News

26.09.2007
EC outlines urban mobility agenda
On 25 September, the European Commission adopted a Green Paper on urban mobility. "Towards a new culture for urban mobility” opens the debate on key issues of urban mobility: free-flowing and greener towns and cities, smarter urban mobility and an ur...read more

24.09.2007
Handbook for local governments on services directive published
The European Commission has published a handbook to give technical assistance to local and regional authorities in the implementation of the "services directive".read more

21.09.2007
Local government urged to participate in consultation on EU budget reform
Local and regional governments are asked to participate in the consultation on the future of EU finances launched by the European Commission, on 12 September 2007. Adoption of the consultation paper in view of the budget review marks a first public s...read more

19.09.2007
“For safer cities, a wide spread multiculturalism must be developed”
In order to make Europe’s cities safer places to live, local communities must adopt “a more cosmopolite sense of community. The tendency towards defensiveness and perception of others as a menace should be avoided.” This is the opinion of Rossella Se...read more

18.09.2007
The world’s most polluted cities of 2007
U.S.-based Blacksmith Institute, an independent environmental group, in partnership with Green Cross Switzerland, today issued their Top Ten list of the world's most severely polluted places. Overall, the Top Ten sites lie in seven countries and affe...read more

14.09.2007
500 European cities support CEMR charter on local gender equalities
500 cities, regions and municipalities have now signed the Council of European Municipalities and Regions’ (CEMR) Charter for equality of women and men in local life. The Charter aims to promote the balanced participation of women and men in the deci...read more

13.09.2007
EMCDDA seeks members for its Scientific Committee
The European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA) is looking for scientists to become member of its Scientific Committee. The Scientific Committee plays a major role in the EMCDDA’s efforts to reach scientific excellence. Amongst o...read more

13.09.2007
Europol supports EURO 2008 in Austria and Switzerland
The Austrian interior ministry and EUROPOL will closely collaborate to ensure the safety during the European soccer championships EURO 2008. The event takes place in Austria and Switzerland in the coming summer. Amongst others, EUROPOL will support t...read more

13.09.2007
EC establishes European Security Research and Innovation Forum
The European Commission has established the European Security Research and Innovation Forum (ESRIF). The ESRIF held its first meeting on 11 September 2007. The Forum is to promote cooperation in the field of security research. It brings together stak...read more

10.09.2007
“Cities must permanently reallocate road space in favour of walking, cycling and public transport.”
Europeans are becoming more and more aware of the impact of transport on the environment. At the same time, there is a large gap between people’s awareness and their actual behaviour. “For the moment, our cities are built to give priority to car traf...read more

07.09.2007
London shows interest in Parisian free bike scheme
A bicycle-hire scheme, which saw one million users in the eighteen days following its launch in Paris, is being monitored by London Mayor Ken Livingstone.read more

31.08.2007
61 per cent of urban Europeans experience noise pollution at home
Most Europeans living in metropolitan areas (61 per cent) report substantial noise annoyance at home in their residential area. 32 per cent feel very or extremely annoyed. This is one of the first results of a European wide online survey on noise ann...read more

27.08.2007
Cost of energy efficient building highly overestimated by construction sector
Property professionals highly overestimate the cost of constructing energy-efficient buildings, by up to 300 per cent. A recent survey by the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD ) amongst 1,400 individuals active in the property...read more

23.08.2007
Portuguese parliament approves “National Spatial Policy Programme”
On 5 July, the Portuguese parliament has approved Portugal's “National Spatial Policy Programme” (PNPOT). This legal instrument for spatial planning and territorial management was defined in 1998 by the last legal planning framework, the Urban and Sp...read more

21.08.2007
European Commission publishes communication on regional competitiveness and innovation
The European Commission (EC) has published a communication outlining the European financial instruments available to regions to strengthen the knowledge economy. The Communication shows the synergies between the funding the European research, innovat...read more

15.08.2007
EU highlights role of families in curbing demographic change and building social cohesion
As a result of demographic change, family-friendliness is becoming an increasingly important element of European Union policies. The compatibility of family and career will play an important role in Europe’s future economic and social development. In...read more

13.08.2007
LIFE+ first call for proposals
LIFE+, the new Financial Instrument for the Environment, has entered into force. The programme will run in the 2007-2013 period. With a budget of over 2 billion euros, LIFE+ is a substantial but focused funding instrument. It provides specific suppor...read more

13.08.2007
“Debate on housing in relation to integration often too simplistic”
“There is often an overly simplistic thinking on such matters as the concentration of immigrants and ‘ghettoisation’, among supporters and opponents alike. The discussion frequently lacks nuance and is not driven by empirical data and research result...read more

24.07.2007
'Carfree areas seeking municipalities' - Call for applications
European municipalities are invited to express interest in co-operating to realise carfree model settlements in their area. Three of the responding municipalities will be selected by a jury to participate in the international “Carfree Area Pilot Proj...read more

20.07.2007
Portuguese EU Presidency follows up on 'Leipzig'
The Portuguese EU Presidency is to hold an informal ministerial meeting on spatial planning and regional development in the Azores on 23 and 24 November. This was announced by the Portuguese Minister for the Environment, Spatial Planning and Regional...read more