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28 May 2024

The results for the call for Peer Reviews are in!

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Magdalena Baidan
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The results for the call for Peer Reviews are in!
As part of our capacity building activities, the European Urban Initiative is glad to welcome and support 9 new cities via Peer Reviews. Benefiting from the shared knowledge of urban professionals across Europe, targeted and continuous expert support, in-person workshops, and study visits, the nine selected cities are embarking on a unique process designed to enhance their Sustainable Urban Development strategies.

The spring 2024 call for Peer Reviews which took place in March-April 2024 was open to applications for both City Under Review and Peer Reviewer roles.

Applicants were required to share via a simple online form information about their Sustainable Urban Development (SUD) strategy, their motivation to participate and a first outline of the challenges they face in the design or implementation of their strategy.

A total of 11 applications from 6 different EU countries were received for the role of City Under Review. An additional 27 applications for individual Peer Reviewers from 8 countries were equally received.

Map of the selected Peer reviews

Map of the selected Peer Reviews

After a thorough evaluation and selection process, we are happy to announce that the following cities have been invited to attend European Urban Initiative’s autumn-winter 2024 Peer Reviews:

  • Athienou (Cyprus)
  • Borgomanero (Italy)
  • Jiu Valley (functional urban area, Romania)
  • Basso Piave Urbano  (functional urban area, Italy)
  • Pilsen (Czech Republic)
  • Prievidza (Slovakia)
  • Ústí nad Labem (Czech Republic)
  • Varazdin (Croatia)
  • Vukovar (functional urban area, Croatia)

These cities will form 3 groups, and each group will have a Peer Review event planned for September, October and December 2024. The exact dates, locations, and best urban practitioners to bring forward their expertise to the selected cities are in progress.

Each City under Review will be matched with the Peer Reviewers that have the most relevant experience for their challenges. 22 out of the 27 applications for Peer Reviewers were approved, they come from 8 different countries: Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Greece, Italy, Portugal and Sweden. These 22 new urban practitioners integrate the existing database of Peer Reviewers.

A new call for Peer Reviews will open early autumn 2024 – this will be a new occasion to benefit from this activity which is especially conceived to help EU urban authorities with the development of their SUD strategies.

You can find out more about our Peer Reviews, as well as read testimonials from previous participants on our dedicated webpage.

Can’t wait until this autumn for the new call to open? You might consider taking a look at our City-to-City Exchanges – more operational and always open for applications, this activity can be equally beneficial.