Countdown to EUKI’s Regional Networking Event for Czechia and Slovakia

The event will provide a platform for assessing how EUKI project partners – and civil society in particular – can continue to drive climate action. Participants will discuss ways to enhance the impact of climate projects, strengthen cross-border cooperation and promote renewable energy and climate initiatives at the national, regional and European levels — even in times of turbulence. Hosted by the EUKI Academy in collaboration with the Czech Centre for Transport and Energy (CDE), the event is aimed at reaffirming the importance of sustaining the region’s contribution to Europe’s green transition.

Discussing a Potential Rollback

The networking event comes at a critical juncture. In Czechia, the new government’s stance suggests a potential rollback of climate legislation, including opposition to the EU’s ETS2 system and the Social Climate Plan. At the same time, spaces for civil society are shrinking. The major parties are advocating for natural gas as a transitional fuel, thereby slowing the shift from coal towards renewables and highlighting the dominance of industrial interests in energy policy. Although Slovakia has formally committed to carbon neutrality by 2050 and updated its energy-and-climate plan for 2030, significant legal and policy implementation gaps remain and the government is pushing back against some of the EU’s more ambitious climate target.

As regards sustainable mobility, opposition to the EU’s 2035 phase-out of combustion engines, scepticism towards cycling infrastructure and calls to reduce fuel prices underscore the challenges of aligning mobility policy with EU climate ambitions in both countries.

Exploring Paths Towards Green Climate and Energy Policy

In his keynote speech “European Climate and Energy Policy in an Era of Political and Economic Shifts”, Tomáš Jungwirth Březovský, Head of the Climate Team at the Association for International Affairs (AMO), a Czech think tank and NGO, will among other topics explore recent political developments in Czechia and Slovakia and their impact on EU and national climate policies.  

Following his speech, a panel discussion will focus on how political change, social backlash, and governance gaps shape the region’s path toward carbon neutrality—and what roles civil society, cities, and institutional checks can play in keeping the transition on track, with input from the Czech Ministry of the Environment, the deputy mayor of Prague, experts from civil society organisations, and AMO.

Parallel workshop sessions will focus on the practical work of energy communities and solutions for sustainable mobility.

Project Visibility and Creating Momentum

Amidst the political headwinds, climate communication is becoming increasingly important. An interactive training session, led by the STEM Institute for Empirical Research, will share insights from its research on public attitudes toward climate change and effective communication of decarbonisation to the general public. Participants will gain an evidence-based understanding of how climate debates are framed in the Czech Republic, explore audience segmentation, and compare international perspectives. Building on this, the workshop will offer practical communication strategies, showcase good and poor practices, and conclude with interactive group exercises to apply the lessons learned.

Gallery Walk Offers Inspiration

EUKI project partners from the Czech Republic and Slovakia have implemented more than 40 EUKI climate projects in the past years, ranging from from advancing EU methane regulation and transport decarbonisation to strengthening policy-maker engagement on EU climate action. Presenting each other’s project achievements and exchanging experiences will provide participants with many valuable learning opportunities – from adopting tried-and-tested approaches to avoiding mistakes made by others in the past.

Findings also Relevant for Other Countries

Many of the challenges that climate actors are currently facing in the Czech Republic and Slovakia will be familiar to civil society or research organisations in other countries. The main results of the networking event will therefore be shared here in the news section of the EUKI website.