Recommendations for municipalities to take part in European projects

Do you think it is difficult to take part in EU-projects? Does your municipality lack means to handle the administration of EU-projects?
Taking part in a mini-program could be the solution. The administration is rather simple and a regional partner supports you in the implementation and in reporting process. This possibility was given within the EU-program INTERREG IVC during the current period.

EnercitEE had 11 mini-program sub-projects where local authorities and organizations could cooperate and exchange experience and improve local and regional Energy Efficiency policies. The projects targeted either citizens or local authorities.
More than 20 local partners, NGO´s agencies and local authorities, from Germany, France, Poland, Italy and Sweden participated in this mini-program. Most of them had no previous experience from EU-projects and being part of a large EU-project has given them knowledge and courage to continue in other EU-programs.

For some of them it was also a wake-up when it comes to mitigation and adaptation to climate change. And experience showed that even with some initial reluctance coupled with disbelief present this issue was quickly accepted as part of a foremost mission to constantly increase the general standard of peoples’ living.

European Territorial Cooperation programs offer a unique opportunity to implement certain activities on a smaller scale. Your municipality does not have to dedicate substantial resources nor base their whole future on the uncertainty of a project’s outcome. It is instead a form of assistance to support you in your regular activities and “probe” new solutions and schemes to be expanded later on. Therefore it is strictly advised for municipalities to take an active part in European projects. Look at the 11 EnercitEE sub-projects and their participants. The experience and the know-how they gained will not be forgotten – they will be the carriers of their future actions. Can you afford falling behind?
Who knows what new conceptions and ambitions a cooperative project might give rise to in the end? Something that might have never been planned or discussed before - maybe a new vision?