City – Country – Climate: Four districts, one joint roadmap for a climate-neutral Gratwein-Straßengel

The aim is to initiate a structured and effective path towards climate neutrality 2035+ in the market town. In the context of the project, climate neutrality includes the topics of neighbourhoods and buildings, mobility and energy.

Short Description

Photos of the four quarters of the market town (Erwin Weingrill)

The market town of Gratwein-Straßengel is a member of the climate and energy model region "Grat²" (www.gratquadrat.at) and has already implemented individual mobility concepts and climate protection projects in the past. So far, however, there has been a lack of a coherent strategic direction in climate policy, with goals, needs analyzes and the measures derived from them. A major challenge in this context is that the administration is reaching the limits of its resources and competencies when it comes to taking climate agendas into account: it needs, among other things, clear responsibilities and the corresponding processes and methods for climate-relevant decisions.

Photo of the mayor and vice mayor — Deputy Mayor Johanna Tentschert (left) and Mayor Doris Dirnberger (right) (Marktgemeinde Gratwein-Straßengel)

The "City – Country – Climate" project addresses these needs in order to initiate a structured, targeted and effective path to climate neutrality in 2035+ in the market town. As part of the project, climate neutrality includes the topics of neighborhoods and buildings, mobility and energy. Other topics such as agriculture, supply and disposal are being considered for the future.
The main objectives of the project are:

Establishment of a climate office,
Integration of a "climate relevance assessment" into municipal decision-making processes,
Use of climate tools to support administrative processes.

The main result of the project is the market town's first climate neutrality roadmap 2035+ with suitable action steps.

We are delighted that Gratwein-Straßengel's participation in the "Pioneering Cities" project has given it the opportunity to develop forward-looking solution strategies for climate protection and climate change adaptation and integrate them into its administrative processes. We can benefit from the experience of other municipalities and towns and together make a significant contribution to achieving the climate targets.

Mayor Doris Dirnberger and Deputy Mayor Johanna Tentschert

Project Partners

Project lead

Marktgemeinde Gratwein-Straßengel

Project partners

Verkehrplus - Prognose, Planung und Strategieberatung GmbH
Ernst RAINER - Büro für resiliente Raum- und Stadtentwicklung e.U.
smartwärts e.U.

Contact Address

DI Seval Brkic, BSc
Hauptplatz 1, 8111 Gratwein-Straßengel
Tel.: 03124 51300-405
E-Mail: brkic@gratwein-strassengel.gv.at
Web: gratwein-strassengel.gv.at/klimaschutz

Project duration: März 2023 - August 2024