From June 1–5, 2026, the New Town Hall in Leipzig will once again become the meeting place for everyone interested in shaping cities, digitalization, and artificial intelligence together. #DataWeekLeipzig brings together experts from academia, business, and public administration in an interdisciplinary, hands-on, and forward-looking way – with a focus on climate, energy, and sustainable urban development.
The European Commission’s Joint Research Centre (JRC), together with DG DIGIT, has launched the Public Sector AI and Interoperability Readiness (PAIR) pathway under the Apply AI Strategy.
In this sense, the JRC, DIGIT, and the European Committee of the Regions are organising an online workshop on May 12, 2026, 10:00-11:30 CET to collect structured input from local and regional administrations (LRAs) that will help shape the initial design and priorities of the PAIR pathway.
Why you should attend:
The European Commission and HaDEA, the Commission’s Health and Digital Executive Agency, launched the 10th set of open calls under the Digital Europe Programme, which will close on 01 October 2026. The three calls are explicitly focusing on fostering the development of advanced digital skills.
Urban Living Labs focusing on digital transition provide cities with a collaborative space to design, test, and refine innovative digital solutions together with citizens and other stakeholders. Through participatory methods, Living Labs help cities address complex urban challenges in an inclusive and user-centred way.
Interoperability is a key part of digital transformation, allowing cities and regions to seamlessly exchange data between different services, sectors and organisations. The European Interoperability Framework (EIF) provides a foundation to enable cross-border interoperability at the European level through common standards and specifications. This allows public authorities to make life easier for citizens and save time and costs by creating, sharing and reusing open solutions.
Local Digital Twins (LDT) are emerging as solutions that cities and communities in Europe use for complex urban challenges like mobility planning or energy efficiency: As a virtual replica of assets and processes in cities, LDTs visualise and simulate scenarios based on real-time data, allowing city planners to make informed decisions.
The EU LDT Toolbox launch event marks the transition of the project into a market-ready product: After years of development, the EU LDT Toolbox is now ready for large-scale adoption by public administrations.
Date: 16-17 June 2026
Location: Roig Arena (Valencia, Spain)
The European Urban Initiative (EUI) is a key EU funding mechanism supporting sustainable and innovative urban development: Funded by the EU Regional Development Fund, this initiative provides financial means to European cities of all sizes aiming to drive urban innovation through local pilot projects. In particular, the EUI Innovative Actions (EUI-IA) regularly launches calls to fund projects from cities aiming to test new and scalable solutions to key urban challenges.
At an upcoming Joint Stakeholder Forum Meeting, the communities of the European Data Space for Smart Communities (DS4SSCC) and the Local Digital Twins for Smart and Sustainable Communities (LDT4SSC) project come together to exchange insights, collaborate, and drive innovation.
📅 22 April 2026
⏰ 10:00–12:00 CET
Following the success of the first three rounds, the 4th Call for pilots of the European Data Space for Smart Communities (DS4SSCC) will open on 1st of April! The 4th round of pilots focuses on projects that build on previous pilots, adapting proven approaches to local conditions and exploring new opportunities to increase impact across different contexts.
