Strong CoR participation in the Cities Mission conference

A delegation of CoR members took part in the 4th annual conference of the Cities Mission in Vilnius on 6-8 May. The objective of the conference was to spotlight the progress and ambition of the more than hundred Mission Cities and their partners as they strive to achieve climate neutrality by 2030.

First vice-chair of the ENVE Commission, Mayor of Liepaja Gunārs Ansiņš (LV/Renew Europa) took the floor at the closing session on Thursday 8 May, highlighting the Mission's importance for the participating cities and for enhancing multilevel governance in key EU policy areas. 

"The Cities Mission is a good example of how climate and competitiveness objectives go hand in hand: the Climate Plans of the 112 cities in the Mission on Climate Neutral and Smart Cities are worth some hundreds of billion investments in clean sectors, such as sustainable transport, energy, infrastructure, clean steel, bio-based materials and circular economy solutions, providing vast business opportunities. We should work together to make sure this investment potential is realized and is part of the EU competitiveness agenda", Mr Ansiņš said.

Strengthening the contribution of EU regions and cities, Mayor of Łódź Hanna Zdanowska (PL/EPP) was appointed as the CoR liaison person to the Mayors Advisory Group that provides strategic advice and offers feedback on Mission activities.

Liepaja and Łódź were among the 39 European cities that received the mission label recognizing their successful work towards the 2030 climate neutrality target. In total, 92 out of the 112 cities that participate in the Mission have by now received the label.