ESCP signed a Memorandum to reach Net Zero Carbon in Turin by 2030

Municipality, Politecnico, University and ESCP Business School together to guide the energy transition of Turin.

A Memorandum of Understanding was signed to outline strategies and support local policies on decarbonisation.

Turin is one of the 100 "Mission Cities" chosen by the European Commission to become climate neutral by 2030 and a hub for experimentation and innovation in the climate field, a ground-breaking example for all other European cities. This initiative is linked to the European Green Deal strategy to make Europe climate neutral by 2050.

Energy today represents an essential asset for our economy and the quality of our life. It is no longer possible to develop energy independent of the ecological transition criteria. Therefore, an energy switch towards decarbonisation will necessarily have to take place, transitioning from a system based on fossil sources to renewable ones.

For the City of Turin, this is a significant challenge to be undertaken, considering that in 2019 gas and oil products represented 56.4% of the final energy consumption of the municipal, tertiary, residential, public lighting, and transport sectors in the city, as showed by the third monitoring report (2021) of TAPE - Turin Action Plan for Energy.

The Memorandum of Understanding between the City of Turin, the Polytechnic of Turin, the University of Turin and ESCP Business School, presented on May 6 at the Energy Center, aims to contribute to an integrated and multi-dimensional energy plan for the city to achieve the climate neutrality objectives. The signatories agree on creating a system based on the frontline of research supporting the political decision-making process. By developing innovative and shared methodologies and tools and collaborating, each in the context of their mission, this will guide the urban energy transition process.

To reach the decarbonisation objective, there will be defined, through a shared strategy, the areas in which it is necessary to operate, and outline the structures, tools, and actions to implement. This will be coordinated by the Energy Security Transition EST@energycenter Laboratory. Thanks to an interdisciplinary approach, it will work alongside other transitions: the digital, socio-cultural, and economic-productive.

“The idea of a ‘Turin model’ was born to support the city's energy transition and represents the synthesis of a path started years ago with a long-term vision. Academic skills and infrastructures are available to public decision-makers to start strategies based on scientific data,“- said Francesco Profumo, President of ESCP Turin Campus. “The city's universities must sit at the same table because today's problems require much more complex solutions than in the past. It is fundamental to solve them dynamically, without forgetting the goal: our citizens' sustainable and lasting well-being. On this basis, the model will be able to expand by defining a connecting bridge to support projects in other Italian and European cities on these issues”.

The ambition is to create an actual "Turin model" of science-based support for the energy policy decision process, developing "technologies" for the city and replicable in other national and international contexts. The process aims to create shared skills, build a common vision, define an operational strategy and develop support tools to implement concrete and measurable actions and accompany the city along the trajectories of energy and sustainability transition.

This Memorandum is a positive first-step to securing a more sustainable energy structure for our cities across Europe and the world.