Photo: EUROCITIES1

Liverpool, Malaga and Vilnius win EUROCITIES awards

06 November 2014

by Richard Forster

Liverpool, Malaga and Vilnius have been recognised by EUROCITIES for their cooperative, innovative and participative projects on energy efficiency.

Awarded during a gala dinner and ceremony last night at EUROCITIES’ annual conference hosted by Munich, Germany, the three winning cities were chosen by jury from 19 entries.

Malaga, Spain, was especially praised by the jury in the participation category for its efforts in the energy refurbishment of ‘Los Limoneros’, a social housing building made up of 140 apartments. Measures such as roof and floor insulation, heating sanitary water with solar energy and new ventilation have helped improve the building’s energy classification from a grade F to D. By installing 45 smart meters in low income housing across the city, it has also helped residents to better understand the impact of their energy consumption.

Sandra Marin-Herbert, Technical Advisor, Malaga City Council
Sandra Marin-Herbert, Technical Advisor, Malaga City Council

“This was not a project but a miracle,” exclaimed Sandra Marin-Herbert, Technical Advisor, Malaga City Council. “The first time we went to visit, the residents told us that we could not go up to the roof as there was a cock fight taking place. If we can get it done with these families, whose priorities are not energy efficiency, then we can implement this anywhere.”

The capital of Lithuania, Vilnius, took the prize for innovation thanks to its interactive energy classification map. Using a ‘blame and shame’ approach, neighbours can see how their building ranks with the other 2,300 city-owned apartment blocks.

“When people are looking to buy a flat they now use this map beforehand to see how much their energy costs would be,” explained Juozas Antanaitis, Councillor, Vilnius City Council. “People like it and it works.”

Liverpool, UK, took the award for cooperation for its REECH initiative to retrofit 2,000 social housing units and 40 business premises with energy efficiency measures and low-carbon technology.

Nick Small, Cabinet Member for Employment and Skills, Liverpool City Council
Nick Small, Cabinet Member for Employment and Skills, Liverpool City Council

“We worked right across the city region, helped businesses and created jobs. That was a key objective,” said Nick Small, Cabinet Member for Employment and Skills, Liverpool City Council. “All aspects of this project are highly transferable to other cities.”

The winners were selected by an independent jury led by Joachim Lorenz from Munich’s Department of Environment and Health. The jury members were: Marie-Hélène Vareille from European Commission DG Environment; Iván Tosics from the Metropolitan Research Institute; Sabine Bock from Women in Europe for a Common Future; and Susanne Poelchau from Bayerischer Rundfunk.

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