The Climate Smart Cities Challenge is now open for applications

Three applicants will be selected to become testbeds for innovative solutions for healthy, thriving and climate-smart cities

From 9 November 2020 to 22 January 2021 cities from around the world can apply for the first stage of the Smart Cities Challenge following Nesta Challenges' announcement of an invitation for cities to find and develop together innovative solutions to public problems related to climate change.

How to become a Climate Smart city?

The Climate Smart Cities Challenge is an initiative of Teknikföretagen, Viable Cities, UN-Habitat, Smart City Sweden, and Vinnova, delivered by Nesta Challenges. Its goal: to make cities compete and thereby – to stimulate and scale up innovative solutions for climate change.

To make this possible, the first stage of the challenge should select three cities. They will work with a global pool of experts from the technological, business and investor fields and will be guided to develop solutions to reduce urban greenhouse gas emissions and improve cities' futures.

In this the first stage, the partners are looking for stories about challenges that, if solved, would reduce or offset carbon emissions but also promote other sustainability and liability goals in the city in question. Applications are accepted online, where cities should indicate:

• How they intend to reduce or eliminate greenhouse gas emissions and create a good future for all;
• Present a problem that is specific and solvable in the near-term, meaning potential solutions could be introduced, adapted and scaled within the next five years;
• Indicate a willingness to work with a global community of problem-solvers and investors and to commit resources to test and implement solutions to your problem in their city.

The winning cities will be presented at next year’s World Expo in Dubai in October 2021 when the Climate Smart Cities Challenge will be officially launched. The three cities selected as partners will be featured in the World Expo in 2021 and profiled in a major media campaign over the course of the challenge. They will also have access to potential investors and partners.

Nesta Challenges are now traditional for the UK-based charity Nesta. According to their website, they have awarded 12,5 million pounds since 2010 to 9,000 innovators in the fields of connecting technologies, farming modernisation, smart ageing, inclusive technologies and many more.