Photo: Marker municipality

1. Introduction

Urban Transformative Capacity (UTC) is a critical concept in addressing the complex challenges faced by cities in the 21^st century. As the world grapples with climate change, resource scarcity, and the need for sustainable development, cities are at the forefront of implementing innovative solutions. The TANGO-W project, focusing on Transformative cApacity in eNerGy fOod and Water, aims to develop UTC as a novel governance ability at the interface of these three crucial sectors.

This guide draws on the experiences and insights gained from seven Urban Living Labs (ULLs) established across Europe as part of the TANGO-W project. These ULLs, located in Weiz and Klagenfurt (Austria), Stockholm and Norrtälje (Sweden), Alytus (Lithuania), and Halden and Marker (Norway), have served as testbeds for implementing and refining UTC concepts.

The following sections will explore the key components of UTC, including inclusive governance, transformative leadership, and practical experimentation. We will delve into best practices, challenges faced, and innovative solutions developed by these ULLs. By sharing these experiences, this guide aims to provide valuable insights for other cities and urban practitioners looking to enhance their transformative capacities and drive sustainable urban development.

1.1 Purpose and scope of the guide

This guide aims to provide a comprehensive overview of Urban Transformative Capacity (UTC) development and implementation, with a specific focus on the food-energy-water nexus. Drawing from the experiences of seven Urban Living Labs (ULLs) established across Europe as part of the TANGO-W project, it offers practical insights, best practices, and lessons learned for urban practitioners, policymakers, and researchers.

The primary purposes of this guide are to:

Elucidate the concept of UTC and its application in addressing complex urban challenges

Share successful strategies for implementing ULLs as transformative innovation systems

Provide guidance on stakeholder engagement and co-creation processes

Offer insights into effective governance models for urban transformation

Present case studies and practical examples from diverse European contexts

The scope of the guide encompasses:

Detailed exploration of the ten key components of UTC
Practical approaches to establishing and managing ULLs
Strategies for developing transformative leadership and empowering communities of practice
Methods for system analysis, sustainability foresight, and practical experimentation
Techniques for embedding innovations and promoting reflexivity and social learning
Approaches to working across human agency levels and political-administrative scales
Impact assessment frameworks and indicators for measuring UTC development

By providing this comprehensive resource, the guide aims to support cities and urban practitioners in enhancing their transformative capacities and driving sustainable urban development at the intersection of food, energy, and water systems.

1.2 Overview of Urban Transformative Capacity (UTC)

Urban Transformative Capacity (UTC) is a concept that encapsulates the ability of urban systems to undergo significant changes towards more sustainable states. It involves reconfiguring both physical and human dimensions to adapt to new challenges such as climate change, population growth, and catastrophic events. Wolfram (2016) defines UTC as "the ability of an urban system to reconfigure and migrate to a new, more sustainable state".

This capacity is crucial for cities aiming to transition towards sustainability and resilience.

1.2.1 Key components of UTC

UTC is characterized by several critical components that interact to enable transformative change:

Actors and Institutions: UTC requires the involvement of diverse stakeholders, including local governments, private sectors, and community organizations. These actors must collaborate within institutional frameworks that support innovation and transformation 5
Physical Environments: The physical infrastructure of cities plays a vital role in enabling or hindering transformative capacity. Urban design and planning must integrate sustainable practices to support the transition
Interaction Processes: Effective communication and collaboration among stakeholders are essential for fostering UTC. This includes participatory governance models that encourage community engagement and co-creation
Systems Thinking and Social Learning: Understanding the dynamics of urban systems through systems analysis is crucial for identifying path dependencies and change dynamics. Social learning processes help in embedding sustainability innovations within urban governance

1.2.2 Applications and implications

UTC finds application across various domains, serving as a pivotal framework for addressing the multifaceted challenges that urban areas face today.

One primary application of UTC is in driving sustainability initiatives. Cities leverage UTC to align sustainability projects with broader urban planning and development goals, thus ensuring that these initiatives are not isolated efforts but are integrated into the city's overall growth strategy. This alignment helps in creating synergies between different sectors and scales of urban governance, although it is important to note that empirical evidence demonstrating the effectiveness of UTC in practice remains somewhat limited. This limitation underscores the need for further research and documentation of successful case studies where UTC has been effectively employed.

Another significant application of UTC is observed in the management of the food-energy-water nexus. Projects like TANGO-W utilize UTC to assess urban areas' potential for sustainability by examining the interconnections between food, energy, and water systems. By focusing on these critical intersections, cities can address climate change challenges more holistically, fostering systematic change across multiple levels. This approach not only enhances resource efficiency but also promotes resilience by preparing urban systems to better withstand environmental stresses.

Furthermore, UTC plays a crucial role in informing policy development aimed at urban transformation. Policymakers can draw on the principles of UTC to create integrative policies that encourage experimentation and collective learning processes within cities. Such policies are essential for fostering an environment where innovative solutions can be tested and scaled, ultimately leading to more sustainable urban futures.

1.2.3 Challenges in developing UTC

Despite its potential benefits, the development of Urban Transformative Capacity faces several significant challenges.

One major issue is the fragmentation of conceptual understanding across different disciplines and sectors. The diverse applications and interpretations of UTC can lead to misunderstandings and inconsistencies in implementation. This fragmentation highlights the necessity for a unified framework that can integrate various aspects of transformative capacity, providing a coherent approach that stakeholders across different fields can adopt.

In practice, several barriers impede the effective development of UTC. As such institutional inertia is a common obstacle, as existing structures and processes may resist change due to entrenched interests or bureaucratic rigidity. Additionally, there is often a lack of resources - both financial and human - that are necessary to support transformative initiatives.

Without adequate funding and skilled personnel, efforts to enhance UTC may falter. Stakeholder engagement also presents a challenge. For UTC to be successful, it requires active participation from a wide range of actors, including government agencies, private sector entities, community organizations, and citizens. However, achieving such broad-based engagement is often difficult due to varying priorities, power dynamics, and communication barriers among stakeholders.

Overall, while Urban Transformative Capacity holds great promise for facilitating sustainable urban transformations, addressing these challenges is crucial for its successful implementation. By overcoming these hurdles through collaborative efforts and strategic planning, cities can better harness UTC to achieve their sustainability objectives.

1.3 The TANGO-W project and Urban Living Labs (ULLs)

The TANGO-W project is a pivotal initiative designed to enhance urban sustainability by focusing on the interconnections within food, energy, and water systems, collectively known as the food-energy-water nexus.

This project aims to evaluate and strengthen cities' potential for sustainability through the development of Urban Transformative Capacities (UTC). By addressing these critical intersections, TANGO-W seeks to foster systematic change across multiple levels, thereby promoting resilience and resource efficiency in urban environments. Urban Living Labs (ULLs) are central to the TANGO-W project, serving as experimental environments where innovative solutions can be tested in real-world settings. These labs provide a platform for collaboration among various stakeholders, including local governments, businesses, and community organizations, to co-create sustainable solutions tailored to specific urban contexts. The participatory nature of ULLs enables stakeholders to engage actively in the transformation process, ensuring that solutions are both practical and scalable.

In this report, the activities conducted within ULLs form the basis for understanding best practices and identifying replication opportunities. The ULLs facilitate a participatory approach to urban planning and development, allowing for the testing of new governance models, technologies, and social practices. This approach not only helps cities identify effective strategies for sustainability but also facilitates the scaling up of successful solutions to broader contexts. By integrating ULLs into their urban planning processes, cities can enhance their adaptive capacity and resilience to environmental changes.

The report emphasizes how the insights gained from ULL activities can inform policy recommendations for replicating UTC practices in other cities. These insights are crucial for developing training tools and pilot courses that support capacity building in participating cities. By documenting successful practices and innovations within ULLs, the report seeks to provide a comprehensive framework for cities aiming to transition towards more sustainable futures.

Furthermore, at the European level, TANGO-W establishes a transdisciplinary Community of Practice (CoP) that brings together research partners and municipalities across Europe. This CoP fosters knowledge exchange and collaborative learning among cities facing similar sustainability challenges. By creating a network of cities and researchers, TANGO-W aims to accelerate the dissemination of successful practices across Europe, thereby enhancing the overall transformative capacity of urban areas.

The report highlights how these activities provide a foundation for understanding best practices and replication opportunities, ultimately contributing to more resilient and sustainable urban environments.