CONSIDER aims to develop sustainable management model (SMM) for industrial heritage sites (IHS) for the benefits of the local communities as a resource for strengthening collective identities, improving the urban landscape, promoting eco-friendly solutions, and contributing to the urban economy and a sustainablefuture of the city. It will investigate SMM for industrial heritage while exploring participatory governance models as a tool to better integrate IHS with European society. Deindustrialisation processes all around Europe give rise to social, economic and environmental problems that are resulting from structural change. Thus, there is an urgent need to find SMM to overcome these challenges. 3 research objectives are; i) To expand on what is considered as industrial heritage, how to safeguard them ii) To investigate the history of sites to identify most influential factors used to maximise the benefit iii) To explore inclusive governance and participatory models as a tool to better integrate industrial heritage with society. The innovative side of this model is its inclusive approach to the problem (regionally, sectorial, taking into consideration gender aspects, and its highlight on the exchange of knowledge, technology and labour). This novelcollaboration will be improved by through synergies, networking activities, organisation of workshop, summer school, webinars, and final conference to facilitate sharing of knowledge. The circular knowledge exchange is based on systematic and triple-helix approach between academia (universities), policymakers (municipalities), and practitioners (SME/NGO) that will contribute both in identifying problems and developing guidelines for their improvement. This research brings novelty in respect of geographic regions that previously were not sufficiently investigated and inventoried thus providing the basis for further comparative research undertakings and sustainability of the project outcomes in creation of new knowledge.

The objectives and impacts of the SUPERSHINE project will assist and support the European Commission to implement the European Green Deal. Particular attention will be paid to the renovation of social housing, to help households who struggle to pay their energy bills. In addition, SUPERSHINE will also contribute to the decrease of energy poverty. The SUPERSHINE lighthouse districts will be characterised by energy efficient buildings, low carbon mobility, smart grids, efficient water and waste management, all underpinned by responsive technologies that optimise resources while promoting wellbeing and sustainable lifestyles. More specifically, SUPERSHINE will adopt an integrated strategy with these key principles: a)‘Energy efficiency first’; b) Affordability; c) Decarbonisation and integration of renewables; d) Life-cycle thinking and circularity; e) High health and environmental standards by promoting sustainable energy behaviours; f) Tackling the twin challenges of the green and digital transitions together; g) Respect for aesthetics and architectural quality. The main areas of intervention are: a) Strengthening information and incentives for public and private owners and tenants to undertake renovations while improving community participation or inspiring new patterns of citizen behaviour; b)Ensuring adequate and well-targeted funding by supporting innovative bottom up financial solutions such as Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) and Green Public Procurement (GPP) and collaborating with innovative local Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs); c) Promoting comprehensive and integrated renovation interventions; d) Making the construction ecosystem fit to deliver sustainable renovation, based on circular solutions, use and reuse of sustainable materials, and the integration of nature-based solutions while reducing whole life-cycle carbon emissions.

Nature-based solutions (NBS) are considered essential to solving the climate crisis. They have the potential to simultaneously address climate change, biodiversity loss and human wellbeing and development, by providing different ecosystem services. However, the typically small size of NBS projects, the difficulties to measure and monetize their co-benefits as well as the long time frame for investment returns and the risk profile, undermine their attractiveness for funding. In comparison to NBS alone, the combination of NBS and ecosystem-based approaches, physical measures and technological measures is able to provide measurable outcomes quicker, reducing the risk profile and facilitating faster implementation and long-time maintenance, broadening opportunities for ecosystem innovation and increasing investment attractiveness. Aiming for bankability-by-design, RISE-IN will assess a set of climate resilient solutions (CRS), including NBS and ecosystem- based approaches and physical measures, by mapping and quantifying their co-benefits and identifying innovative financing and investment opportunities accordingly. Co-creation and participatory processes with local stakeholders, including investors and businesses, will enable the screening of the most adequate solutions for each site, in terms of functionality and funding and within a framework of just resilience. The assessment will be complemented by 3 climate risk assessment models that will reduce uncertainty regarding risks associated with extreme events, water run-off and capital loss. RISE-IN will demonstrate this concept for flood management (most costly type of disaster in Europe) in Cesena (IT), Christchurch (NZ) and Póvoa de Varzim (PT). RISE-IN demonstrations will be further tailored for replication in Ghent (BE), Zhytomyr (UA), Kadikoy (TR) and in 3 additional sites of Demonstrator Cities (Demo Cities) to prove the impact of the concept to facilitate bankability and upscale implementation across EU and Internationally.

MAKING-CITY is a large-scale demonstration project aiming at the development of new integrated strategies to address the urban energy system transformation towards low carbon cities, with the positive energy district (PED) approach as the core of the urban energy transition pathway. The project will be intensively focused on achieving evidences about the actual potential of the PED concept, as foundation of a high efficient and sustainable route to progress beyond the current urban transformation roadmaps. Although in principle a PED approach seems a solid and ambitious strategy, this should be complemented with long term urban planning to ensure upscaling and fostering higher impacts. Currently city energy plans are starting to be designed with a 2030 horizon, according to the standard city commitments, as for instance those reflected in the SECAPs and other more specific city plans. Project will address methodologies to support cities in their long term urban planning towards an adequate energy transition, paving the way of the planning, implementation and up-scaling process. Cities of Groningen (Netherlands) and Oulu (Finland) will act as lighthouses. These cities are currently working intensively in ambitious transformation planning whose approaches fit perfectly with the project objectives. Both have committed to deploy a demonstration of at least one positive energy district. León (Spain), Bassano del Grappa (Italy), Kadiköy (Turkey), Poprad (Slovakia), Vidin (Bulgaria) and Lublin (Poland) will be the follower cities. All of them have assumed a huge commitment to develop a solid execution project of Positive Energy District and foster high level of replication of the solutions demonstrated in Groningen and Oulu.