In a rapidly urbanising world, cities are at the forefront of addressing the challenges of climate change, sustainability, and social inclusion. Supporting them in this mission is the Urban Transitions Mission Centre (UTMC), a global platform that facilitates knowledge exchange, funding access, and peer-to-peer collaboration. Established to support the goals of the Urban Transitions Mission (UTM), the Centre helps cities accelerate their pathways to climate neutrality and resilience by offering practical tools, policy insights, and shared learning opportunities, while showcasing the efforts of the Net Zero Cities Project at a global level.
In 2024, the UTMC consolidated its position as a key enabler of urban transformation through two major international events: the UTM Global Innovation Summit in Brussels and the UTMC African Regional Conference in Cairo, alongside the World Urban Forum 12. These gatherings brought together many city leaders, policymakers, researchers, and urban practitioners committed to building sustainable, inclusive, and future-proof cities.
UTM Global Innovation Summit 2024: scaling data for local action
Held on 7-8 October in Brussels, the second edition of the UTM Global Innovation Summit attracted more than 240 participants from around the world. Organised in collaboration with the European Commission, the Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate & Energy (GCoM), and the Covenant of Mayors Eastern Partnership (CoM East), the event explored bold urban solutions, from digital infrastructure and participatory design to blended financing and resilience strategies.
A key highlight was the launch of ‘Data & Insights to Accelerate Impact Finance and De-risk Investments in Cities‘, a new guide developed with Google. This guide helps cities use climate data more effectively to attract investment and reduce financial risk, also offering a tangible response to one of the biggest obstacles to urban climate action.
New international partnerships were also announced, including collaborations with KAPSARC and the Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI), both aimed at improving urban planning and strengthening cities’ capacity to respond to environmental shocks.
Eurocities members shared a range of highlights across different sessions. Liv Öberg, Circular Economy Lead from Umea, presented their work on people-centred city design. Anna Lisa Boni, Deputy Mayor of Bologna, and Carlos Ribeiro, Executive Director of the Landscape Laboratory of Guimaraes, discussed the climate challenges ahead and elaborated on the key ingredients and political drive needed to achieve urban transitions at the pace and scale required.
Empowering cities: Tools and participation at the UTMC Annual Conference
Parallely, the UTMC Annual Conference focused on equipping cities with the tools and support they need to lead their transitions. Participants explored the Centre’s key resources, including the Urban Transitions Net-Zero Framework and the Finance Helpdesk, and heard about new partnerships such as the one with the IEA Cities Technologies Collaboration Programme, designed to link cities with researchers and innovators via the UTMC’s online platform.
The agenda also included hands-on sessions on participatory budgeting, led by the city of Helsinki, and on multi-level governance models that prioritise social equity and environmental outcomes. These exchanges reaffirmed the importance of citizen engagement and long-term thinking in making transitions work at the local level.
For transitions and implementations on the ground, cities come in.
Funding assistance at the core of UTMC
Finance was a central theme throughout 2024. According to the Climate City Finance Leadership Alliance, urban climate investment needs to increase more than fivefold to keep global goals within reach. At the Finance and Funding Dialogue, last session of the UTMC Annual Conference, organised with Viable Cities, speakers called for an urgent scale-up of both public and private investment to support city-led climate strategies.
The Driving Urban Transitions (DUT) Partnership showcased its multilateral funding model as a pathway for European cities to align research and innovation with local needs. By translating high-level strategies into place-based solutions, DUT offers a model of cooperation that bridges ambition and action.
UTMC African Regional Conference: global perspective for regional action
As part of UTMC’s core global focus, the Regional Conference held in Cairo on 7 November offered a valuable lens on urban transitions in Africa. Organised alongside the World Urban Forum 12, organised by UN Habitat, the event spotlighted initiatives from cities such as Accra, Cocody-Abidjan, and Walvis Bay, ranging from biogas solutions to green hydrogen-powered housing and community-led urban planning.
While only a small part of the UTMC’s global community, African cities demonstrated strong leadership and innovation in adapting to climate and social pressures. Discussions also touched on financing gaps, capacity building, and inclusive governance, which are challenges shared by many European cities navigating their own transitions.
Shared ownership, collective action
One message that resonated across all events was that cities must be at the centre of change. As Rosalinde van der Vlies, Director for Clean Planet at the European Commission, noted on the UTM Global Innovation Summit: “For transitions and implementations on the ground, cities come in.”
The UTMC platform embodies this principle. Its collaborative model encourages city leaders, practitioners, and researchers to co-create knowledge and share what works, ensuring that best practices travel across borders, disciplines, and communities. As highlighted during the events, the platform’s value grows with each new contribution, making it a living and evolving resource.
Cities across Europe and around the world continue to lead the way toward more resilient, inclusive and climate-neutral futures, and the UTMC stands ready to support their journey. As we are navigating through 2025, the mission to enable cities to lead the way in the climate transition is more urgent – and more collaborative – than ever.
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The Urban Transitions Mission Centre (UTMC) is a platform aiming to mainstream actions towards climate neutral and net-zero urban developments on a global level.
The UTMC is funded by the European Union’s Horizon Europe.