They’re talking about us! FEDARENE publishes an article about OwnYourSECAP We’re proud to share that FEDARENE – the European Federation of Agencies and Regions for Energy and the Environment – recently featured the OwnYourSECAP project in their latest article: 👉 Five Takeaways from OwnYourSECAP Project In this piece, FEDARENE reflects on the key lessons learned throughout the project, from supporting municipalities in climate action planning to implementing energy-saving solutions and fostering cross-border collaboration. It’s an honour to see the project’s impact recognised at the European level. A big thank you to all partners and local authorities involved! 📢 Stay tuned – more to come as we approach the final phase of OwnYourSECAP.

🌍 Final Conference – Act Local, Shape Tomorrow: Lessons from OwnYourSECAP If you were unable to attend or would like to take the time to review what was presented, you will find the presentation materials here and you can also watch the recording. https://youtu.be/6DaP6qrXR04 📣 The final event of the OwnYourSECAP project! After three years of collaboration, innovation, and local engagement, the OwnYourSECAP consortium held its latest international conference on 13 June : Act Local, Shape Tomorrow: Lessons from OwnYourSECAP. This event provided an opportunity to share key outcomes, experiences from pilot municipalities, and perspectives on sustainable energy and climate action planning across Europe. Agenda 10:00 – 10:10 | Opening and WelcomeMichael Toma (MTP) 10:10 – 10:25 | No more plans left on the shelf: making SECAPs work for people and communitiesMarika Rosa (EKODOMA) 10:25 – 10:35 | Evolving EU energy and climate policies: what municipalities can expectChristof Amann (e7) 10:35 – 10:55 | How energy management supports structured local climate planningEmanuele Cosenza (SOGESCA)  10:55 – 11:15 | Developing a shared SECAP for small municipalitiesVáclav Šebek (SEVEn), Michal Svoboda (DSO Tolštejn, Czech Republic) 11:15 – 11:35 | Strategies to boost engagement in municipalities – Case study from SaldusEdgars Augustiņš (Municipality of Saldus, Latvia) 11:35 – 11:50 | Where to get funding: special focus on available EU funding opportunitiesCristina Mestre Martinez (CINEA) 11:50 – 12:00 | Q&A and Final RemarksMichael Toma (MTP)

5th project meeting in Bratislava Empowering Municipalities for a Sustainable Future: Highlights from the OwnYourSECAP Workshop in Bratislava On April 8–9, 2025, Bratislava hosted the final international workshop of the OwnYourSECAP project, focused on supporting local authorities in the implementation of Sustainable Energy and Climate Action Plans (SECAPs). The city hosted the final international workshop of the OwnYourSECAP project, bringing together representatives from 13 countries to exchange knowledge, ideas, and best practices for a greener future. Organized by the Energetické Centrum Bratislava (ECB), this event gathered 49 participants from 40 organizations, including experts from the partner projects RECET and Plan4CET. The two-day workshop was part of a series of successful peer-to-peer meetings that previously took place in Vienna and Prague, aiming to support municipalities in implementing their Sustainable Energy and Climate Action Plans (SECAPs). Throughout the workshop, attendees engaged in hands-on discussions focusing on: Energy management at the local level, Climate change adaptation strategies, Public motivation and communication, Practical implementation of SECAP measures. In addition to the workshop sessions, participants had the opportunity to explore real-life examples of sustainable innovation. A field trip included a visit to the National Football Stadium, considered the greenest stadium in Central Europe, where attendees discovered cutting-edge technologies like the advanced heat pump system. The group also visited Alexander Dubček Elementary School in Karlova Ves, a role model for ecological renovations featuring green roofs, water retention systems, and the use of sustainable materials. This final workshop not only showcased the progress made so far, but also provided an opportunity to address remaining challenges and support municipalities in their transition toward more sustainable operations. The project will continue its activities in the coming months, building on the outcomes of this collaborative event.

Pollutec on November 27, 2024 Own Your SECAP has been selected as one of the 17 #LIFEProjects to be featured in Pollutec Paris 2024.  Solenne FAVRE, from MT Partenaires Ingénierie, the French partner in the project, was present at the Life stand amongst other EU Projects. This event enabled to shed the light on our project and its outcomes.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?si=0iC6eYXsvaDl-zaL&v=TU6snVwiW00&feature=youtu.be

Pollutec on November 27, 2024 Own Your SECAP has been selected as one of the 17 #LIFEProjects to be featured in Pollutec Paris 2024 Solenne FAVRE, from MT Partenaires Ingénierie, the French partner in the project, will be present on Wednesday, November 27. We warmly invite you to join us to learn more about the project and its accomplishments to date.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ka7pr9O_veQ&t=27s Video about the importance of SECAPs By implementing a SECAP, local governments aim to contribute to the EU’s goal of reducing emissions by at least 55% by 2030, aligning with broader climate targets.   This video was created by the OwnYourSECAP LIFE CET project partners in order to present the project and the importance of implementing a SECAP.

Presentations from the meeting Click on the titles below to open the presentations. 1. General information about Own Your Secap Project 2. Replication task and timetable for conducting the task 3. Learnings from systematic implementation of SECAPs 4. Examples of SECAP measures implemented Resources for the first webinar Click on the titles below to dowload the resources. 1. Template to invite municipalities to the first webinar 2. Presentation proposal for the first webinar

4th project meeting and 2nd international peer to peer workshop @Prague, Czech Republic 18th-19th April 2024 The fourth meeting and the second international peer to peer workshop of the Own Your SECAP project took place in Prague, Czech Republic on the 18th and 19th of April 2024. On the 1st day, the local authorities shared their experiences and visited Prague Energy Center based in municipal Wastewater treatment facility. During this time, the partners reviewed the results of the project to date and the next steps to be taken to bring it to a successful conclusion. On the 2nd day, three highly instructive case studies were presented (City of Prague, Tipperary County Council, Ireland, and City of Bydgoszcz, Poland) then the local authorities took part in workshops. After working on the adaptation and implementation of an energy management system in Vienna, the topics addressed this time were the implementation of energy and climate measures and climate mainstreaming in municipal budgets Presentations from the meeting Click on the titles to open the presentations. Cascais-Smart-Pole in Portugal Located in the Municipality of Cascais, a leading municipality in the definition of a Municipal Roadmap for Carbon Neutrality, Cascais Smart Pole by Nova SBE lead the generation of change makers influencing people and all stakeholders on the path of innovation combined with carbon neutrality. The concept is based on a physical and a virtual space, providing people with a space for experimentation that aims to be a reference for the whole municipality and for other cities. The management of the living lab is a collaboration between private and public entities (Private and Public Partnership for PEOPLE). With a duration of 36 months, the project is being developed through interconnected activities. The ambition to achieve carbon neutrality with the contribution of all stakeholders is the driver of this living lab. For more informations :https://cascaissmartpole.pt/en Developing and Implementing SECAP Actions in Ireland Eddie Meegan from Tipperary County Council in Ireland has presented their SECAP. Tipperary County Council is the local authority for the county of Tipperary, Ireland. In 2022, the population of Tipperary was 167,661 people. Tipperary is located in Ireland’s province of Munster, and is a landlocked rural county that’s home to mountains, rivers, lakes and farmland. Towards climate neutrality and energy self sufficiency of the City of Bydgoszcz Bydgoszcz is a city in Poland. Since 2016, Bydgoszcz has had an Energy Management Team, whose main activity has been the creation of a comprehensive Energy Management Base. Climate-maintreaming municipal budgets Michaël TOMA of MT Partenaires ingénierie presented the essential elements of mainstreaming climate budgets, from definition to the various possibilities: green public procurement, divesting municipal funds from fossil fuels, financing climate actions and environmental reporting and budgeting.

MeetMED webinar participation      OwnYourSECAP was presented on the 28 March to 62 participants of the #MeetMED (Mitigation Enabling Energy Transition in the Mediterranean region) project.  The webinar included information about Energy & Climate City Planning & Financing with examples from different countries. OwnYourSECAP was showcased for the creation of SECAPs combined with the implementation of Energy Management Systems (according to ISO 50001), leading to lowering energy consumptions and GHG emissions on municipal assets and ultimately, structuring city energy and climate actions in general. 

Meeting to prepare the project meeting in Prague The next European meeting of the OwnYourSECAP project will be held on 17 and 18 April in Prague.  All 11 partners and representatives of the municipalities taking part in the project are expected to attend for two days of intense work. The programme includes site visits for municipalities, workshops and strategic meetings between partners to bring the project to a successful conclusion. 

Online 19th & 22th September     The third project meeting was held this week online the 19th and 22th september!  The meeting was an opportunity for the partners to present their progress on the various tasks involved in the project and the involvement of the various local authorities.  We were joined by our CINEA project officer, who gave her views and suggestions on the project and its progress. 

2nd project meeting and 1st international peer to peer workshop @Vienna, Austria 25th-26th April The second meeting of the Own Your SECAP project took place in Vienna, Austria on the 25th and 26th of April.  During the first day, the partners held presentations on the progress of the different tasks of the project while the representatives of the project communities visited several sites around the theme of energy transition in the existant city, in the presence of an architect and lecturer at the University of Vienna. Indeed, by means of several exemplary buildings in the Geblergasse Vienna, he showed the potential of unrenovated buildings, both from an energy and a social perspective. Afterwards the so-called Smartblock Geblergasse (a project which received the State Award for Architecture and Sustainability) was visited to demonstrate how this potential of existing buildings can be used: in the course of a comprehensive base renovation, houses were extended, raised and completely renovated.  The second day of the project meeting was shared with the representatives of the communities where several workshops were held, regarding climate mitigation and climate adaptation. In addition, some representatives of the municipalities presented their situation in terms of energy management, their SECAP, or the implementation of climate adaptation, among others.  Presentations from the meeting Click on the titles to open the presentations. Abano Terme, Italy Sandra Zanellato from Abano Terme, Italy, presented their experience in sustainable planning. Abano Terme is the most important spa center in Europe, located in a position at the foot of the Euganean Hills in the Province of Padua,Veneto Region. The municipality since 2005 has been committed to the preservation and enhancement of the municipal territory through constant monitoring of its own activities (direct) and those of the territory (indirect). Since 2005 Abano Terme has been EMAS-certified, in 2015 it was equipped with a SEAP, in 2020 Abano Terme was certified ISO 50001, and in 2021 the City was equipped with its own SEAP. Lorient, France Lorient is a French town in the north-west of Brittany. With a population of over 57,000, Lorient has been committed to climate action since 2013, notably through the development of a Territorial Climate Air Energy Plan in conjunction with the Lorient Conurbation. As a logical extension of its climate action, the city of Lorient has committed to developing a SECAP through the European Compete4SECAP project, and will be introducing an energy management system in 2018. Lorqui, Spain The municipality of Lorquí is located in the heart of the Region of Murcia, on the right bank of the Segura River. The municipality covers an area of 15.8 km2, a territory with an abundance of orchards with fruit trees, as well as areas dedicated to the cultivation of vegetables. It has a total population of 7,246 inhabitants. MicroRegion TOLSTEJN, Czech Republic   Michal SVOBODA, who holds a number of positions including Energy Manager of LAG Cesky sever and Chairman of City Council Energy Comittee at the Municipality of Varnsdorf, presented the joint SECAP of 7 small Czech municipalities. Saldus, Latvia The community of Saldus, located in Latvia, implemented an energy management system in 2018, which was certified in 2019. Its scope includes 110 municipal buildings, 3,000 public lightning and 170 municipal fleets. Žďár nad Sázavou, Czech Republic Žďár nad Sázavou is a town in the Highlands with approximately 20 thousand inhabitants. Žďár nad Sázavou has an energy manager, an energy action plan (SECAP) and is gradually implementing energy management. The largest energy consumption in the town is made up of heat supply from the local industrial company (central heat supply) and electricity supply. Natural gas consumption is marginal. The town of Žďár nad Sázavou is already preparing and selecting energy saving measures based on the SECAP, which aim at reduced consumption, costs and therefore reduced CO2 production.

Own Your SECAP kick-off! November 3rd and 4th marked the kick-off meeting of Own your SECAP! All partners gathered in Rīga, Latvia for the start of the the project, as hosted by the project coordinators at Ekodoma. During these two days, all eleven OwnYourSECAP partners had spirited conversations to define the overall project work plan. Moreover, the meeting allowed all partners to get acquainted with each other and with all the details of the project, including the partners’ responsibilities. Also, a dedicated workshop to Design Thinking methodology was organized by the partner Euroverticé. It allowed the partners to work together and better understand how they were going to apply the design thinking approach all along the project.  Altogether, it promises a very fruitful project, as witnessed by the partners’ relentless work, along with the intense discussions on how to make OwnYourSECAP as impactful as possible. Kick-off meeting sneak-peek