Urban Sustainability Forum Explores Dublin's Sustainable Future
The Urban Sustainability Forum brought together business leaders, policymakers, sustainability professionals, academics, urban planners, and technology experts for a half-day event focused on one of Ireland's most pressing challenges: building smarter, more sustainable cities.
Hosted at the GEC in partnership with the Guinness Enterprise Centre, the forum used Dublin as a real-world case study to examine the challenges preventing the city from keeping pace with leading European capitals in areas such as transport, emissions, building retrofits, district heating, and public transport.
The event highlighted how better use of data, technology, infrastructure investment, and cross-sector collaboration can help cities make more informed decisions while improving quality of life, reducing emissions, and strengthening long-term resilience.
A Cross-Sector Conversation
The forum featured an impressive line-up of speakers representing academia, local government, industry, and global technology organisations.
Discussion Beyond the Presentations
The presentations were followed by an interactive panel discussion that encouraged conversation between speakers, guest panellists, and attendees.
The presentations were followed by a panel discussion featuring Bronwyn Hall McLoughlin, PMI European Sustainability Champion, and Holli Howard, Global Geospatial Industry Lead at Google. The session, moderated by Francis O'Hare, explored how businesses, policymakers, and other stakeholders can make better use of data and work together to improve mobility, sustainability, and infrastructure planning in Dublin.
A Forum Focused on Action
Throughout the morning, recurring themes emerged around the importance of evidence-based planning, smarter infrastructure investment, and stronger collaboration between the public and private sectors.
🚘 Dublin's most significant urban sustainability challenges
Traffic congestion and its impact on mobility and productivity
Higher-than-average per-capita carbon emissions compared with many European cities
Limited progress in district heating
The gap between current retrofit rates and national climate targets
Public transport improvements required to support future growth
"Sustainability is increasingly becoming a business issue, influencing investment decisions, talent attraction, operational costs, resilience, and regulatory requirements."
— Urban Sustainability Forum, Dublin 2026
Strengthening Partnerships
The event also marked two important partnership announcements.
🤝 New Partnerships Announced
Techies Go Green × Ireland Chapter of PMI — bringing together sustainability and project management expertise to help organisations translate climate ambitions into measurable action through structured and scalable approaches. Read More»
Techies Go Green × KINTO Join — further strengthening the network of organisations collaborating to support sustainable mobility and climate-focused initiatives.
Building Momentum
Held on Earth Day, the Urban Sustainability Forum reflected a shared commitment to creating healthier, more resilient, and more liveable cities.
By bringing together experts from organisations including Google, Smart Dublin, Trinity College Dublin, Maynooth University, the Ireland Chapter of PMI, and leaders from across business and sustainability, the forum demonstrated the value of collaboration in addressing complex urban challenges.
"The forum has helped strengthen connections across sectors while reinforcing the role that data, innovation, and partnership will play in shaping a more sustainable future for Dublin and cities across Ireland."
— Urban Sustainability Forum 2026