UrbCitizenPower

The project Urban Citizen Power (Empower citizens for the agency as drivers for change in cities) will be implemented from April 2024. Together with international partners, we are looking for ways to engage the citizens of cities. We want to harness active citizens’ potential for positive urban transformation.

Today, cities face a variety of challenges related to climate change, environmental degradation, social problems, and economic and digital transformation. Many of these challenges have not yet been faced, and therefore, they lack appropriate and tested tools to address them. Cooperation with foreign partners offers the opportunity to exchange experiences with other European cities and to seek new approaches to prepare and modernize urban policies. In doing so, they will use the greatest asset they have – the collective innovation of individuals.

The project consortium is led by the experienced German Heinrich-Boll-Stiftung Schleswig-Holstein. Other partners are the cities of Pori-Prizztech (Finland), Groningen (Netherlands), Braga (Portugal), Guldborgsund (Denmark), Kiel (Germany), and the Regional Development Fund of central Macedonia (Greece). The associated partners are the cities of Pori (Finland), Košice and the Region of Central Macedonia.

The goal of the project for us and the city of Košice, based on the methodology and experience gained within the consortium, is to actively involve local actors and citizens of the city, to supplement the Manual of public spaces with the first layers of blue infrastructure and biodiversity. The document will be based on the updated Territorial Plan of Košice. It will thus more effectively serve the city and its citizens in the city’s further development in the fight against the challenges mentioned above.

We plan to achieve the goals of the project by actively participating in the so-called Urban Living Labs, which will serve for the presentation of approaches in individual cities, for discussion between partners and for practical familiarization with the functioning of individual cities. The obtained examples of good practice and procedures will then be incorporated into the section on biodiversity and blue infrastructure from the document Manual of public spaces of the city.

We will create a local working group of local actors who will assist in the creation of this document with their expertise, comments and collectivization of information, data and specific targeting. The meetings will take place under the name Stakeholders meetings at regular intervals.

• Regular online meetings of project partners, on the basis of 2 meetings per month
• Inspiring workshops in two groups New European Bauhaus and Public space & Creativity
• Selecting a few Good Practices from the local environment that will become an inspiration for other countries in Europe

The project is co-funded by the Interreg Europe programme.

• Regional Development fund of central Macedonia (RDFCM)
• Groningen Municipality
• Municipality of Braga
• Guldborgsund Municipality
• City of Kiel
• Municipilaty of Pori
• Region of Central Macedonia
• City of Košice
• Creative Industry Košice