New year, new Peer Reviews! – the results of the Autumn 2025 call are here
Received applications
For this last call for Peer Reviews, a total of 11 applications from 7 EU Member States were received for the role of city under review.
- 91% (10 out of 11) came from cities with under 500,000 inhabitants, confirming strong engagement from small and medium-sized cities
- Most applicants come from transition regions, underlining the Peer Review tool’s relevance in territories undergoing structural change.
The call also received 36 individual peer reviewer applications from 12 EU Member States, including several from smaller cities and Article 11 authorities.
- Over 85% of applicants come from cities under 500,000 inhabitants
- 80% of applicants are based in less developed or transition regions.
Map of the selected Peer Reviews
Assessment results
A total of 8 cities under review from 6 Member States have been approved and are expected to join a Peer Review event in Spring 2026: (add map here)
- Joensuu (FI)
- Kavala (EL)
- Helsinki (FI) – FUA focus
- Pärnu (EE)
- Prague (CZ) – FUA focus
- Kaunas (LT)
- Saue (EE)
- Brindisi (IT)
In addition, 29 new peer reviewers from 8 Member States have been added to the pool as a result of the call. A total of 23 out of 29 are from Article 11 cities and 24 from less developed or transition regions.
Next steps
With the approved cities under review and new peer reviewers now identified, the EUI team and experts will proceed with matching and grouping the cities. Two Peer Review events are planned for March and May/June 2026, each including a common question, or a shared thematic focus—primarily urban governance, a recurring challenge across applications.
The upcoming Peer Reviews will bring together cities at varying stages of SUD strategy implementation, enabling mutual learning across geographical and thematic contexts. Final groupings and host cities will be confirmed by the EUI Permanent Secretariat as part of the next phase of preparation. Stay tuned to find out more about our new cities under review’s journeys!
An ongoing call for the role of peer reviewer is now continuously open: if you missed the deadline for the Autumn call and are interested in joining the pool of peers, apply now!
You might also consider taking a look at our City-to-City Exchanges – more operational and always open for applications, this activity can be equally beneficial.