News & Events

Cities Forum 2025, jointly organised by the European Commission (DG REGIO) and the European Urban Initiative (EUI), is now open for registration!

After the official launch at the end of January, the Water Sensitive City (WSC) Partnership continued its activity with an online meeting last week, on February 26. The meeting was attended by 28 participants and focused on refining the thematic scope of the Partnership, based on the topics of interest shared by the partners.

On 6-7 March 2025, members of the Urban Agenda for the EU “Cities of Equality” Partnership gathered in Heerenveen, the Netherlands, for an intensive in-person meeting to finalise the Draft Action Plan.

Tourism in cities is at a turning point. The 18th Sustainable Tourism Partnership Meeting in Barcelona brought together voices from across Europe to confront a reality that is no longer avoidable: tourism, if left unmanaged, risks overwhelming the very places that make it possible. But solutions exist, and they start with rethinking governance, collaboration, and impact.

As cities work to restore and enhance their urban ecosystems, the Greening Cities Partnership is launching a webinar series to support the implementation of the EU Nature Restoration Regulation. Through expert insights, real-world case studies, and interactive discussions, this series will equip urban planners, policymakers, and practitioners with the tools to drive meaningful urban nature restoration.

It was a full house at Sala Mirador in the Centre de Cultura Contemporània de Barcelona — a fully booked event with more than 100 engaged participants, including representatives from key local stakeholders, city officials, and experts from across Europe. The energy in the room reflected the urgency of the debate: Can cities continue to absorb the ever-growing influx of tourists without sacrificing their own liveability? How can urban tourism evolve beyond the endless cycle of growth, regulation, and management?
On the side of the Sustainable Tourism Partnership in-person meeting in Barcelona, members of the Partnership along with local stakeholders and experts tackled these questions in a vibrant debate, part of a series of debates organised by the City of Barcelona and the Provincial Council of Barcelona.

The Cities of Equality Partnership hosted an online session on 5 February titled “Public spaces and citizen participation. Highlights and recommendations from a JRC research project”, bringing together experts, policymakers, and urban practitioners to discuss key insights from an ongoing research initiative led by the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre (JRC).

On 31 January 2025, the Building Decarbonisation Partnership under the Urban Agenda for the EU (UAEU) officially launched its activities with a successful first meeting, gathering over 40 representatives from cities, regions, and key stakeholders committed to advancing the decarbonisation of buildings across Europe.

The Urban Agenda for the EU Partnership on Greening Cities invites cities and financial sector actors to participate in two newly launched surveys aimed at identifying barriers, opportunities, and innovative approaches to funding and financing urban nature restoration and green infrastructure. Your responses will directly influence recommendations for future EU policy, support and funding & financing frameworks on this topic.

The Water Sensitive City Partnership was officially launched on 30 January 2025, with a first online meeting. The meeting was attended by over 40 participants, including representatives from local, regional, and national authorities, European umbrella organisations and EU bodies.

In 2024, the UAEU Thematic Partnerships made significant progress, and two new Partnerships - Water Sensitive City and Building Decarbonisation, were formally validated at the end of the year. The Partnerships are prepared to tackle key challenges in the year ahead.

The Partnership on Innovative and Responsible Public Procurement is proud to present the Draft Action Plan 2025-2028, a collaborative initiative within the framework of the Urban Agenda for the EU. It aims to bring together different stakeholders, including cities, regions, and national governments, to promote innovative and responsible practices in public procurement.