Križevci, a small municipality in north-east Croatia of around 20,000 inhabitants, rich in sun and surrounded by agricultural land, has an ambitious vision for the city, which is aligned with nature and people’s needs. Križevci wants to become a champion of climate resilience and is working towards achieving food and energy self-sufficiency.
With this aim, Križevci is tapping into its solar and geothermal renewable resources to become energy-independent by 2030. Through the Križevci Development Strategy 2021-2030, the city is committing to achieve this independence in collaboration with its citizens. The strategy itself was co-designed and developed with its residents and local stakeholders. However, this is not the first instance of strong citizen participation in Križevci.
In 2018 the city partnered with ZEZ energy cooperative to launch a crowdfunding for the development of solar power plants on the area of Križevci’s Development Center and Technology Park and the city’s library. These campaigns for a solar roof project raised the required funds within days and showed a strong citizen interest in renewable energy. Stemming from this interest, a group of 10 citizens initiated the Križevci Laboratory for Innovation in Climate – KLIK two years later to further promote renewable energy adoption in the city.
Beyond energy community projects: a thriving One-Stop-Shop and platform to inspire change in the local community
Since its inception, KLIK has encouraged residents to develop and finance energy and climate projects such as ZEZ Sun. This initiative consisted of developing a 200kW solar power plant located on the roof of the city’s produce market and it was fully crowdfunded within a few days. A quarter of the money was raised from within the Križevci area. KLIK performs not only an awareness-raising role but also manages funds from those citizens interested in investing and becoming part of energy community projects in the city, such as in the 5MW solar power plant that the city has planned. For household PV installations, KLIK offers a comprehensive service to citizens by connecting them with technical experts and informing them on available subsidies. Thanks to KLIK’s services and Križevci’s efforts, the city saw an exponential increase of PV household installations, from 3 PV plants to 50 in a single year. As a leading One-Stop-Shop in Croatia, KLIK also works to ensure that energy efficiency and home refurbishments are accessible to the most vulnerable communities.
KLIK and Križevci’s efforts, in figures
After four years operating in Križevci, KLIK is helping the city move closer to energy independence. The city’s yearly electricity consumption takes up to 30 GWh. This amount requires 24MW of solar power, out of which the city already generates 3.5 MW. Most of the solar panels installed on family homes have been co-financed by the municipality and set up by KLIK’s services. While 1.74 MW are produced through privately installed PVs, another 1.76 MW originate from schools, public buildings and 18 local companies.
While momentum grows, the city plans to add 5.2 MW from other community projects, bringing the total close to 10 MW by late 2025. Despite a 20 MW gap, Križevci leads in solar adoption. With over 200 power plants, it represents 1% of Croatia’s 17,000 installations. In terms of capacity, Križevci’s 3.5 MW accounts for nearly 0.5% of Croatia’s total 695 MW solar generation.
In 2023, KLIK received the European Award for Sustainable Energy from the European Commission, recognising its impactful efforts and contributions to Križevci’s just transition.
- Political mandate: KLIK’s collaboration with the city of Križevci is enabled by the city’s strong political commitment to making citizens owners and key players in its energy independence. This in turn helps KLIK support the city in implementing this vision. The city has further facilitated KLIK’s work by providing a central space for its One-Stop-Shop, ensuring residents have easy access to necessary information.
- Financing: Apart from office space, the city of Križevci supported KLIK financially during its initial stages. As its services and operations grew, KLIK was able to source additional financing through EU funding, national public calls and citizens’ investments.
- A core team of motivated members: KLIK’s launch and success have been possible thanks to an intrinsically motivated team who had the right skill-set and strong belief in the vision they were carrying out.
- Awareness raising and citizen engagement: The office is well known by the residents, due to KLIK’s capacity to organise dynamic events, diverse and practical activities to promote sustainable living. These range from cooking demonstrations of easy vegan recipes, to composting workshops, and environmental movie nights for children. Through these events, KLIK also highlights the co-benefits of more sustainable practices, such as health improvements.
Challenges and key takeaways:
- Lack of citizen awareness and education: there is still a need for more knowledge and education about climate change amongst the citizens of Križevci, particularly residents who live in the settlements around the urban area. KLIK tries to bring these residents on board through collaboration with social, religious and other cultural organisation, yet this is often a slow and gradual process.
- Interdisciplinary expertise required: due to KLIK’s varied activities, multi-disciplinary expertise is often required, which sometimes can be difficult to source.
- Dependence on alternative funding: to sustain progress, KLIK constantly seeks alternative funding sources, including grants, partnerships, and innovative financing models.
Replication:
This case-study has a high replication potential and in fact it has already sparked a lot of interest from other cities in Croatia and beyond. Some replicable aspects include:
Strong collaboration with the city and other strategic allies: KLIK and the city of Križevci enjoy a strong working relationship, one which is based on openness and a mindset of supporting one another. Apart from this, KLIK also enjoys a strong partnership with ZEZ, which has played an important role in setting up energy community projects on the city’s public buildings. KLIK and ZEZ support one another by meeting regularly and through capacity building, where ZEZ invites KLIK’s staff to job shadow and gain first-hand experience.
Working with local organisations: it is key to collaborate with existing local organisations engaged in environmental initiatives, even if their work is not directly related to energy. These organisations can naturally expand their focus over time. Success often lies in fostering strong connections with residents and local communities - a role that these organisations are often well-placed to fulfil.
Strategic location: Thanks to the city’s support, KLIK was able to set up their One-Stop-Shop services in a strategic location where most of the essential services for residents are. This has been crucial to enable participation and awareness amongst residents.
Different financial streams: KLIK has been able to sustain its activities through EU funding (such as LIFE and Interreg projects), which has not only helped the office operationally but also expanded its activities to other related and important topics, such as home renovations.