LIFE21-IPC-PL-LIFE AFTER COAL PL - Implementation of the Strategy Climate Neutral Eastern Wielkopolska 2040

The Life21 project "LIFE AFTER COAL PL - Implementation of the Strategy Climate Neutral Eastern Wielkopolska 2040" is a 9-year research program that is developing a strategy with the cities and municipalities in Eastern Greater Poland to achieve climate neutrality by 2040. The consortium consists of around 50 partners, mostly from Poland, most of whom are municipalities. There are also trade unions and state institutions from Poland. The project is accompanied by (international) research institutions such as the EUF. The aim is to then transfer the experience gained in Poland to other regions that are also facing the difficult task of decarbonising carbon-intensive industries. At the end of the project there should be a system of political instruments, measures, stakeholder relationships and institutions that can be transferred to other regions. The project is intended to serve as an example strategy for achieving climate neutrality. The project partners pay particular attention to the just design of change in the region. The needs and the threat of exclusion of marginalized social groups are considered.

The project is divided into three phases: Phase 1 runs from the beginning of 2023 to mid-2026. In this phase, the climate neutrality strategy is developed and a system is established to implement it at the level of the Polish municipalities involved. The actors and institutions involved are identified and political instruments and measures are implemented.

In the second phase from mid-2025 to the end of 2027, the measures will be evaluated and refined. The project partners collect the experience gained and best practice examples in order to be able to transfer the solutions found on the way to climate neutrality. In the second phase, the findings from eastern Greater Poland are to be transferred to Bulgaria. A similar system of political instruments, measures and actors should then be set up there in order to achieve the goal of just climate neutrality.

In the third phase, the project partners will transfer the experience gained to other European regions and municipalities. This phase runs from early 2028 to late 2031.

The EUM chair is involved in the 1st and 3rd phase. The task of the EUM chair will be the research work and advice to the Marshal's Office of the Wielkopolska Voivodeship in the implementation of the climate neutrality strategy and the associated policy measures and stakeholders. In phase 3, the EUM chair carries out an analysis of the impact of the project, examines the transferability of the knowledge gained to other European regions and ensures that the research results are publicly visible within the EU.