Stockholm (NordSIP) – As the COP27 unfolds, the Solar Impulse Foundation launched its Solutions Guide for Cities, a list of cleantech solutions that aim to accelerate the construction of a robust climate mitigation program for urban centres. The Guide was introduced during the European Commission virtual program for COP 27 which was streamed as a live webinar.
The Guide takes a bottom-up approach with insights based on case studies of implementation across over 130 municipalities in 28 countries. It provides a selected sample of 188 solutions that it argues “are effectively solving key challenges for cities’ decarbonization,” including more environmentally friendly building materials such as recycled concrete made of processed mixed granulated demolished rubble, efficient bio-based insulation panels, anti-glare and heat managing glass for windows, greywater recycling or urban vegetalisation optimization software, vehicle-to-grid, geothermal storage and geothermal air-water heat pumps, as well as often overlooked but highly effective energy efficiency measures.
Lisbon, will be one of the first pilot cities for the Guide. Other interested cities include Stockholm, Geneva, and the Paris region (Île-de-France). “As Mayor of Lisbon, I am proud and committed to endorsing the Solutions for Cities Initiative that the Solar Impulse Foundation is leading. Cities are uniquely placed to provide a sustainable economic model where clean energy serves the needs of our citizens, in particular the most vulnerable. Lisbon is committed to delivering that sustainable approach with new technologies and innovative solutions. To achieve that, I count on the support of the Solar Impulse Foundation and the relentless determination of my friend Bertrand Piccard,” said Carlos Moedas, Mayor of Lisbon.
“Our Foundation has identified more than 1,400 technological solutions that exist today to protect the environment in an economically profitable way, but the world is not moving fast enough to acquire the implementations needed to reach carbon neutrality,” said Bertrand Piccard, Founder and Chairman, Solar Impulse Foundation. “Cities are the primary generators of economic activity and at the same time they are responsible for three-quarters of global carbon emissions. Our Solution Guide for Cities demonstrates how solutions can be implemented in a profitable way to help speed their decarbonization plans.”
To assist in this task the Solar Impulse Foundation invited other organisations, also called “systemic enablers,” to join the initiative and share their best practices to move from urban vision to solutions adoption. These groups, including the World Wildlife Foundation, the International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives (ICLEI), and NetZeroCities Climate, among others, have been working on these requirements for many years and will help cities in deploying solutions from the Guide.
