About UN ECE
UNECE's major aim is to promote pan-European economic integration. UNECE includes 56 member States in Europe, North America and Asia. However, all interested United Nations member States may participate in the work of UNECE. Over 70 international professional organizations and other non-governmental organizations take part in UNECE activities.Activities by UN ECE
United for Smart Sustainable Cities (U4SSC)
Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent StatesA global platform for smart cities stakeholders, advocating for public policies to encourage the use of ICT to facilitate the transition to smart sustainable cities. The initiative aims to generate guidelines, policies and frameworks for the integration of ICTs into urban operations, and deliver policy guidelines and training materials.
Activity Type Policy/Regulatory GuidanceAwareness/AdvocacyResearch/Reports/AssessmentsSide Event at 2026 ECOSOC Partnership Forum: Strengthening the Digital-Energy Nexus: Leveraging AI and Data for Transformative innovation in Sustainable Energy systems
Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States ArmeniaAzerbaijanGeorgiaKyrgyzstanThe side event at the 2026 ECOSOC Partnership Forum explored how digital technologies, data systems and AI can accelerate the just energy transition, enhance climate resilience and unlock innovative finance. The event will highlight transformative, equitable and coordinated approaches that leverage innovation to advance the 2030 Agenda. Focusing on Eastern and South-Eastern Europe, the Caucasus and Central Asia, it will examine how the energy-digital nexus can optimize legacy infrastructure and enable systemic change. AI-driven forecasting and data-based planning could reduce transmission congestion by 15-20%, improve grid integration of renewables by 25%, and cut operating costs by up to USD 10 billion annually through better demand-supply balancing and predictive maintenance. The session will explore the full energy-system value chain – from data generation and modelling to policy design, investment mobilization and project implementation – showing how digital innovation strengthens every stage. Engaging Permanent Missions and financial institutions, the dialogue will chart pathways for a just, inclusive and sustainable energy transformation aligned with SDGs 7, 9, 11 and 17.
Activity Type Technical AssistanceResearch/Reports/AssessmentsPolicy/Regulatory GuidanceThird UN Virtual Worlds Day
Global GuatemalaThe event convened ambassadors, ministers, city leaders, UN entities, industry pioneers, and innovators for two days of high-level dialogue and an Ambassador Roundtable on the future of AI-driven cities and communities. Discussions explored how the convergence of artificial intelligence, immersive virtual environments, spatial intelligence, and other frontier technologies is reshaping urban governance and enabling new approaches to delivering public services, including emerging concepts such as the AI-enabled citiverse. The programme also examined how these developments can help translate the Global Digital Compact into trusted, inclusive, and people-centred outcomes for cities and communities worldwide. The event concluded with two major milestones: (1) The launch of the Executive Briefing on “AI, Spatial Intelligence and the AI-Enabled Citiverse”, developed with the contributions from 20 UN entities. (2) The endorsement of the Call to Action for Humanity: Shaping the Future of Cities in the Age of AI and Citiverse, reflecting a shared commitment to advancing trusted, inclusive, and people-centred digital futures.
Activity Type AI Tools/SolutionsPolicy/Regulatory GuidanceAwareness/AdvocacyInfrastructure/Systems DevelopmentAI-Enabled Twin Transition in Energy Systems - Integrating twin transition with legacy energy systems
Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States AlbaniaBelarusGeorgiaKyrgyzstanNorth MacedoniaRepublic of MoldovaUkraine
Regional overview of the selected countries in Central Asia, the Caucasus, Eastern and South-Eastern Europe” (project under UNECE Regular Programme of Technical Cooperation
The study presents an analysis of the integration of digital technologies and renewable energy sources within legacy energy systems in Central Asia, the Caucasus, and Eastern and South-Eastern Europe (SEECCA). Revealing the vulnerabilities of existing energy systems, it highlights the potential for local generation, leveraging integrating platforms for Distributed Energy Resources (DERs), and readiness for advanced technologies such as artificial intelligence, virtual power plants, and cybersecurity measures. Robust regulatory frameworks, constant monitoring of innovation trends and their applications, as well as international and interregional cooperation play a crucial role in facilitating the energy transition. At the same time, projections of growing fossil fuel consumption by 2030, the "dual nature of digitalization," and the acute need for modernization and significant capacity increases in grids, as well as viability of “hybrid models”, were recognized at COP29 in Baku. The collaboration between tech leaders and fossil fuel-based business leaders in digital energy initiatives, as evidenced by the Trans-Caspian global initiatives, are instrumental in this regard. Relevant holistic investment strategies and stakeholder engagement will focus on leveraging shared resources and expertise while aligning with SDGs, specifically SDG 7. By pursuing this approach, SEECCA countries can overcome common challenges and capitalize on emerging opportunities in the energy sector for a just transition that extends benefits to all parties concerned. This study was prepared in the framework of implementation of the project “Digitalization in support of energy systems’ transformation in the UNECE region” as part of the Regular Programme of Technical Cooperation of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE). This project responded to the requests made by the National Agency of Natural Resources of Albania, the Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development of Georgia, and the Energy Efficiency Department of the State Committee for Standardization of the Republic of Belarus to UNECE to support these countries in their energy systems’ transformation.