Ecorys supports Antwerp in the implementation of the Antwerp climate plan

Over the next two years, Ecorys will continue to support the city of Antwerp in the implementation of the 2030 Climate Plan. With this plan, the city wants to continue to play a pioneering role in the fight against global warming. Our CEO Manon Janssen takes on the role of Climate Director in this project.


The Antwerp Climate Plan bundles all measures and projects in the city and calculates these into potential climate gains. For example, the city wants to reduce CO2 emissions in Antwerp by 50 to 55% by 2030 compared to 2005. In the coming 10 years, a lot of efforts are still needed to limit climate change in Antwerp and to work towards a climate-neutral city.

What does our climate director do?

The Climate Director plays an essential role for the implementation and progress of the Climate Plan. The Climate Director is independent and can therefore bring all stakeholders to the table and activate them to identify and eliminate bottlenecks. In addition, the Climate Director is an advisor to the Executive Board and chairman of the newly established Climate Council. The Climate Director also forms the bridge to urban services. Finally, the Climate Director plays an ambassadorial role for Antwerp’s climate policy.

Wide support

The Climate Director is supported in her work by a team of consultants of Ecorys. A collaboration of several sectors within Ecorys offers the broad orientation and expertise that the versatility of the Antwerp Climate Plan requires.
“The Antwerp Climate Plan is particularly challenging. The city shows ambition and therefore takes on a moral leadership role. The plans are very concrete, broad and inclusive: from housing to mobility, from industrial player to citizen. With Ecorys, we have all the expertise in-house to help realize this plan,” says Manon Janssen.

Where do we stand

The first two years of the project focused on putting the right governance system in place and setting up a monitoring system (2021-2022). We initiated the Climate Council consisting of external stakeholders who give independent advice to the city of Antwerp. Within the city administration, we started with Climate working groups and specific Climate trajectories to work on challenges and solutions. Furthermore, we set-up a monitoring system with indicators to measure the progress on mitigation and adaptation ambitions. We also performed an independent analysis to see if the city is in track to meet its CO2-reduction ambitions in 2030. The next two years we will work on the implementation of actions to ensure the needed progress to reach the 2030 ambitions. We will also involve stakeholders within the city, who play a crucial part in the implementation of the climate actions.

For more information about this project, please contact Susanne van der Kooij, Natural Resources advisor.

14 October 2022

2 minute read