The CTU University Centre for Energy Efficient Buildings, in cooperation with the city of Kladno, organized a virtual round table within the SPARCS international project on the topic of investment and business models in urban innovations, especially in the areas of energy and construction. The goal was to exchange experiences and strengthen opportunities for closer cooperation between cities and the private sector.
The meeting took place on Wednesday, May 26, 2021. During it, representatives of Kladno, Prague, Brno and Písek exchanged their experiences, i.e. of Czech cities involved in projects implemented within the Horizont 2020 program. Wojciech Belch, Michal Kuzmič and Tomáš Vácha debated for CTU UCEEB.
In addition to them, the foreign partners of projektu SPARCS, namely representatives of the Fraunhofer research institute and its consulting spin-off company Bable, joined the discussion. Domestic banks and key state institutions, such as the Energy Regulatory Office and the Czech Moravian Guarantee and Development Bank, were also invited. The event was also attended by the private sector, for example the company Nano Energies.
During the meeting, the topic of energy communities resonated the most, which is drawing ever stronger attention from cities and businesses. The meeting brought further strengthening of cooperation, which loosely follows the series of meetings of the National Ecosystem for Energy Plus Neighborhoods in 2020.