From PlusEnergy Neighborhoods to the PlusEnergy City

BERN HUB | Project AUE-3

Our goal:

Our aim is to encourage the transformation of Bernese cities towards CO2 neutrality.

PlusEnergy house in Romanshorn: the modernized building from the 1960s now generates more energy than is needed for hot water, heating, air conditioning, and household electricity. Photo: Viridén+Partner AG

In a nutshell:

To achieve the objective of the project, findings on PlusEnergy neighborhoods from individual preliminary projects of the Canton of Bern will be applied to the city’s system as a whole. In addition to energy production, the consumption side (including the key drivers, namely mobility, housing, and food) will be integrated into the project in order to promote sustainable urban development. The goal is to develop concrete pilot projects and implementation examples with a model character that can be transferred to the whole of Switzerland. A core element is the inclusion of stakeholders at all levels, ensured by means of a comprehensive participatory process.

In line with the participatory approach of the Wyss Academy for Nature, close cooperation with actors from civil society, business, politics, and society is planned in order to achieve the maximum impact in practice. Workshops with the public can be enhanced with innovative digital tools (for example use of virtual reality for scenario development). A kick-off event with interested partner cities is currently in preparation.

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In collaboration with:

Amt für Umwelt und Energie des Kantons Bern AUE (Office for Environment and Energy of the Canton of Bern)