On 5 April 2016 the JRC presented the interactive and collaborative online European Energy Efficiency Platform. This beta platform is conceived to fill the gap opened by scattered data and fragmented knowledge resulting from a rapidly growing energy efficiency market. It is expected to be both a one-stop shop for information retrieval and a meeting point for experts to exchange data and reduce redundant activities.
European Innovation Partnership on Smart Cities and Communities
The European Innovation Partnership for Smart Cities and Communities is an initiative supported by the European Commission combining Information and Communication Technologies (ICT), energy management and transport management to come up with innovative solutions to the major environmental, societal and health challenges facing European cities today.
With the aim of coming up with scalable and transferable solutions to contribute to the EU’s 20/20/20 climate action goals, it looks to reduce high energy consumption, green-house-gas emissions, bad air quality and congestion of roads.
The Partnership aims to overcome bottlenecks impeding the changeover to smart cities, to co-fund demonstration projects and to help coordinate existing city initiatives and projects, by pooling its resources together.
It ultimately looks to establish strategic partnerships between industry and European cities to develop the urban systems and infrastructures of tomorrow.
The Partnership follows the Smart Cities and Communities Initiative which was launched in 2011. This initiative initially only covered energy and had a budget of € 81 Million, which grew to € 365 Million and extended to include the transport and ICT sector with the launch of the Partnership in July 2012. To find out more, please view the timeline.
The European Innovation Partnership on Smart Cities and Communities (EIP-SCC) brings together cities, industry, SMEs, banks, research and other smart city actors. It intends to:
- Improve citizens’ quality of life
- Increase competitiveness of Europe’s industry and innovative SMEs
- Make European cities more competitive and better places to live in
- Share knowledge to prevent mistakes being repeated
- Reach European energy and climate targets
- Support in finding the right partners and solutions, achieving social, environmental and economic sustainability for European cities.
The EIP-SCC consists of the High Level Group (supported by its Sherpa Group) and the Market Place. The High Level group and its sherpas are responsible for the Strategic Implementation Plan.
The EIP-SCC Market Place collects ongoing and foreseen Smart Cities activities throughout Europe.
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