Mannheim

Germany

Mission city Pilot city
Germany National Platform
Mannheim Mission City Label
Population 320k
City Area 26 km²
City active since June 2022

The City of Mannheim approaches the EU-Mission “100 climate-neutral and smart cities by 2030” with deep motivation based on the systemic and political changes outlined in the “Mannheim Message” (need of Local Green Deals). The municipal council's decision to develop the Climate Action Plan 2030 with the targeted orientation towards the EU-Mission made the goal of a climate-friendly, climate-resilient and climate-neutral city, which is a role model for environmentally conscious action, a top political priority.

 

Mannheim is using the integrated approach of the LGD to reach its goal of climate neutrality by 2030. As a Local Green Deal pilot city, it combines and concretises the sustainability and climate goals set by the "Mannheim 2030" Mission Statement, focuses on a socially just transformation of a highly industrialized city, makes targeted use of funding and financing opportunities and integrates international commitments and networks in the process. The entire urban system is being developed towards this ambitious goal with the intention of improving quality of life in the city at the same time.

 

Mannheim has an innovative governance approach for localising the 17 SDGs based on the city's strategic goal and management system, which contributes to transparent, inclusive, responsive and effective decision-making for the climate-neutral vision. Mannheim aligns all projects with the city's sustainability and climate goals and links them to the budget. A new governance structure for the EU-Mission that started as an LGD project has since been transformed into a permanent matrix structure directly under the leadership of the Mayors Conference - the 100CNC/LGD transition team, which is driving the process to concretise the vision. 

Key Learnings

Mannheim City Lab on Social Innovation in Energy Transitions (SONNET)

In line with the city’s overall climate policy, the city of Mannheim developed and implemented a city lab ("living lab" approach) as part of the EU Horizon project SONNET. The city lab aimed at mobilising citizens for the development of the neighbourhood Neckarstadt-West, a neighbourhood with many residents with migration background, where language barriers posed a challenge to the city to engage with citizens for energy transition efforts. Whereas the Covid-19 crisis posed significant barriers to the original idea and scope of actions, the city still managed to implement diverse actions. The city lab entailed mobile participation/planning containers, gamification with apps, and explored measures for the neighbourhood such as energy role model flats, a neighbourhood fund (crowdfunding) for energy efficiency measures, and more. Towards the end of the project, additional funding from the German development bank KfW was acquired for a neighbourhood renovation management, which enabled a certain level of continuation of the activities. The overall impact lies in the social dialogue and processes that were strengthened and shaped, rather than measureable emmission recutions.

Mannheim, Germany case studies - Intelligent Cities Challenge

The Intelligent Cities Challenge (ICC) is a European Commission initiative bringing together 136 cities to achieve intelligent, socially responsible and sustainable growth through advanced technologies. This resources includes case studies from Mannheim, Germany related to: Using cocoa shells as a biomass fuel to reduce CO2 emissions Installing photovoltaic systems, heat pumps, and other renewable energy technologies

UPPER Project Hackathon in Mannheim

In the framework of the UPPER project we held a series of Hackathons asking innovators and entrepreneurs to come up with solutions to mobility challenges raised by the cities. The Mannheim Hackathon was held on 12-13 March 2024.  More information about the project here: https://www.upperprojecteu.eu/
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Pilot project spotlight
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