WP 2 - Monitoring and Impact Assessment

The value of piloting Positive Energy District (PED) solutions is the ability to test new innovative solutions in real urban environments with direct feedback from end-users and other stakeholders. This allows us to learn what works and what does not. The greatest impacts are expected through upscaling and replicating the successful solutions. However, the literature on replication of pilot urban projects emphasises the multiple challenges to replication. Districts and cities are different, and replication is not simple duplication. Smart city solutions typically involve many parties with different agendas and capacities. Successful implementation requires optimal coordination of technical, social, political, economic and other aspects. Replication to other contexts requires adaptation to local needs and is often an innovation in itself.

This report analysed the replication potential and impacts of the solutions implemented in the seven SPARCS cities. The solutions were analysed through a survey that analysed the solutions’ replicability using CITYkeys replication indicators. Those indicators evaluate the solutions from the following perspectives: social compatibility, technical compatibility, ease of use for end users of the solutions, ease of use for professional stakeholders, trialability, advantages for end users, advantages for stakeholders, visibility of results, solutions to development issues and market demand. Altogether, 39 solutions were analysed through the survey, 29 from Lighthouse cities (LHCs) and 10 from Fellow cities (FCs).