European Commission’s Directorates-General for Regional and Urban Policy (DG REGIO), Joint Research Centre (JRC) & others.
EU Joint Research Center
2021
The Handbook of Sustainable Urban Development Strategies, published by the EU Joint Research Center, serves as a vital resource for local authorities and stakeholders involved in urban planning and sustainable housing. Created on February 25, 2021, the Handbook emphasizes the importance of implementing integrated and place-based urban strategies within the framework of EU cohesion policy. 🌍 Context and Purpose The Handbook was developed to meet the diverse needs of various territorial and administrative contexts across Europe. It is not designed as a quick-fix solution but rather as a comprehensive policy learning tool that provides insights into addressing key challenges during the strategy design and implementation process. Through concrete examples and references to existing studies and guidelines, it aims to enhance the capacity of local authorities and managing bodies to create effective urban development strategies. 🏗️ Six Building Blocks Central to the Handbook's approach are six essential building blocks that reflect the EU's integrated strategy for urban development: strategic dimension, territorial focus, governance, cross-sectoral integration, funding and finance, and monitoring. These components are crucial for fostering sustainable urban environments and ensuring that development aligns with broader EU objectives. 📊 Data-Driven Insights The Handbook leverages data from STRAT-Board, a database and online tool that provides an overview of Sustainable Urban Development (SUD) strategies implemented between 2014 and 2020. This data-driven approach facilitates informed decision-making and allows stakeholders to learn from past initiatives and best practices. 🤝 Collaborative Initiative This Handbook is a collaborative effort involving the European Commission’s Directorates-General for Regional and Urban Policy (DG REGIO) and the Joint Research Centre (JRC). It benefits from the active participation of policymakers, practitioners, and scholars who contribute their expertise to ensure that the content is relevant and actionable. In summary, the Handbook of Sustainable Urban Development Strategies is a crucial document for anyone involved in sustainable housing and urban development in Europe. It outlines a strategic framework for integrating sustainability into urban policies and provides essential guidance for navigating the complexities of urban planning.
EU Joint Research Center
The Handbook of Sustainable Urban Development Strategies provides valuable knowledge on how to implement integrated and place-based urban strategies under cohesion policy. It aims to serve local authorities, managing authorities and all other relevant stakeholders.
The Handbook is conceived as a policy learning tool, responding to the needs of different territorial and administrative contexts. It does not provide a ‘quick fix’, but rather, it offers suggestions on how to tackle key challenges during the process of strategy design and implementation, by giving concrete examples, and referring to existing studies and guidelines.
The Handbook addresses the EU’s integrated approach to urban development by means of six building blocks: strategic dimension, territorial focus, governance, cross-sectoral integration, funding and finance, and monitoring.
The Handbook is a joint initiative by the Commission’s Directorates-General for Regional and Urban Policy (DG REGIO), and the Joint Research Centre (JRC), and which benefits from active involvement from policymakers, practitioners, and scholars. The Handbook relies on data available in STRAT-Board, a database and online tool which provides an overview of SUD strategies implemented in 2014-2020.