Interregional exchange and learning activities are at the heart of an Interreg Europe project such as REBUS. During the final year of cooperation, partners made the most out of the project to maximise their learning opportunities. This was achieved thanks to the organisation of online and in person exchanges on needs and solutions to analyse specific aspects of GPs to be adapted and transferred in other regions.
ARRR, the LP, participated in 2 online exchanges and 2 in person meetings. As for the online exchanges, Malmo City Council (28/04/2022) was mainly interested in the improvements made in the network of hospitals that belongs to the North West ASL, while with Durham (03/05/2022) the focus was on the Hybrid working impact on energy efficiency. In Tuscany, the expenses for electricity and other operating expenses recorded an overall contraction of 42% equal to € 756,657 in 2020. This experience also showed that there were no appreciable reductions in the field of thermal consumption, and that the consumption related to transport was not analysed. On the other hand, with Durham being a large, primarily rural area with high levels of car use, transport savings (e.g. time, cost and carbon emissions) provided the main benefits, which were greater than the increases from homes.
On 12/04/2022, PNEC and ARRR had the chance to share experiences on the same topic, during a meeting organised in Krakow. Region of Crete took part in an online meeting with Durham County Council (11/05/2022) discussing Durham’s hybrid working model and the findings from their Working from Home research undertaken with Durham University and how the impacts would be different in Crete.
Region of Crete and Malmo City Council participated in an in person event in Tuscany (17/05/2022) with a focus on learning more about the improvements made in the network of hospitals and offices in the health sector. They also shared their experiences on the new Environmental programme for the city of Malmo and on the “Interact In Crete” project.
In May 2022, SE RDA carried out an online consultation round with partners (Region of Crete, BORA 94, PNEC, Tuscany Region) to discuss the importance of embedding interregional cooperation into the 2021-2027 Operational Programmes.
Malmo City Council hosted a bilateral exchange (07-08/06/2022) with Tuscany Region and Durham County Council. The activities included an analysis of the following topics: district heating, strategic approach to climate and nature emergencies, reuse of materials in retrofit.
PNEC hosted an exchange event (08/07/2022) with SER DA and BORA 94 focusing on comparison of OPs related to energy efficient renovations of public buildings, COVID-19 influence on energy consumption and GHG emission in buildings, sustainable and healthy buildings, and a study visit to Malopolska Laboratory of Energy Efficient Building of the Cracow University of Technology.
Region of Crete organised an in-person exchange with PNEC (28-29/09/2022) focusing on COVID-19 Greek response with the energy efficiency projects included in the “Interact In Crete” Project of the “ELENA” mechanism and the public building renovation schemes within the Operational Programme. Crete and PNEC discussed and shared experiences on the great importance of Energy Communities, and the funding schemes that can be used for the implementation of the renovation works. PNEC had also the chance to visit successful practises regarding the integration of new and effective technologies for energy upgrade of historical buildings.
All the exchanges organised by partners contributed to strengthen their cooperation and to identify solutions to design successful policy changes in their regions.
