipalities
Held on May 6-8 in Vilnius, Lithuania, the 4th Cities Mission Conference focused on “Harnessing City Successes: Advancing Climate Action for 2030”.
SUN4Ukraine officially opened the call to Mission Cities wishing to join its Partnership Programme. Its purpose is to connect EU cities with Flagship Municipalities, to explore innovative climate solutions aligned with Ukraine’s recovery.
Three days of inspiring collaboration and knowledge sharing to (re)discover!
7 May – Breakout Session: Open call – Shaping future collaboration
Led by Climate-KIC, this interactive session offered a choice of topics for discussion and the participants chose Ukraine’s resilience and opportunities for collaboration as the key questions of interest.
The session focused on urban resilience in wartime and Flagship Municipalities representatives shared the lessons learnt by Ukraine, noting a range of challenges, in particular human capital and limited funding at the time of remaining indefinite security threats. The participants also highlighted key points of contact between Ukrainian cities and the Mission Cities and emphasized the strong potential for cooperation and knowledge exchange that can benefit both Ukraine and the EU.
8 May – Plenary session: Building Bridges Across Europe
The session aimed to demonstrate the power of joint action, solidarity, and shared ambition in driving the Cities Mission forward across Europe.
Borys Karpus, Mayor of Novovolynsk, Ukraine and Iryna HUDZ, Deputy Mayor of Zviahel, Ukraine, showcased their resilience and dedication to climate neutrality, inspiring other cities.
Iryna Hudz shared some success stories, following the implementation of Zviahel’s Community Development Strategy: “We have been working with the charity Ecoclub to install solar power plants that can produce almost 400 kW of electricity. We are also installing heat pumps, individual heating units and energy-efficient solutions for heat supply. These are not just technological changes. They are also a strategic step towards making the municipality energy independent and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.”
Novovolynsk is not to be outdone either and has already implemented a Sustainable Energy and Climate Action Plan until 2030, in addition to a Community Recovery and Development Plan based on energy efficiency and green transition initiatives. The municipality experience ranges from renewable energy (solar power stations) to building housing based on ecological standards, particularly for internally displaced persons in partnership with NEFCO.
As mayor, Borys Karpus has reiterated his municipality’s engagement: “By participating in the project, we aim to show that Ukraine is committed to change and implementing climate adaptation solutions.”
A rich and inspiring sharing of experience for the European city representatives present.
"Some great examples from Ukraine inspired Swedish cities, [...]. If Ukrainian cities, during the ongoing war, are focusing on climate transition, then there is no excuse whatsoever for Swedish municipalities not to work on climate transition because of some economic constraints" - Olga Kordas, Viable Cities (Sweden)
Ms Kordas also emphasized that partnering with Ukrainian cities offers opportunities in drone tech, IT, and cybersecurity, and that Ukrainian experience is valuable for the EU—especially considering recent blackouts in Spain and Portugal.
8 May – Breakout panel: Bridging borders for climate neutrality: Partnering Ukrainian Municipalities with the Mission Cities
Philippe Froissard, Deputy Mission Manager, Directorate-General for Research and Innovation, European Commission, opened the session by reaffirming that Ukrainian Flagship Municipalities are now part of the EU Mission for Climate-Neutral and Smart Cities family and highlighting that collaboration is essential to overcoming today’s complex challenges.
SUN4UKraine alongside its sister project U_CAN, led the panel discussion on shared climate challenges faced by Ukrainian cities and Mission Cities that require joint solutions.
Serhii Bostan, Director of Social and Economic Development and Strategic Planning Department, Chernivtsi City Council, stressed that ", nature has no borders, and the war that's taking place now in the territory of Ukraine, [...] threatens the ecosystem of all European countries. [...] The cooperation with international organisations, with our European friends is a key for effective response to all these environmental challenges of the world".
9 May – SUN4Ukraine’s 1st in-person workshop with Flagship Municipalities
To build on the presence of Flagship Municipalities’ representatives, SUN4Ukraine took this opportunity to extend the event by organising the very first workshop. As a kick-off session to the project’s programme of support to Ukrainian cities, the workshop introduced the participants to the four key support tracks: technical assistance, training and capacity building, peer exchange and twinning (Partnership Programme), and multilevel governance policy dialogues.
It was an excellent basis for discussion as the cities representatives discussed their municipalities' priorities, expectations, and needs related to each type of support. Highlighting the main challenges on the ground, the workshop resulted in a clearer, more tailored vision to meet each municipality’s specific needs.
Moving Forward
The Conference has set the stage for meaningful cooperation as we work together towards climate-neutral cities. Understanding the opportunities and shared challenges has inspired many European cities present and was the perfect moment to open the call to Mission Cities to join our SUN4Ukraine Partnership Programme.
As underlined by Iryna HUDZ, Deputy Mayor of Zviahel, “SUN4Ukraine is more than just an important opportunity. It is a real instrument of change. We believe that we can only reach a climate-neutral future if we all work together.”
Let’s continue moving forward towards climate neutrality and adapt sustainability goals to today’s realities – together.