Capacity building program for small and medium-sized towns (March – April)
A series of capacity-building modules offered knowledge, skills and tools and the transfer of experience at EU level, specifically targeting the needs and context of smaller cities. The focus was on key sectors that can contribute to climate neutrality goals, buildings, transport and energy, and on key enabling actions, including citizen participation, living labs, business models, innovative financing and digital transformation. In addition to ODRAZ representatives, representatives of the member cities of the CIVINET Slovenia-Croatia-SEE network: Kranj, Križevci, Labin and Sarajevo actively participated in the implemented modules.
Conference on sustainable urban mobility “SUMP for small and medium-sized cities” / 11th assembly of the Network (Velika Gorica, 5th April)
This event provided an opportunity for the exchange of ideas, experiences and examples of best practice among cities and municipalities from Slovenia, Croatia and Southeast Europe. The goal was to highlight challenges and opportunities in the field of sustainable mobility and traffic-spatial planning in urban areas. The program began with the 11th assembly of the network for sustainable urban mobility CIVINET Slovenia-Croatia-Southeast Europe, during which the results of the Network for the past year and plans for the current year were presented, including the presentation of the Guidelines for the Network’s activities in 2024, in which highlighted key topics that the Network deals with this year. The previous day, the bodies of the Network held their meetings: a joint meeting of the Administrative and Political Committees and a meeting of the Academic Committee.
A study trip to Sint-Niklaas (5 – 6 June)
This event brought together city officials, mobility experts and key stakeholders from all 11 national CIVINET networks, with the aim of advancing sustainable urban mobility across Europe. The program was actively attended by representatives of the Secretariat of the CIVINET Slovenia-Croatia-SEE network from ODRAZ and representatives of member cities from the CIVINET network, including the Deputy Mayor of Varaždin, Miroslav Marković, and Andro Pavuna, Head of the City Office for Local Self-Government, Traffic, Civil Protection and Security of the City of Zagreb.
The REAL RIS summer school “Co-creation for Innovation”
The main goal of the summer school was to educate students on planning and implementing measures aimed at net zero emission mobility in coastal cities by working on the challenges of Šibenik and Liepāja. The emphasis was on utilizing existing resources and creating new innovative products, services and ideas through an interdisciplinary and international teamwork approach. A total of 27 students from Croatia and Latvia participated. In 7 interdisciplinary and international teams, they worked on 5 urban challenges and offered innovative and creative solutions.
Green Transition of Coastal Cities – roundtable (Šibenik, 26th July)
The roundtable gathering around 50 participants. Innovative student solutions were presented, addressing real challenges faced by Šibenik, Liepāja, and many other coastal cities. The event featured two panel discussions, “Knowledge for Positive Change” and “New Solutions for Sustainable Cities,” followed by awards and certificates for students and mentors.
CIVITAS Summer School on Sustainable Mobility (Zagreb, 2nd to 5th September)
This 3.5-day event brought together 30 experts and students from various countries, including Croatia, Slovenia, the Netherlands, Ireland, Moldova, Italy, Hungary, Romania, Finland, Belgium, Greece, Kosovo, Serbia, Portugal and Denmark. The aim of the gathering was to jointly explore solutions to mobility challenges in the center of Zagreb. The organizers were the Dutch DTV Consultants, with the support of the City of Zagreb, ODRAZ and the Belgian Mobiel21.
The ninth CIVINET forum “Journey Towards a Greener Future and Climate Neutrality” (Split, 10 – 11 October)
This conference brought together over 100 participants from Croatia, Slovenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Kosovo, Albania, Ukraine, and the Netherlands, including representatives from cities, public companies, academia, ministries, associations, and transport experts. In total 22 speakers enriched discussions on public transport, sustainable mobility, and climate neutrality with their expertise and experience.
Webinar “Encouraging behavioral change in mobility through public space design” (3th December)
The webinar presented solutions for small and medium-sized cities, along with examples of how to encourage behavioral change and offer inclusive and sustainable solutions.
The implementation of a new joint project of the network members has started (1 December)
In December, the implementation of the project “CLIMove: Co-creating climate and mobility sustainability” began. This project is a continuation of the CLIMASUM project, which was implemented by the same partners – members of the CIVINET network, ODRAZ from Zagreb and the Center for the Environment from Banja Luka and the Transport Research Centre from Brno, the secretariat of the CIVINET Czech-Slovak network.The project is aimed at creating sustainable solutions that connect climate goals and urban mobility
Participation in professional gatherings and international conferences
- SPARCS Project Final Conference: Sustainable Solutions for Energy-Positive, Carbon-Free Communities (Espoo, 11 – 12 September)
- Members of the CIVINET network at a thematic discussion on Sustainable Urban Mobility Plans SUMP (Brussels, 26 September)
European Economic and Social Committee (EESC), at the initiative of and in cooperation with the CIVINET Slo-Cr-SEE Network and ODRAZ as the network secretariat, organized this debate to familiarize EESC members with the concept and principles of SUMP. - CIVITAS Forum 2024 (Parma, 1 – 3 October)
The main topic of the conference was “Join the Mobility Renaissance.” Over three days of workshops, interactive panel discussions, and lectures, knowledge and best practices were exchanged among representatives of national, regional, and local authorities, civil society organizations, academia, mobility experts, and the business sector. Alongside ODRAZ (the Secretariat), members of the CIVINET Slo-Cro-SEE network from Croatia, Slovenia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina participated. - 10th Anniversary of the CIVINET Czech-Slovak Network and CIVINET Forum 2024 (Brno, 13 November)
Representatives of ODRAZ, the Secretariat of the CIVINET Slo-Cro-SEE network participated in the workshop and meeting of all network secretariats and the conference marking 10 years of work and operations of the CIVINET Czech Republic and Slovakia network, and actively contributed to the program with their experience in sustainable mobility. - Conference on sustainable mobility (Split, 26th November)Goran Lampelj from ODRAZ / Secretariat of the CIVINET Slo-Cr-SIE network, actively participated in the panel discussion on the topic “Integration of different forms of transport into a single system” together with Ivica Puljak, mayor of Split, Marko Šoštarić, the dean of The Faculty of transport and traffic sciences and Peter Mišura, head of the Administrative Department for Economy, Entrepreneurship and Development of the City of Šibenik. Along with participating in the panel, Lampelj also held a presentation entitled “Sustainable mobility and environmental protection: How can urban mobile strategies contribute to reducing emissions and improving air quality in cities?”.
Informing
- Website civinet-slohr.eu – 121 posts
- The website is updated with the latest information and announcements of events and good practices from the EU concerning the topic of sustainable urban mobility, news from Croatia, Slovenia and the region, as well as an overview of the activities of CIVINET members.
- CIVINET Info – 11 issues
CIVINET members and other interested stakeholders, as well as the media, are kept up to date through this newsletter. It covers the activities of the Network and members, announcements of interesting events in the field of sustainable urban mobility, updates, and examples of good practice from the EU. This newsletter is received by over 800 interested parties, primarily from Croatia and Slovenia, but also from other countries where the Network operates - Facebook page Održiva mobilnost u gradovima – 225 posts, 6.322 followers
- Instagram page @odrziva.mobilnost.u.gradovima – 155 posts, 71 stories, 323 followers
- LinkedIn page CIVINET Slovenia-Croatia-South East Europe – 62 posts, 682 followers