Fostering Sustainable Urban Energy Transitions: Backcasting for Positive Energy Districts and Digital Twin strategies in a European Context

Paper in proceeding, 2025

Positive Energy Districts (PEDs) have emerged as a key innovation to accelerate the transition toward climate neutrality and sustainability in cities. This study integrates backcasting methodologies and Digital Twin (DT) strategies to advance PED developments using a two-step approach: participatory backcasting workshops to co-create long-term visions and actionable strategies, and DT applications tailored to three Urban Living Labs: Vienna/Austria, Gothenburg/Sweden, and Sakarya/Türkiye. The backcasting process identified pathways to energy efficiency, renewable energy integration, and decarbonization, creating a roadmap for PED development. DT functionalities—including Digitize, Visualize, Simulate, Predict, and Orchestrate—translated the plans into operational tools, enabling real-time monitoring, predictive modeling, and energy management. Results underscore the critical role of stakeholder collaboration to align local priorities with sustainability goals and demonstrate the capacity of DT frameworks and PEDs in diverse urban contexts. Still, challenges such as scalability, resource intensity, and sustaining long-term engagement persist. The study highlights the potential of integrating participatory planning with digital tools to bridge the gap between visionary energy goals and practical implementation, offering a replicable framework for urban energy transitions.