Key collaborations
DUT as a connector in the urban innovation ecosystem
© DUT Partnership
EU Cities Mission
The EU Cities Mission is driving Europe’s transition to climate neutrality by supporting 99 cities in the EU and 12 cities in countries associated to Horizon Europe in their efforts to become climate neutral by 2030. These cities act as innovation hubs, testing cross-sectoral solutions and new governance models to accelerate change and inspire all European cities to follow by 2050.
At the core of the Mission are Climate City Contracts, co-created with local stakeholders and citizens, which outline each city’s roadmap to climate neutrality, including plans for energy, buildings, waste management, and transport, together with related investment plans. Cities that successfully develop these contracts receive the EU Mission Label, a recognition that facilitates access to public and private funding.
DUT is strongly contributing to the Mission: 52 Mission Cities are currently participating in 93 DUT projects (as of September 2025), and DUT activities also support the Mission’s second step - accelerating change and inspiring all European cities to achieve climate neutrality by 2050.
NetZeroCities
NetZeroCities (NZC) has been designed as the platform to help cities overcome the structural, institutional, and cultural barriers they face in achieving climate neutrality by 2030. NZC supports the EU’s Mission of 100 Climate-Neutral and Smart Cities by 2030 under Horizon Europe, working as a service-oriented platform supported by world-class practitioners. It provides European cities with tailored support, resources, and solutions to achieve climate neutrality in a socially inclusive way.
DUT collaborates closely with NZC through a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) and a dedicated collaboration agreement, creating synergies and leveraging joint efforts to accelerate impact for cities across Europe.
Urban Transitions Mission
Urban Transitions Mission (UTM) under Mission Innovation (MI) brokers solutions, approaches, and knowledge for net-zero transitions at each stage of a city climate action journey. UTM is supporting a growing cohort of cities to accelerate their journey towards net-zero in a global and thriving environment, and cities are invited to join. Mission Innovation is a global initiative catalysing a decade of action and investment in research, development and demonstration to make clean energy affordable, attractive and accessible for all. This will accelerate progress towards the Paris Agreement goals and pathways to net zero.
DUT as an R&I arm of JPI UE is co-leading UTM and is providing capacity building activities for the UTM City Cohort. DUT calls also are promoted through the Mission Innovation’s “Joint Funders Dialogue” and “MI Call Series”.
CapaCITIES
CapaCITIES coordinates actions across climate neutral city initiatives in Europe in order to exploit synergies between them and align efforts towards the goals of the mission including city networks, the Urban Agenda for the EU partnerships, the European Committee of the Regions, and others. DUT collaborates with CapaCITIES by leveraging its national platforms and ensuring that DUT projects are embedded into wider national and regional initiatives, thereby strengthening multi-level governance and amplifying the collective impact towards climate neutrality.
Belmont Forum
The Belmont Forum is a partnership of funding agencies, international scientific councils, and regional consortia dedicated to promoting transdisciplinary, transnational research to help understand, mitigate, and adapt to global environmental change. DUT is promoting its annual calls through the Belmont Forum, with the opportunity setting up a common annual call for its partners. Through this collaboration DUT is cooperating with São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP, Brazil), Academia Sinica (Chinese Taipei), and Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST).