To support NGOs in their GPP-related work as well as to strengthen the European network of NGOs, ICLEI organized several activities and produced guidance documents for NGOs. The activities included workshops and training sessions on GPP, the legal framework, practical dimensions, and good practice case studies. The training sessions also covered topics such as ecolabels, green energy, food and catering and forest products. In addition, a series of webinars tailored to the needs of NGOs was organized. As a result of the project, the 17 participating NGOs are well equipped to support their local and regional authorities in implementing GPP.

ICLEI, along with other European Commission partners, supports training on green public procurement (GPP) across 11 countries. ICLEI has developed the GPP training material and a curriculum for the training programs. ICLEI provides a comprehensive ‘train the trainer’ session to equip the national training organization with the knowledge and tools they need to carry our trainings in their countries.

The project ‘Urban-Rural Assembly’ (URA) aims to build a better understanding of the urban-rural constellation and interdependencies that are emerging along China’s vast urbanisation corridors, and which can no longer be described through traditional binaries of ‘urban’ and ‘rural’. The region Huangyan-Taizhou, part of the Chinese ‘prefectural-level city‘ Taizhou, will be examined as an exemplary case study and learning context: a rapidly urbanising region where diverse and seemingly contradictory transformation processes take place simultaneously in close proximity, producing multiple dimensions of urban-rural interrelations. URA combines leading partners in the field of sustainable urban and regional transformation in Germany and China. ICLEI supports the research project in creating an interface between the research partners and policy makers, both within the case region as well as nationally in China and internationally. Through the development of transferable strategic instruments, enabling tools and guidelines, the project seeks to foster knowledge dissemination and transfer across the coastal urbanisation corridor – contributing to the urgent need for creative approaches towards localisation and implementation of the SDGs and the New Urban Agenda in China and beyond.

ICLEI is carrying out a baseline assessment of the ecosystems and the services they provide to the city of Gangtok. ICLEI will complete a review of the policy environment with regard to biodiversity conservation is and a natural asset map for the city, which will all help to set the baseline for the Local Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan for the city. This will be in line with the State Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan and the National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan.

The project promotes sustainable management of high range Himalayan ecosystems to secure conservation of globally significant wildlife, including endangered snow leopard and their habitats and ensures sustainable livelihoods for local community in the four high altitude landscapes in the Trans- and Greater Himalayan region. These actions are aimed at maintaining ecosystem values and ameliorating climate change impacts, enhancing surveillance, monitoring and trans-boundary cooperation to reduce wildlife crime and related threats, and improving knowledge and communications. ICLEI will undertake extensive biodiversity surveys and mapping to identify the drivers of degradation in the alpine and sub-alpine landscapes of Himachal Pradesh. Based on the information thus collected, the project aims to develop a restoration plan for two degraded sites.

ICLEI supports the Assam State Government to prepare a nomination dossier which highlights Majuli Island’s Unique Natural and Cultural heritage which will enable it to be listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site.

The City-Business Collaboration Accelerator (CiBiX) is a platform to increase engagement and collaboration between cities and businesses on city-led urban sustainability challenges. Through CiBiX, ICLEI provides a neutral platform that enables local government to take an active role in presenting their challenges to relevant private sector experts. Together they are able to participate in an early-engagement workshop that helps the city to receive new contributions as well as identify potential solutions and partnerships which they can choose to further explore. For businesses, it provides a strong networking opportunity to connect with local governments and learn exactly what their needs are in a particular sector or challenge scenario. The CiBiX Platform encourages cities to frame their urban challenges with a private sector engagement perspective- helping them to take the first step towards exploring potential partnerships relevant for their needs. The first service is a short-form ideation and early engagement workshop to stimulate an open and transparent interactive dialogue between a lead city and well-matched private sector representatives with a sustainability challenge framing.

The Urban Nexus project started out as a bottom-up initiative operating primarily at the city level. GIZ and ICLEI provide customized technical assistance to cities depending on the thematic focus of the cities’ nexus pilot projects. However, national, regional and provincial-level legal, regulatory, and policy frameworks are crucial determinants for local decision-making with regard to the nexus sectors. As such, ICLEI is facilitating national – regional – local dialogues as a means to clarify issues impeding the implementation of proposed nexus pilot projects. National-local dialogues help bridge the gap across levels of government particularly in the areas of water including wastewater, energy, and land use as well as cascading finance to the local level. Iteration and continued follow-ups between the two levels of government further strengthens vertical integration. ICLEI also utilizes its various international events to further promote the nexus approach including cross-sectoral cooperation within local governments and across levels of government.

ICLEI’s main activities in the project include: Taking the lead in transferring and customizing NBS, Co-developing NBS replication roadmap for FE, Co-developing the Urban NBS Plan along with the funding and investment strategies for FE, Co-developing the NBS implementation plan and opportunity-based implementation in FE districts and Launching a CLEVER Exchange Programme by organizing webinars, workshops, study visits etc. to ensure knowledge transfer. ICLEI will also ensure strategic coordination of communication and dissemination activities and Organize dissemination and knowledge brokerage events. These efforts will help to (i) advance the knowledge base on NBS for inclusive urban regeneration, (ii) integrate NBS in urban regeneration and planning processes, and (iii) produce governance, business and financial models for NBS projects.

Local governments are leading the change to an integrated planning approach, in which protected areas are a fundamental component of both urban and rural landscapes. Innovative solutions at the local level are being applied to integrate local protected areas into municipal planning and territorial development strategies, as well as into local management systems. ICLEI is improving the conditions of local governments to conserve biodiversity through the effective and equitable management of protected areas and other area-based conservation measures. The project combines a multi-scale and programmatic approach, focusing on strengthening local level capacities and governance as well as the role of local governments in the effective management of protected areas and other area-based conservation measures within the four countries’ institutional and legal frameworks. Benefits and challenges are disseminated at the local, subnational, national and international level.