NetZeroCities – Call for Pilot Cities, Cohort 2 (2023)

The Pilot Cities Programme, Cohort 2 (2023) will run for two years (24 months) from 1 May 2024 to 30 April 2026. The decisions shall be announced on the 22 January 2024.

Contracting is expected to take place between 1st February and 1 May 2024. The aim of this call is to select from Mission Cities a cohort of Pilot Cities, which will explore and test pathways to accelerated change towards 2030 climate neutrality goals — relevant to a city’s key emission domains — and to generate accelerated learning that can inform subsequent replication and scaling efforts in all other EU cities. 

Who can apply?

Only local authorities or city administrations selected to be part of EU Mission for climate-neutral and smart cities by 2030 (Mission Cities) are eligible to apply to, and receive funding under, this Call. For the avoidance of doubt, this call is addressed to designated Mission cities only (who are not yet part of the Pilot Cities Programme portfolio) and therefore these consortia may not include other city, district, or municipal authorities (i.e., ‘non-Mission’) or existing Pilot Cities. 

A group of Mission Cities (national or trans-national) may apply together in a consortium, however one of the Mission Cities will have to be designated as the consortium leader for all administrative and process-related purposes. The logic behind a joint application will need to be explained in the proposal. In the case of a group of cities applying together in one proposal, the size of the requested subgrant must follow the award amounts as stated in the Call Guidelines. 

Other organisations could also participate as members of a consortium led by a Mission City. These organisations could be, for example: research institutions, universities, SMEs, NGOs, associations, citizen groups or other relevant stakeholders involved in the implementation of the climate ambitions of a Mission City participating in the consortium.