City of Espoo Seeks New Solutions for increasing Sustainable Mobility and Biodiverse Urban Environments
Does your company have ideas for developing sustainable urban environments? The City of Espoo is launching the Sustainable Future Districts Pilot Program, providing an opportunity to test and develop innovative, sustainable solutions collaboratively.
Espoo is inviting innovative companies and organizations to participate in the Sustainable Future Districts Pilot Program. The program seeks new solutions for sustainable mobility and urban environments that support biodiversity, offering a chance to test solutions in real urban settings in collaboration with the city and its residents. Selected pilots will be implemented across Espoo’s neighborhoods in 2025.
“The pilot program is an agile way to bring new, innovative solutions into urban life and make Espoo’s neighborhoods more sustainable,” says Tessa Armour, the program lead.
Themes and Challenges of the Pilot Program
The pilot program is centered around two main themes: sustainable mobility and urban biodiversity. For sustainable mobility, solutions are sought to increase sustainable commuting options, improve the appeal and safety of mobility environments, and support temporary arrangements for walking and cycling in changing urban areas, such as the vicinities of construction sites.
The second theme focuses on solutions that support biodiversity in urban areas. Pilots may target the improvement of local nature conditions in challenging built environments, such as building surfaces and rooftop structures, or revitalizing changing cityscapes through diverse urban greenery. Solutions are also sought to enhance residents' connection to nature and develop nature literacy.
“Developing new solutions in these areas supports Espoo’s goal of being a pleasant, sustainable, and nature-friendly hometown,” adds Rosa Väisänen, co-lead of the program.
Potential pilot areas include the development zones within the Sustainable Future Districts project: Leppävaara and Kera, Espoo Center, Kivenlahti, Otaniemi and Keilaniemi, and Finnoo. Specific locations will be agreed upon for each selected pilot.
Call for Proposals now open
The pilots will be acquired through two open calls. The total budget for each call is up to 40,000 euros (VAT 0%), with a maximum of 16,000 euros for a single pilot. The deadline for submitting proposals is December 13, 2024 at 16:00, via the Cloudia system (in Finnish)(external link, opens in a new window).
The pilot program info clinic on November 26 will cover questions related to the program, as well as offers opportunities for networking and collaborative ideation. Register here!(external link, opens in a new window)
For further details on the pilot program and participation instructions see here.