A Greenpeace delegation from Slovenia, Croatia, Romania and Bulgaria visited Viladecans last Thursday, February 29, to learn first-hand Vilawatt's experience in empowering citizens regarding energy. The City Council's initiative has been chosen by the environmental organization - along with others in the Catalan towns of Balenyà and Pujalt - as a point of reference in order to inspire actions in Eastern Europe in which citizens get involved in generating and sharing sustainable energy.
The Greenpeace delegation was able to get to know the spirit of Vilawatt and the actions carried out so far, such as the comprehensive energy renovation of residential buildings, the promotion of energy culture in society and in schools, the creation of a local currency and the boost of the first two local energy communities from the photovoltaic panels installed on the roofs of the Escola Enxaneta and the Municipal Market.
Greenpeace's Head of Renewable Energies for Central and Eastern Europe, Laura de Rosa, explained that the interest in Catalan energy transition projects is because "they are unique and innovative". In addition, she emphasized that here "people face adversity and, thanks to the excellent cooperation at regional and local level, it has been possible to create these projects like Vilawatt”.
The deputy mayor of Energy Transition, Jordi Mazón, accompanied the delegation, which also included audio-visual media from their respective countries who followed up the visit for the value of the project. Mazón explained that Vilawatt, born in 2016 as a result of a European project, "is a city strategy for the necessary transition towards a green and social energy model that allows us to deal with the climate change that threatens our model of life". "This is one of the engines to achieve a climate neutral city in terms of emissions, one of the two Missions of the Viladecans 2030 Strategy", highlighted the deputy mayor, who added that the city is working because "even in the horizon of 2050 there is a negative balance of emissions".
