Energikontor Norr welcomes the FEEL Partnership to Överkalix
The FEEL Partnership visited the Överkalix Region in Northern Sweden on the 3rd and 4th July to view their good practices demonstrating low-tech and frugal activities. Organised by FEEL Partner Energikontor Norr or North Sweden Energy Agency, the meeting began with a kind welcome from the Mayor of Överkalix Niklas Hökfors, describing the actions the region has undertaken to support citizens in the climate transition. Niklas understands the necessity to engage with the wider community in developing a society empowered with the knowledge to live sustainably, led, facilitated and supported by the municipality.
Energikontor Norr participated in the Horizon 2020 funded Remarkable Project running from 2021 to 2024 with partners from across Europe. The project aimed to create connections across Europe of leaders of the energy transition by demonstrating ambition, courage and innovation in their municipalities. Through dissemination and training developed by the Remarkable project, the Mayor Niklas Hökfors was identified as a Remarkable Climate Leader driving change in the region. The Remarkable Project has continued and secured funding to support the initiative with the Climate Leadership Programme developed, continuing the identification of climate leaders and supporting one another. The programme aims to train over 120 individuals across sectors and create a network of connections to boost the move to climate neutrality.
Anna Widén spoke about her work with vulnerable individuals in Overkalix empowering them with independence, stability and a sense of place through engagement and training. Social supports in Överkalix are exemplary with opportunities for upskilling, inclusivity, diversity and employment for those with disabilities. Överkalix directly employs the individuals to recycle and upcycle materials for other uses and to maintain a vegetable allotment selling the produce for financial gain. Additionally, the recycling reduces the waste generated and keeps materials in circulation saving on resources. The group also repairs and refurbishes ‘snow kicks’, a method of low-tech travel 
within Överkalix. The region also offers a food waste collection service to its residents allowing the recycling of nutrients back into the soil through composting and sale of quality tested compost for gaThe partners also visited the Leisure Library, a sports equipment rental store available to anyone visiting the region. With such a plethora of outdoor activities available in the area like fishing, skiing, stand up paddle boarding, white water rafting and many more, the waste created from surplus unwanted equipment adds tonnes to waste and uses vital resources in production.
The Överkalix region has set ambitious climate neutrality targets for 2035, ten years earlier than the Swedish national target. In the Norrbotten County, 97% of electricity production is from renewable sources with district heating and biomass the most common sources. Economic activities in the area include forestry, steel production, agriculture, tourism and construction. With changes expected in the demand for energy in the future, Energikontor Norr along with the Överkalix Municipality has identified the necessity to amend the Överkalix Energy Plan to protect the environment and work towards their 2035 goals.