Project: Climate neutral Växjö, Alvesta 2030

In 2020, Växjö municipality signed a climate contract that is on the way to a climate-neutral society with a good life for everyone by 2030. Now, together with Alvesta municipality, we want to push the regional climate transition even further. In this project, we will explore more ways for us to drive climate change, not least by leaning towards a change arena where, among other things, Linnaeus University is included.

The concept of Climate Neutral Cities fits very well into the ongoing sustainability work in Växjö and Alvesta because it is already integrated with ecological, economic and social sustainability. Within the framework of climate-neutral cities, we can continue the work of developing the climate contract that Växjö originally signed in 2020. Now we are also going further and investing in getting Alvesta municipality on board.

With the help of climate-neutral cities, we will also be able to immerse ourselves in the work of developing a climate roadmap and a climate investment plan. The municipalities will not be able to stand alone in the climate change work. Therefore, there is a broad consortium of actors that, in addition to the municipalities, includes Växjö energy (VEAB), Vidinghem, Vöfab, Växjö Linnaeus Science Park (VLSP), Södra Småland's Waste and Environment (SSAM), Linnaeus University, Energikontor Syd, GodaHus, Sustainable Småland, Measure&Change and WWF. Everyone has different roles to play in the consortium - at the same time it is of great importance that the consortium's parties have good cooperation with other actors to enable an effective transition. This happens not least in the transformation arena where the consortium reaches out to other parts of society to capture ideas, solutions and needs.

Linnaeus University will primarily be active in the project through:

The transition arena

The transition arena, which is the forum where Climate Neutral Växjö-Alvesta reaches out beyond the transition team and project management. Two to three times a year, meetings are arranged with companies, authorities, organizations and citizens to jointly discuss climate change and what is important locally and regionally. This can be done based on given themes (transport, energy, consumption) but also from more horizontal perspectives such as fair climate transition, the transition's effects on local business development and climate transition in cities and rural areas.

The transition arena will give several actors the opportunity to participate in the climate transition. Thoughts and ideas about solutions and investments that emerge from the transition arena become important input to the transition team and the work with, among other things, the climate roadmap, climate investment plan and the climate contract.

Dialogues, inclusion and commitment

Dialogues, inclusion and commitment are important for the climate transition to be successful, many in society need to have the opportunity to participate in the decision-making processes and be part of the transition themselves.

We need to raise the understanding that everyone has a role to play and that a climate-smart lifestyle can be combined with a healthy, safe, equal and good life. In this work package, we work with dialogues to involve and engage more people in different ways. We will work with different target groups in both established and new forums.

The climate portfolio

By working with a climate portfolio, we can put separate measures in context and see how they can be scaled up. Good experiences become the new obvious. In this way, results from an investment are spread to larger parts of society, both within and outside Växjö and Alvesta. In order to produce a good climate portfolio with a wide range of measures, knowledge and input are needed from several quarters.

Linnaeus University contributes to this through knowledge from both staff and students. A number of research projects are ongoing that focus on strengthening competence. By collecting these and making results visible, we can reach more people. Students will be able to do degree projects, etc., the results of which may be relevant for a climate-neutral society.

The climate toolbox

Here we will develop and explore tools that enable the transition in different ways. Linnaeus University, Växjö municipality and Measure & Change are collaborating to explore how AI and machine learning can be used to identify and calculate indirect emissions, including emissions from the purchase of goods and services.

This means processing large amounts of data, and there technologies such as AI and machine learning have the potential to streamline work and improve the quality of the information so that emissions from public consumption can be reduced. Even in other areas, it may be relevant to explore how different tools can provide information for climate-smart decisions. Tools can also mean new skills and courses for professionals to increase knowledge for a changeover.

Project facts

Project leaders
Katarina Rupar-Gadd, Linnaeus University
Other project members
Krushna Mahapatra, Jorge Luis Zapico, Diana Unander, Linnaeus University
Participating organisations
Linnaeus University, Växjö Municipality, Alvesta Municipality, Energikontor Syd AB, GodaHus, Measure & Change Europe AB, Stiftelsen Världsnaturfonden WWF, Sustainable Småland ekonomisk förening, Södra Smålands Avfall & Miljö AB, Vidingehem AB, Växjö Energi Aktiebolag, Växjö Linnæus Science Park AB and VÖFAB.
Funding
Swedish Energy Agency via the Viable Cities programme
Timeline
2024-12-01 - 2027-10-31
Subject area
Data and information science (Department of Computer Science and Media Technology, Faculty of Technology) and energy and environmental engineering, sustainable built environment (Department of Built Environment and Energy Engineering, Faculty of Technology)
Research Groups
Sustainable Built Environment Research (SBER) and Smart Industry Group (SIG)
Linnaeus Knowledge Environment
Green Sustainable Development

The project is a part of the research conducted by the research groups Sustainable Built Environment Research (SBER) and Smart Industry Group (SIG) as well as the Linnaeus Knowledge Environment: Green Sustainable Development