4A4PEDs – Availability, Accessibility, Affordability and Alliance Principles for Energy Resilient Positive Energy Districts

4A4PEDs is a European RDI project developing energy-resilient urban districts by combining data, design, and collaboration. Our Living Labs across five countries pilot real-world solutions for more inclusive, affordable, and sustainable energy systems.

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Our Goals

Building energy-resilient cities in Europe

The objective of 4A4PEDs project is to help cities become energy-efficient and energy-flexible by exploring regional energy self-sufficiency in terms of energy availability, accessibility, and cost. It will also involve activating various stakeholders to participate in the design and implementation of these areas. The project also seeks to combat energy poverty in Europe by promoting regional energy self-sufficiency.

Our key goals are to:

  • Develop a practical framework to assess and improve energy resilience at district level
  • Test and co-create solutions in diverse Living Labs across Europe
  • Promote accessibility, affordability and citizen engagement in energy planning
  • Generate tools, guidelines and learning materials for wide use by cities, universities and policymakers
  • Build long-term partnerships for knowledge sharing and future impact

Together, we aim to make Positive Energy Districts (PEDs) not just a concept – but a reality in everyday urban life.

Living Labs Across Europe

Several European cities will serve as Living Lab environments in the project for analyzing energy resilience. A Living Lab is an open innovation ecosystem where new ideas and solutions are developed and tested in a real-world context. In a Living Lab, the development process moves forward in iterative stages, with feedback collected from users at each stage. This continuous feedback allows for the adaptation and improvement of innovations during their development, resulting in a better-functioning solution that meets user needs.

Project Consortium

The project is coordinated by EURAC Research, Italy. This research-oriented approach project aims to create a framework model for cities that addresses four energy resilience principles: Availability, Accessibility, Affordability, and Alliance.

The 4A4PEDs project involves a diverse consortium of 15 partners from 5 EU countries. These partners include research and educational institutions, city authorities, and businesses. Co-applicants are Eurac Research, Metropolia University of Applied Sciences, Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences, Frankfurt University of Applied Sciences and VSB Technical University of Ostrava.

The project is expected to last for 36 months, starting in October 2024 and ending in October 2027. The keywords describing the project are energy resilience, accessibility, availability, affordability, and alliance. The total project costs are estimated at €2.057.203,00, with requested funds amounting to €1.539.680,50.

Meet our all project partners

  • Eurac Research, Italy (coordinator of the project)

  • City of Verona, Italy

  • Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences, Netherlands

  • City of Amstelveen, Netherlands

  • Alliander, Netherlands

  • Metropolia University of Applied Sciences, Finland

  • City of Helsinki, Finland

  • City of Vantaa, Finland

  • City of Espoo, Finland

  • Eeneman, Finland

  • Voltan Energy, Finland

  • Frankfurt University of Applied Sciences, Germany

  • City of Battenberg, Germany

  • City of Hatzfelt, Germany

  • VSB Technical University of Ostrava, Czechia

Funding

The project is funded through the EU's Driving Urban Transition (DUT) program, that supports the transformation of urban areas in their effort to become more sustainable and energy-efficient while promoting the well-being of residents.

This project has been funded by Italian Ministry for Universities and Research (MUR), Business Finland, Regieorgaan SIA, Bundesministerium für Wirtschaft und Klimaschutz (BMWK), and Technology Agency of the Czech Republic (TA CR) under the Driving Urban Transitions Partnership, which has been co-funded by the European Union.

See Our Living Labs in Action – Follow on LinkedIn

Stay up to date with the latest from the 4A4PEDs project by following us on LinkedIn.

We share:

  • Living Lab highlights from partner cities
  • Insights on energy resilience and urban innovation
  • Project milestones and events
  • Tools and resources for Positive Energy Districts (PEDs)

Join the conversation and be part of a growing network for more sustainable, inclusive cities. Follow us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/4a4peds/

Contact us

Are you working on urban energy transformation or do you have some questions regarding our project? Let’s connect!
Our e-mail: 4a4peds [at] metropolia.fi (4a4peds[at]metropolia[dot]fi)

4A4PEDs Helsinki Consortium Meeting