Working Group Leaders
Representatives of Brussels-based offices leading the work of the Smart Cities Working Group.
Smart Cities
The objective of the Working Group is to act as a platform to offer early information on priorities and funding opportunities linked to Smart Cities, with a focus on the EU Mission on 100 climate-neutral and smart cities by 2030. The WG aims to facilitate sharing of experiences and support matchmaking to develop new partnerships and projects. The WG targets the smart city topic from an integrated and holistic approach, addressing issues such as citizen engagement, data-driven policy and smart governance models, while exploring synergies between the areas linked to smart cities as addressed by the ERRIN WGs on Energy and Climate Change, Transport and ICT.
ERRIN Contact
Mission on 100 climate-neutral and smart cities by 2030
The Smart Cities WG has taken an active role in shaping the Mission on 100 climate-neutral and smart cities by 2030 - one of the five mission areas under Horizon Europe - and is closely following the implementation of the mission. Visit our dedicated Cities Mission page to learn more about our work on this.
Previous Related ERRIN Working Group Meetings
Artificial Intelligence related strategies at local and regional level – ICT WG Meeting
In December 2023, the Council and the European Parliament reached a political agreement on the AI Act, setting out rules for the development and usage of AI in Europe. With AI's growing importance
Policy & Smart Specialisation WGs meeting: Widening in FP10 and impact on cohesion policy post-2027
The topic of widening gathers high attention in the discussions around the next European Framework Programme for R&I, raising questions with the potential to influence not only the Widening sub-
Policy WG meeting: Role of EU Missions in FP10
ERRIN has been closely involved in the design and implementation of the EU Missions since their inception. Missions remain one of the network's priorities and were one of the four main areas of focus
WG Related Events
CrAFt Waterfront Cities Session
This online aims to explore the intersection between the EU Mission on Restore our Oceans and Waters by 2030 and the EU Mission on Climate-Neutral and Smart Cities, by highlighting how the Ocean and Waters Mission urban dimension intersects with the blue infrastructure component of the Cities Mission. The session is organised by the two Missions in collaboration with the CrAFt project on 19 February.
Explore Hydrogen Valleys 2024 calls
As part of our ongoing collaboration with the regional pillar of Hydrogen Europe, ERRIN members are invited to participate in a workshop on Hydrogen Valleys 2024 calls organised by Hydrogen Europe Regional Pillar in collaboration with the Clean Hydrogen Partnership. The online workshop is scheduled for 7 February, from 15:00 to 16:00.
Exploring Synergies between European Partnerships and EU Missions – Mutual Learning Event
ERRIN and the TRAMI project are organising a Mutual Learning Event (MLE) aiming to explore synergies between European Partnerships and EU Missions. The event will take place on Wednesday 7 February from 9:00 to 12:00 (CET) at the NCBR Brussels Office, Rue Belliard 40, Brussels.
Conference on Results from the Road Transport Research (RTR Conference)
The 7th edition of the Conference on Results from the Road Transport Research, co-organised by the European Commission, CCAM Association, EGVIAfor2Zero and ERTRAC, will be held from 5 to 7 February 2024 in Brussels, featuring representatives from key research projects presenting achievements and outlining the next steps towards realising the broader EU transport policy objectives.
Policy WG meeting: Kick-starting 2024: Towards R&I and cohesion policies post-2027
The Policy Working Group will kick off 2024 with a meeting offering the latest insights about the work at the EU level towards future R&I and cohesion policies post-2027, as some of ERRIN's priority focus areas for the coming years. The event will take place in person at the ERRIN premises on 30 January from 14:00-15:30, followed by networking coffee until 16:00.
Info Day on Clean Hydrogen Partnership Calls 2024
The Clean Hydrogen Partnership is organising an info day to provide a comprehensive insight into the 2024 calls that will be launched in January.
WG Documents
Proposal for the Driving Urban Transitions Partnership
Attached is the approved concept for the Driving Urban Transitions Partnership.
ERRIN Input to the Driving Urban Transitions Partnership Consultation
ERRIN provided input to the public consultation to shape the European Partnership on Driving Urban Transitions.
ERRIN Contribution to the Mission on Climate Neutral and Smart Cities
Please find attached ERRIN's contribution to the Mission on Climate Neutral and Smart Cities.
ERRIN Draft Contribution to the Mission on Climate Neutral Cities
Please find attached ERRIN's first draft contribution to the Mission on Climate Neutral Cities.
Policy Recommendations - Regional R&I Ecosystems: Contributing to a competitive Europe
Going towards FP9, several reports - including the Lamy report - underlined the necessity to address the challenge of turning research knowledge into innovation and growth.
WG Related Content
Third Call for Proposals EUI - Innovative Actions
The third EUI-Innovative Actions (EUI-IA) Call for Proposals is launched now and will close on 14 October 2024 at 14.00 CEST with an allocated indicative budget of EUR 90 million ERDF. Each project can receive up to a maximum of 5 million EUR ERDF co-financing and project implementation should take place within a maximum period of 3.5 years.
The Forward-Looking Survey - European Urban Initiative
The European Urban Initiative (EUI) has launched a forward-looking survey to gather vital insights from urban practitioners and policymakers across Europe. This survey, hosted on Portico, aims to identify key trends, challenges, knowledge gaps and support needs in European sustainable urban development. The survey will be open from 6 June until 12 July.
ERRIN two-pager for European decision-makers
ERRIN is pleased to share a two-pager for the incoming European decision-makers, aiming to present the network and our value to the new MEPs, raising a voice for the importance of place-based R&I in the changing landscape. We encourage all ERRIN members to share the document with their MEPs to introduce ERRIN and the value of place-based R&I.
Over 70 ERRIN member regions announced as Regional Innovation Valleys
On 19 June, the Commission announced the 151 regions identified as Regional Innovation Valleys following the call for EoI and calls for proposals in 2023. 74 successful regions come from ERRIN members. RIVs will aim to strengthen the regional innovation ecosystems, bridge the innovation gap and improve Europe's overall innovation performance. New calls for proposals under Horizon Europe are expected in 2025.
EIB's Circular City Centre (C3) initiative continues: support to thrive the circular transition in cities
The European Investment Bank is launching a new support phase of their Circular City Centre (C3) scheme. The C3 targets cities and the public sector promotors on their behalf and offers advice on their circular economy agenda and investment projects. Cities can benefit from guidance documents, resources, circular city advisory and capacity building workshops and project advisory services.
ERRIN at the Cities Mission Conference and EURESFO 2024
This year, the Cities Mission Conference will take place in Valencia, Spain, on 25-26 June. ERRIN will participate in the conference as a partner in the NetZeroCities project, which manages the Cities Mission Platform. As the event is partly organised in collaboration with the European Urban Resilience Forum this year, ERRIN will also be there to promote its two Mission Adaptation projects: RESIST and Pathways2Resilience.
Latest Updates
- By Ewa Chomicz
169 country actions in support of the New European Innovation Agenda
On 19 September 2023, the European Commission published the list of actions that Member States and Associated Countries to Horizon Europe are so far undertaking or planning to undertake in support of one or more of the five flagships of the New European Innovation Agenda, including Flagship 3 closely followed by ERRIN. 20 countries have so far reported 169 actions in total, with their scope ranging from regional, through national to European.
- By Ewa Chomicz
Management Board elections 2023 – call for nominations launched!
Every year ERRIN holds elections for the Management Board. Becoming a member of the Board offers a great opportunity to develop ERRIN further and strategically lead the network’s activities. You can put forward your candidature for this year’s elections until 5 October.
- By Mirva Männikkö
City of Jyväskylä is looking for Transfer Partners for EUI Greening Cities call
Jyväskylä (FI) is looking for 3 Transfer Partners for project preparation for the Second Call for Proposals EUI - Innovative Actions in Topic 1: “Greening cities”. Deadline 24 September.
- By Heidi Johansson
Smart Cities & Bioeconomy WG: Call for examples of innovative solutions for greening cities
The Smart Cities and Bioeconomy Working Groups are looking for examples of innovative solutions for greening cities, to be presented in an upcoming meeting on the Nature Restoration Law on 26 October. The aim of the meeting is to jointly explore innovative solutions that can help cities to fulfil the restoration requirements for urban ecosystems presented by the new law. The deadline for submitting examples is 26 September.
- By Agnieszka Wieczorek Jetha
Call for a new NEB Task Force leader
The New European Bauhaus (NEB) Task Force is looking for a new co-leader to join the Autonomous Province of Bolzano/Bozen – South Tyrol, Cities Northern Netherlands, Helsinki, and Autonomous Region of Friuli Venezia Giulia in steering the TF activities and priorities. We invite members to send the applications until 10 October.
- By Ewa Chomicz
Regional Innovation Valleys: interest so far & matchmaking map
On 6 September, the European Commission published a matchmaking map showcasing European regions that have so far expressed their interest to become a Regional Innovation Valley (RIV) by applying to the call for Expression of Interest launched in March 2023. The call for EoI is still open for new submissions until 18 September 2023.