Covenant of Mayors in Gran Canaria: EU-approved methodology and full-island SECAP implementation

Gran Canaria offers a unique and fully operational model for implementing the Covenant of Mayors at island scale, combining strong political commitment, technical capacity and an EU-recognised common methodology.

As territorial coordinator since 2016, the Consejo Insular de la Energía de Gran Canaria has supported all 21 municipalities of the island in joining and implementing the Covenant of Mayors. This includes the development of Baseline Emission Inventories (BEI), Risk and Vulnerability Assessments (RVA), and Sustainable Energy and Climate Action Plans (SECAPs).

A key added value of our approach has been the development of our own common methodology, designed to ensure consistency, comparability and quality across all municipalities — addressing one of the main challenges identified at European level. This methodology has been successfully validated through the approval of multiple SECAPs by the Joint Research Centre (JRC) of the European Commission .

Our model integrates mitigation and adaptation, aligning local action plans with broader island strategies such as the Energy Transition Agenda and circular economy policies. It is supported by a dedicated technical structure, including trained multidisciplinary teams and collaboration with institutions such as the Instituto Tecnológico de Canarias (ITC).

In addition, Gran Canaria is advancing digital monitoring platforms and smart island tools to track implementation, improve governance and enhance decision-making, while reinforcing the role of climate adaptation — particularly relevant for island territories.

We are looking to collaborate with regions, islands, cities and European partners interested in replicating this integrated approach, improving governance of climate planning and scaling up coordinated SECAP implementation at territorial level.