CITYGovernance - Adjustments in the innovation ecosystem around regulatory framework conditions

Austria has set itself the goal of becoming climate-neutral by 2040. This means that emissions of climate-damaging greenhouse gases are to be completely stopped by this date. With programs such as "Smart Cities", "Pioneer Cities", and national and EU projects, a key step has already been taken to promote and strengthen the innovative power of cities to achieve climate neutrality. Different higher levels set many of the current and future framework conditions for achieving (urban) climate neutrality. Today, municipal administration and policymakers act in the field of tension between legal and financial requirements from the EU, federal and state governments, the expectations of their residents and local businesses.

This study focuses on the question: What are the obstacles and impediments to overarching governance for achieving the goal of "climate neutrality in Austrian cities" in the areas of energy, buildings, and mobility? Overarching governance refers to the control and regulation systems within a city's own sphere of influence. It includes, among other things, the planning and management of common city affairs, such as the provision of infrastructure (water, energy, mobility, buildings), provision of housing, sustainable and climate-neutral spatial and urban development, and much more.

However, urban governance also places higher demands on the innovative capacity of municipal actors and requires integrative and participatory processes as one of the essential prerequisites for implementing sustainable measures that supported by a majority.

The starting point for achieving climate neutrality in Austrian cities is a complex mix of progress, challenges, and opportunities. Laws and regulations at national and EU level as well as local ordinances and guidelines all play a role. Achieving climate neutrality also requires the involvement and coordination of various stakeholders. These include not only different departments and levels of government, but also businesses, non-governmental organizations, and the public.

Austria has a comprehensive policy framework that aims to drive the transition to a sustainable, low carbon-built environment through a combination of policies, investments, subsidies, and regulatory reforms. The focus is on promoting energy efficiency, renewable heat, sustainable mobility, and the use of environmentally friendly building materials.

The overarching aim of this R&D service was to gain insights into the obstacles and impediments to achieving the goal of "climate neutrality in Austrian cities", to structure them for the client and to prepare them in a publishable study. The study should focus on the areas of energy, buildings and mobility and contain recommendations for action on the necessary framework conditions and the need for change. For recommendations on a sustainable urban transformation, it was necessary to consider the interaction of the cities' own sphere of influence and the influence of the higher levels (higher-level governance), and to analyze the regulatory obstacles to achieving the climate targets by 2040. Building on this, to look at the innovation ecosystem and identify the potential.

The R&D service was divided into five work packages, comprising the work steps 

1. project management, 
2. research into strategies, regulatory framework conditions, laws, 
3. good/best practice, 
4. development of a system, 
5. workshops with relevant stakeholders, resources and 
6. action matrix, governance recommendations.

Various methods and technical-scientific approaches were used to achieve the defined objectives and desired results:

• Identification of relevant overarching governance, such as regulations, laws, strategies, which define, inhibit, or prevent the framework for achieving climate neutrality in Austrian cities.
• Examination of conducive framework conditions in other countries, evaluation of their transferability to Austria and identification of best-practice examples for the adaptation of regulatory framework conditions according to the needs of cities, business, and civil society
• Interactive stakeholder workshops, surveys using a specially developed survey and over ten interviews with national and international experts were conducted and the needs of cities, business and civil society were recorded. The involvement of the pioneering cities and other stakeholders from business, science and civil society ensured that the recommendations for action developed corresponded to the needs of the cities.

The findings were elaborated into corresponding recommendations for action (necessary adjustments and improvements). The synthesis includes a graphic representation of the identified higher-level governance, such as regulatory provisions, as well as a matrix and factsheets. The results and resulting recommendations for action were coordinated with the client in an ongoing process.

The need for innovation was then determined and summarized as an outlook. Adjustments and changes to the regulatory framework to drive this transformation process forward are the next logical step towards achieving the target by 2040.

Project management

• Innovation Lab RENOWAVE.AT
  DI Susanne Formanek

Project or cooperation partners

• ConPlusUltra GmbH
  Mag. Harald Grill

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E-Mail: office@renowave.at
Website: www.renowave.at