Mayor Rakovec in important European advisory group
A two-year Cities Mission Mayors Advisory Group of 17 leaders from EU Cities Mission was recently appointed and formally endorsed in Brussels. Among those selected is the Mayor of Kranj, Matjaž Rakovec. Their collective expertise and insights will contribute to advancing the well-being of our cities, fostering resilience, inclusivity, and prosperity for generations to come.
The Advisory Group will serve as a vital and dynamic forum bringing together 15+ Mission City leaders to engage directly with the European Commission and the Mission Platform, managed by NetZeroCities. The members will be representing Mission Cities to provide strategic advice and feedback, deepening shared commitments among Mission Cities and the European Commission. The Cities Mission Mayors Advisory Group will be a driving force, with a role to encompass advocating for cities’ strategic interests, helping shape the service offer of the Mission Platform according to cities’ needs, and providing recommendations to address cities’ challenges on their journey to climate neutrality.
Members of the Advisory Group have been carefully nominated based on their commitment to sustainability and their demonstrated leadership in urban climate transitions. Diversity criteria, including geography and city size were also taken into consideration. Over the initial two-year term, this new body will play an essential role in advancing the EU Cities Mission, and will provide city leaders the opportunity to join forces, share insights, and shape the future of urban governance and development.
The nomination of Mayor Rakovec of Kranj was also supported in writing by the cities of Ljubljana, Velenje, Zagreb, Križevci and Eilat (a partner city in the UP-SCALE pilot project).
The Cities Mission Mayors Advisory Group includes representatives from 17 Mission Cities. 15 are from EU countries: Mayor Haris Doukas (Athens, Greece), Deputy Mayor Anna Lisa Boni (Bologna, Italy), Mayor Emil Boc (Cluj-Napoca, Romania), Mayor Tanya Hristova (Gabrovo, Bulgaria), Mayor Matjaž Rakovec (Kranj, Slovenia), Mayor Mohamed Ridouani (Leuven, Belgium), Deputy-Mayor Fabien Perez (Marseille, France), Mayor Dominik Krause (Munich, Germany), Mayor Attila Péterffy (Pécs, Hungary), Deputy-Mayor Filipe Manuel Ventura Camões de Almeida Araújo (Porto, Portugal), Deputy Mayor Åsa Lindhagen (Stockholm, Sweden), Mayor Kalervo Kummola (Tampere, Finland), Deputy Mayor Arjen Kapteijns (The Hague, Netherlands), Mayor Rafal Trzaskowski (Warsaw, Poland), and Mayor Natalia Chueca Muñoz (Zaragoza, Spain).
The Advisory Group also includes representatives from two Mission Cities in Associated Countries: Leader of the City Council Susan Aitken (Glasgow, United Kingdom), and Mayor Sissel Knutsen Hegdal (Stavanger, Norway).
The first meeting of the Cities Mission Mayors Advisory Group will take place for the first time in the autumn, probably in Brussels during the European Week of Regions and Cities (7-10 October 2024).
More information: NetZeroCities