Effective climate action does not happen in isolation. It depends on strong partnerships, shared expertise, and governance structures capable of turning ambition into implementation. In the Basque Country, the OCTOPUS project is building on more than two decades of collaboration between municipalities and regional institutions. By reinforcing this established ecosystem and creating new opportunities for peer learning and capacity-building, the Basque Enabling Organisational Network (EON) aims to accelerate local climate and energy action across the territory.
Strong foundations for climate action
The Basque Country has long recognised the importance of local authorities in addressing climate and energy challenges. Over the years, municipalities have played an increasingly active role in implementing sustainability policies, supported by a strong regional framework and dedicated cooperation mechanisms.
A key pillar of this approach is Udalsarea 2030, the Basque network of sustainable municipalities. Established in 2002, the network brings together 226 municipalities committed to advancing sustainable development and climate action. Through technical support, knowledge-sharing, and coordinated planning, Udalsarea 2030 has become a recognised platform for climate action governance in the region.
While this strong foundation provides significant advantages, municipalities still face challenges in implementing increasingly ambitious climate and energy objectives. Addressing these challenges requires continuous capacity-building, access to practical tools, and closer coordination between local and regional actors.
Building on the strength of Udalsarea 2030
Unlike the OCTOPUS EON in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes and Isère, which brings together and strengthens regional and departmental cooperation structures, the Basque EON builds on an already established and well-functioning network.
The EON is coordinated by Ihobe, the Basque Government’s public environmental management agency, acting as Technical Secretariat, for the network. Ihobe supports municipalities with technical guidance, practical tools, capacity-building activities, and knowledge exchange through the Udalsarea 2030 network.
At its core, the network combines political commitment with technical expertise. Municipalities benefit from access to shared methodologies, practical guidance, and opportunities to exchange experiences with peers facing similar challenges. A key strength of the network lies in its two-way governance model. It supports the implementation of regional climate and sustainability policies at local level, while also ensuring that municipalities can feed their experience and priorities back into regional decision-making. In doing so, it strengthens cooperation across governance levels and helps translate climate ambitions into coordinated action on the ground.
Municipalities do not need to face the climate transition alone. By working through a shared network, they can benefit from common tools, shared experiences, and collective learning that help turn plans into action.
— Mª Mar Alonso, director of Climate Action department at Ihobe (responsible for Udalsarea 2030 Technical Secretariat)
From identified needs to practical support
During the needs assessment carried out under OCTOPUS, municipalities and regional stakeholders identified several priorities for strengthening local climate and energy action. These included stronger cooperation across governance levels, easier access to practical tools and methodologies, more opportunities to exchange experiences, and continued support for implementing and monitoring local climate and energy plans. Particularly in the Basque Country, the recently approved 1/2024 Law on Energy Transition and Climate Change is driving the integration of climate adaptation into local and regional planning and decision-making processes, and the Basque EON is supporting this approach through a well-established multilevel governance model.
The strength of the network lies in its practical approach. Through regular technical meetings, webinars, and thematic working groups, municipal staff can discuss implementation challenges, share good practices, and access methodologies developed at regional level. This collaborative model allows municipalities to benefit from each other’s experience instead of tackling complex climate and energy issues in isolation.
One example is the municipal risk and vulnerability assessments provided by Ihobe for each municipality. These assessments have enabled a comprehensive diagnosis of local adaptation needs and opportunities, equipping SECAPs (Sustainable Energy and Climate Action Plans) with robust evidence and practical guidance to identify and prioritise measures tailored to each municipality’s specific climate challenges.
The network covers a broad range of topics, including climate mitigation and adaptation, biodiversity, mobility, resource management, public procurement, and sustainability. Through OCTOPUS, Basque stakeholders also benefit from European-level exchanges with other EONs, creating opportunities to share experiences and identify innovative approaches.
A distinctive feature of the Basque EON is its strong emphasis on practical support for municipalities, particularly smaller ones with more limited resources. A key role in this approach is played by the County Entities (mancomunidades), an additional governance level within the Udalsarea 2030 network that helps deliver standardised support and services across the territory. By acting as an intermediary between the regional and local levels, these entities ensure that municipalities of all sizes can access shared methodologies, climate planning tools, risk and vulnerability assessments, and implementation guidance. This helps avoid duplication of effort and strengthens local capacity to deliver climate and energy action.
The network has already celebrated 72 all members Technical Committee meetings during its lifetime, becoming a trusted and people centred network. Udalsarea 2030 provides the space and resources for municipal and county level technical staff managing climate and energy issues and provides a cross-cutting vision for the topics addressed. The network develops shared handbooks and tools aimed at various municipal profiles, seeking to bridge the distribution of competencies within public administration.
Towards a replicable model for multilevel governance
What makes the Basque EON particularly valuable is its ability to combine long-term institutional support with active municipal engagement. Rather than creating a new structure, OCTOPUS strengthens an existing governance ecosystem that already connects actors across multiple administrative levels.
By supporting cooperation, facilitating knowledge exchange, and providing practical tools for implementation, the EON demonstrates how established networks can play a crucial role in accelerating the energy transition and climate adaptation.
Through OCTOPUS, the Basque Country is showing that effective climate action depends not only on ambitious targets but also on the governance structures that enable local authorities to deliver them.
As outlined in the OCTOPUS Charter, the Basque EON is built on a shared framework for cooperation between municipalities, regional authorities, and supporting organisations. By fostering long-term collaboration and continuous learning, the network provides a strong foundation for implementing climate and energy actions across the territory and offers valuable lessons for other regions seeking to strengthen multilevel governance.
