INTRODUCTION

With climate change accelerating, climate adaptation is becoming an increasingly important topic for the world’s cities, which continue to grow and contribute immensely to global emissions.

While transport-related public space in cities is too often neither sustainable nor effective, Nordic and Baltic cities have pioneered world-leading solutions for transforming public space which – apart from helping reduce transport emissions, improve air quality and create more inclusive spaces – have also brought clear benefits in terms of climate adaptation.

This catalogue highlights 12 inspirational examples from cities across the region that have taken concrete steps – some small, some bigger – as part of an urban transformation process that could eventually prompt larger shifts in how public space is planned, designed and utilised by the various stakeholders of the city, while adapting to the changing climate.

The case from Copenhagen demonstrates how an urgent need to improve cloudburst management led to the comprehensive redesign of an important square and street in the neighbourhood of Østerbro. The solution not only ensured proper stormwater infrastructure, but also reallocated road space to pedestrians and greenery, reducing car traffic and significantly increasing the opportunities for locals to use the neighbourhood for socialising and recreation, an example that other cities can use to help visualise what their own neighbourhoods could look like in the future.

Two cases from Nacka, a growing municipality in greater Stockholm, show how a city can integrate sustainable solutions to manage rapid urbanisation and the changing needs for public space – such as those of a large thoroughfare and a natural recreation area. The solutions chosen are helping reduce air, water and noise pollution, increase quality of life and contribute to climate adaptation, serving as a reminder of the importance of long-term thinking in shaping the cities of tomorrow.

Cases from Helsinki, Riga and Vilnius show that repurposing car parking spaces can serve to create new social meeting places, small shelters for biodiversity and outdoor terraces for enjoying meals and drinks, giving new meaning to these urban spots while helping reduce car traffic and encourage active mobility. Such small, agile interventions can help politicians and city officials get a foot in the door and gain public approval for further transformations of public space in their city.

Several of the examples in this catalogue also show the benefits of engaging proactively with local community. But while citizen engagement is often well-integrated in urban transformation processes, it can remain a challenge to hear and bring forward the perspectives of young people.

To address this, EIT Urban Mobility conducted its own small-scale youth engagement initiative entitled “Transform your street!” to bring real-life challenges into the classroom, something that fell on fertile ground with educators. This initiative, which can easily be scaled up, resonates well with the Nordic Council of Ministers’ Vision 2030 that aims to “strengthen co-operation with civil society and plan and implement more projects in co-operation with children and young people.”

Finally, EIT Urban Mobility convened city officials, practitioners and youth representatives for a half-day workshop on 22 March 2023 to co-create recommendations on how city governments can transform public space in ways that enable climate adaptation, fossil-free mobility and engagement with younger citizens. The recommendations, which range from crafting a powerful communications narrative to incorporating principles of rewilding and natural ecosystems, will be a useful tool for city planners everywhere as they grapple with the complex challenge of future-proofing their cities.

EIT Urban Mobility’s mission is to accelerate change towards a sustainable model of urban mobility and liveable urban spaces, and we hope this Nordic catalogue can serve to inspire, educate and spark fruitful discussions about how cities in Europe and around the world can go about making this essential transformation happen.