Prominent speakers from Greece and other parts of Europe will take part in Smart Islands and Small Cities, a conference organized by the Aegean Energy & Environment Agency, the Network of Sustainable Greek Islands (DAFNI) and energypress for February 22 and 23 at the Ionic Center (11 Lysiou, Plaka, Athens).

The conference is being held under the auspices of the energy ministry, to be represented by energy minister Giorgos Stathakis and secretary general Mihalis Veriopoulos.

Speakers include Wioletta Dunin-Majewska, European Commission Policy Coordinator, Retail Markets, Directorate General for Energy; Willebrordus Sluijters, DG for Regional and Urban Policy, European Commission; Eugenia Kazamaki Ottersten, Head of Smart Development Division, JASPERS, European Investment Bank; Lada Strelnikova, Director, Deutsche Asset Management, Investment Advisor, European Energy Efficiency Fund; and Marc Pons Pons, Regional Minister for Land Use, Energy and Mobility, Regional Government of Balearic Islands.

A speech by Panayiotis Tournavitis, General Manager at Cooperative Bank of Karditsa, arguably Greece’s most active cooperative bank with an extensive track record in supporting local green project development investments, is being eagerly anticipated.

So, too, are speeches by the mayors of Rethymno, Kalamata, Halkida, Elefsina, Velestino and Katerini, representing provincial Greek cities that have taken pioneering “urban innovation” initiatives in the fields of energy, transportation, public lighting, use of electric cars, as well as other public services.

Last but not least, announcements expected from Nikolaos Hatziargyriou, President and CEO at the Hellenic Electricity Distribution Network Operator (HEDNO/DEDDIE), to focus on the Smart Islands program, and Konstantinos Varlamitis, President at the Consignment Deposits and Loans Fund, to discuss subsidies and loans extended by the fund for local government projects and studies, should be interesting.