Translations

The CITY OF HEIDELBERG in Germany: a sustainable model

4. Environment

Energy / Greenhouse Gases (GHG)

Sector Other

Year 2017

Country Germany

Transmitter

Context

Heidelberg is a city which turn to increase in growth thanks to the city transformation. They have just built a new area free of CO2 of 400 hectares in which live 5000 persons. The city invested more than 400 million of euro in this new area that will be reimbursed by the investments made by the real estate developers.

Heidelberg is home to around 150,000 people located at the heart of the 'Rhine-Neckar Triangle'. The city offers a high quality of life. This cosmopolitan, friendly, people-oriented and vibrant university city is made up of 15 distinct neighbourhoods and is particularly attractive to families, academics, those in the creative industries and business people. And people feel at home there: in recent surveys, no fewer than 97 percent of all Heidelbergers said they loved living in the city.

Objectives

To make Heidelberg become a model city in terms of use of renewable energies.
To invent new practices and way of using energies and test them in a sample population.
To develop the social aspect of the Eco responsible vision that the city wants to establish in the long run (public transportation, etc.).

APPROACH

Take local control of the energy supply in order to adapt the distribution to the city objectives.
Financial earnings from the changes (help people be aware of wasting energy) and the investment should be used to build more energy-saving equipment to shows the government inside value.
Local banks finance the projects so it increases trust and allows for a better understanding of the local needs.
Kids teach parents initiative in centres of knowledge.
Creation of their own standards (because national standards are not enough according to the mayor), in order to surpass the limitations created by the national legislations.

Wtatch the Interview of Hedelberg's Mayor Eckart Würzner and its intervention in a conference about Third Revolution at the Wolrd Forum for a Responsible Economy. Read all the other documents HERE from WFRE17

CONTRIBUTION TO COMPANY PERFORMANCE

90 percent energy reduction thanks to the own city standards (compared to the national standards)
Over the decades, together with its many network partners, the city has established a reputation as a center of environment and sustainability.
Heidelberg has already received the European Sustainable City Award twice
In 2015, Heidelberg was honored with the Global Green City Award at the headquarters of the United Nations in New York.

Benefits

Less CO2 emissions (the goal is to have a neutral impact in 2020) and huge energy saving.
A city with a lower energy consumption but a high quality of life.
An involved community with science and technology network in the settling of these changes.
A local government which not only innovates for the city by standard and policy making but which is also close to the community and willing to help the local people live and work happier.