Positive Energy Districts (PEDs) are considered as one of the pioneer strategies to guide cities in their energy planning process towards climate neutrality in an attractive, innovative and human-centered way. The concept of PED is the result of a long co-creation process and integrates several multidimensional features, aiming to promote the sustainable development of urban areas and the transition of cities towards a climate neutral energy system. The paper provides an overview of the first outcomes of WG1 “PED Mapping, Characterization and Learning”, in the research COST Action CA19126 “Positive Energy Districts European Network” (PED-EU-NET). This study describes activities that focus on creating a comprehensive PED-Database by mapping existing concepts, strategies, projects, technological and non-technological solutions related to PEDs in Europe. The main objective of the Database is to support municipalities through the decision-making process by providing strategies for building and running a successful PED that can provide alternatives to consider, and is powered by an interactive web-based map. The design of the Database framework is supported by a step-by-step methodology adopted in the framework of the CA19126 in order to develop the PED-Database as an interactive, updatable and user-friendly tool.

This paper presents the Positive Energy District Database (PED DB), a pivotal web tool developed collaboratively by the COST Action ‘PED-EU-NET’, in alignment with international initiatives such as JPI Urban Europe and IEA EBC Annex 83. The PED DB represents a crucial step towards sharing knowledge, promoting collaboration, reinforcing decision-making, and advancing the understanding of Positive Energy Districts (PEDs) in the pursuit of sustainable urban environments. The PED DB aims to comprehensively map and disseminate information on PEDs across Europe, serving as a dynamic resource for sustainable urban development according to the objective of making the EU climate-neutral by 2050. Indeed, PEDs imply an integrated approach for designing urban areas—the districts—where a cluster of interconnected buildings and energy communities produce net zero greenhouse gas emissions, managing an annual local/regional overflow production of renewable energy. The paper describes the collaborative step-by-step process leading to the PED DB implementation, the current results and potentials of the online platform, and introduces its future developments towards a more user-friendly and stakeholders-tailored tool. The interactive web map offers a customizable visualizations and filters on multiple information related to PED case studies, PED-relevant cases, and PED Labs. Users can access detailed information through a table view, facilitating comparisons across different PED projects and their implementation phase. The paper offers insights and detailed analysis from the initial dataset that includes 23 PED cases and 7 PED-related projects from 13 European countries, highlighting the key characteristics of surveyed PEDs.

Governance challenges, success factors, and stakeholder dynamics are central to the implementation of Positive Energy District (PED) Labs, which aim to develop energy-positive and sustainable urban areas. In this paper, a qualitative analysis combining expert surveys, participatory workshops with practitioners from the COST Action PED-EU-NET network, and comparative case studies across Europe identifies key barriers, drivers, and stakeholder roles throughout the implementation process. Findings reveal that fragmented regulations, social inertia, and limited financial mechanisms are the main barriers to PED Lab development, while climate change mitigation goals, strong local networks, and supportive policy frameworks are critical drivers. The analysis maps stakeholder engagement across six development phases, showing how leadership shifts between governments, industry, planners, and local communities. PED Labs require intangible assets such as inclusive governance frameworks, education, and trust-building in the early phases, while tangible infrastructures become more relevant in later stages. The conclusions emphasize that robust, inclusive governance is not merely supportive but a key driver of PED Lab success. Adaptive planning, participatory decision-making, and digital coordination tools are essential for overcoming systemic barriers. Scaling PED Labs effectively requires regulatory harmonization and the integration of social and technological innovation to accelerate the transition toward energy-positive, climate-resilient cities.

The COST Action ‘PED-EU-NET’, JPI Urban Europe, IEA EBC Annex 83 and EERA JP Smart Cities can be considered as the main promoters and pioneer initiatives of the research on Positive Energy Districts (PEDs), that collaborated to develop a tool called 'PED Database'. The tool aims to map, filter, sort, and compare PED experiences, providing a balanced overview of the technological and non-technological solutions adopted in different PED projects and case studies around Europe and beyond. The paper aims to present the collaborative step-by-step process leading to the PED DB implementation, describing the adopted methodology, the current results and potentials of the online version platform and introducing its future possible developments towards a more user-friendly and stakeholders-tailored tool.