This last newsletter in 2017 looks back on a year that was very important for the Urban Agenda for the EU.

All twelve priority themes mentioned in the Pact of Amsterdam are now covered by a Partnership. In these Partnerships, as many as 84 cities, 22 Member States, 13 European Commission Directorate-Generals, and many stakeholders and observers work together to identify room for better regulation, funding and knowledge addressing key challenges faced by European cities.

The so-called Amsterdam Partnerships (Air Quality, Housing, Inclusion of Migrants & Refugees, Urban Poverty) have already presented their Action Plan or will do so in the first half of 2018. The second generation, so-called Bratislava Partnerships (Circular Economy, Digital Transition, Jobs & Skills in the Local Economy, Urban Mobility) will submit their draft Action Plans to a Public Feedback in the beginning of 2018. Lastl, also the youngest, so-called Malta Partnerships’ Orientation Papers (Climate Adaptation, Energy Transition, Public Procurement, Sustainable Use of Land and Nature based Solutions) are now available online.

The CITIES Forum in Rotterdam closed this intense year. Read more about this important event on Futurium, including the Report from the Commission to the Council on the Urban Agenda for the EU. Videos are accessible on our Youtube channel.

If you want to contribute to the Urban Agenda for the EU by sharing practices or comments, please sign up to the European Commission’s Futurium platform and follow the Partnerships you are most interested in. Another concrete opportunity to get involved is to take part in the Public Feedback on the draft Action Plans to be presented by the second generation of Partnerships, which will be held in February and March 2018. All information will be accessible at www.urbanagendaforthe.eu soon.

On behalf of the countless people involved in the Urban Agenda for the EU, the Communications Team wishes all readers of this newsletter cheerful holidays and a happy new year.

Stay tuned in 2018!

The Urban Agenda for the EU Communications Team