Brussels, April 27 2022
As part of the European Commission SmartCities Marketplace Forum 2022, Eleanor Keen joined an engaging panel focused on initiatives, ideas and concrete examples of how investments in local sustainable energy and smart solutions can help create resilience in cities, whilst keeping things affordable for citizens.
The panel, where Eleanor was joined by European Commission officers and representatives of EU municipalities, explored how municipal leadership and private investors can join forces to design commercial and legal policy frameworks to foster the sustainability transition, while at the same time giving local stakeholders confidence in the future shape of their energy supply.
We have been very eager to engage in this Forum because in our view an open, upfront and clear dialogue in these still early stages of the sustainable heat transition is a very powerful way to lay out and address the key questions both sides are bound to have before infrastructure investments happen in any project or town.
A clear theme across the discussion was the need for collaboration between companies, private finance and public bodies, particularly in small and medium size cities: the panellists addressed questions such as:
- How is the energy crisis affecting strategic energy transition planning in European cities?
- What action are cities taking to ensure affordability of the transition?
- How to develop small scale investments that are attractive for investors?
- What role does public and private finance play in making cities resilient?
- What is the type of investment level that cities are looking at?
- What do investors expect and do to work with cities to make the transition?
- What is needed, right now?
We are grateful to our friends and colleagues at SmartCities Marketplace for engaging with us on these important topics, and are looking forward to working with more municipalities in our platforms!
Eleanor Keen
Senior AssociateEleanor started her career in 2015 at US alternative asset manager, EJF Capital LLC, working in their Washington DC and London offices on CDO origination and European investment research.
Most recently, while studying for an MSc, Eleanor worked as an Infrastructure Analyst at Copper Consultancy, a specialist in stakeholder engagement for complex infrastructure projects.
Eleanor holds a BA in Government, Economics & Environmental Studies from Georgetown University and a first class MSc in Infrastructure Planning, Appraisal and Development from University College London.