Defining Excellence: Good Practice Selection in REFOCUS

The REFOCUS project aims to enhance decision-making in sustainable mobility planning by bringing together 10 partners from 6 EU countries and 1 EU candidate country for interregional exchange. Each partner identifies Good Practices (GPs) implemented locally to share with the wider consortium. This article explains what defines a Good Practice and the methodology used to select those published on the Interreg Europe Policy Learning Platform.

What is a GP?  

A GOOD PRACTICE, as reported by the INTERREG manual, is an initiative e.g. methodology, project, process, and technique, undertaken in one of the Interreg program’s priorities which has already proved successful and has the potential to be transferred to different geographic areas. A GP is proven successful when it has already provided tangible and measurable results in achieving specific objectives (Interreg Programme Manual, pg. 36).  

The evaluation considers both intended and unintended effects, emphasizing innovative approaches and overall effectiveness. A GP need not reinvent the wheel; a novel, data-backed approach can strengthen decision-making. REFOCUS prioritizes GPs that use inclusive, evidence-based decision support tools (DSTs) or integrate sustainable local policies.

Why select GPs?  

Collecting GPs within Interreg Europe fosters knowledge sharing, enhances regional policies, and builds stakeholder capacity. Collaboration drives innovation, improves efficiency, and supports the replication and scaling of successful practices to promote sustainable regional development across the EU.

REFOCUS exemplifies Interreg’s commitment to capacity building, ensuring data-driven, inclusive decision-making leads the next generation of sustainable mobility planning.

How will REFOCUS select GPs?  

GPs are selected based on socially innovative, data-driven decision-making tools already in use by participating regions. A practice qualifies if it answers “yes” to these key questions:

1. Is it coherent with the project’s objectives?
2. Is it effective, with tangible and measurable results?

If both criteria are met, partners detail the GP using a structured Interreg Europe template. A Policy Officer specializing in sustainable transport reviews the submission, offers feedback, and grants final approval for publication on the Policy Learning Platform.

The current published Good Practices can be found on the project website, here.  

Thematic Focus for GP Identification

To guide partners in identifying GPs, REFOCUS provided three thematic areas:

Decision Support Tools (DST) Approaches in mobility planning  

• Best practices in the development and application of DSTs for sustainable mobility planning monitoring and updates.  

• Examples of successful inclusive DST implementations that enhance decision-making processes. 

• Methods for integrating DSTs with existing mobility data and policies.

Prioritization of Measures and Funding in SUMPs 

• Data-driven methods for prioritizing proposed measures within Sustainable Urban Mobility Plans (SUMPs)  

• Criteria/methodologies for allocating funding to ensure the most impactful measures are implemented first.  

• Examples of prioritisation (harmonised) tools/frameworks used in regional and local contexts.  

Data-oriented Approaches for Monitoring and SUMP Updates  

• Best practices for using data to monitor progress and outcomes of mobility measures.  

• Techniques for collecting and analysing data to inform future SUMP updates.  

• Experiences on data-driven decision-making in mobility planning and implementation.  

• Acceleration of SUMP Measures and Innovations based on data-oriented approaches.  

• Case studies that showcase robust monitoring systems and data management practices.
   

Transferability 

It goes without saying that, in a project facilitating the interregional exchange of best practices in sustainable mobility planning, the selected GPs must be also transferable to different regions. The GPs, therefore, should be relevant to other regions and not so context-specific so as to lose any effectiveness or sustainability if implemented somewhere else.  

Following the submission of the initial GPs and the upcoming interregional matchmaking event, PPs will be assigned as ‘donor’ and ‘receiver’ regions. This matchmaking will facilitate the proper transfer of GPs amongst the consortium and ensure that PPs focus their efforts on studying only relevant interventions for implementation in their own regions.  

So now you know what to expect from the Good Practices highlighted in the REFOCUS project!

To read more in-depth about the REFOCUS GP selection methodology, please visit our resources page, here.