Second workshop of the Twinning Learning Programme held

As part of the Twinning Learning Programme, members of the project team participated on 9 January 2025 in the second workshop for pilot cities and twin cities.
The focus of the workshop was on gaining a deeper understanding of governance structures and stakeholder‑engagement practices in the pilot city and the twin city, as well as analysing the main similarities and differences in local‑government processes in both cities, with the identification of potentially transferable practices for activating the local system.

The workshop began with a presentation by the City of Zagreb, delivered by Tanja Dijan. She presented the organisational structure of the City and the Climate Neutral Greening Hub, the department responsible for coordinating climate activities in Zagreb. Participants received a detailed insight into how Zagreb has organised its activities and directed resources towards achieving climate‑neutrality goals.

During the workshop, Miljenko Serdar from REGEA and Lidija Pavić‑Rogošić from ODRAZ presented several key initiatives for stakeholder engagement in energy and climate policies:

• The Pentahelix approach, developed within the PentaHelix project (Horizon 2020), whose main goal was to create a strong participatory framework for dialogue on energy and climate, encouraging cooperation, innovation and continuous action across all sectors of society.
• The NECPlatform - this platform serves as a space for dialogue on national energy and climate policies, enabling all stakeholders - from government institutions to citizens - to actively participate in shaping national energy and climate strategies.
• The CIMULACT project - this project focused on intensive consultation with citizens and stakeholders on topics related to Horizon 2020. CIMULACT connected societal needs with scientific progress, provided recommendations for Horizon 2020, involved citizens and stakeholders in consultation processes and strengthened participation of all sectors in research and innovation.

These examples demonstrated how participatory frameworks can strengthen cooperation, innovation and continuous action across all sectors of society.

In the continuation of the workshop, the representative of the City of Poznań, Oliwia Jakubek, presented the organisational structure of local governance, including departments and units responsible for climate activities, and showed how citizens were involved in developing the Climate Change Adaptation Plan for Poznań until 2030.
The presentation enabled a comparison of different approaches to governance and stakeholder engagement in Zagreb and Poznań, which further enriched the discussion.
Upcoming activities within the project were also announced, including the organisation of a study visit to Poznań.