and natural environment (energy transition, climate adaptation, sustainable water and urban management, natural conservation), and governance and partnerships (demands to the public sector, citizen participation, and international cooperation). The report shows that, besides those municipalities that have explicitly embraced the SDGs,32 there are many more that have developed activities and pilots related to sustainable development, regional cooperation and direct democracy. The recently issued ‘joint investment agenda’ of the municipalities, provinces and water authorities is an example of intensive administrative collaboration.33 Together, the three levels spend EUR 28 billion per year in investments. They have committed to opt, wherever possible, for energy neutral, climate-proof and circular economy solutions. The chapter emphasizes that progress in all pillars requires a conducive legal, policy and fiscal environment at both the national and the EU level. Local governments, moreover, will have to make greater efforts to ensure policy coherence and progress in sensitive areas such as gender equality and the conservation of biodiversity. Many other cities and regions all over Europe (in the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, France, Italy, Luxembourg, Montenegro, Norway, Portugal and Switzerland) that had successfully developed local Agenda 21 schemes or local sustainable policies are now transitioning towards the adoption of the SDG framework. In the North Denmark region, Copenhagen, Gladsaxe and Sondeborg adopted the so-called ‘4-17-42’ approach: a scheme based on the 4 pillars of environment, economy, society and culture, coupled with the 17 SDGs and 42 key actions. In France, the department of Gironde and several municipalities stand out for their efforts in the integration of the SDGs in local initiatives (see the example of Saint-Fons in Box 4), while many more French municipalities (with Paris among them) are currently promoting sustainability and climate change mitigation agendas. In Portugal, the cities of Cascais and Funchal – among the first to embrace the SDGs as a policy framework – are now building a platform to map all SDG-related initiatives in the country. Many more, all over Europe, have been involved in various sustainability actions, from fair trade to energy transition, from the reduction of social inequalities to smart cities, resilience and climate change mitigation agendas.
Bikes In Utrecht, the Netherlands (photo: Alex Proimos/Flickr.com)
32 The following cities in Netherland have expressed explicit committment with the SDGs: Utrecht, Oss, Langedijk, Tilburg, Terneuzen, Leerdam, Sittard-Geleen, Eindhoven, Helmond and Rijswijk 33 The document can be accessed online at this address: https://www.uvw.nl/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/Investeringsagenda-voorKabinetsformatie-2017-Naar-een-duurzaam-Nederland-2017.pdf.
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