Workshop on social acceptance and citizen engagement for urban air mobility

On 26–27 March 2025, the Urban Air Mobility Initiative Cities Community (UIC2) convened in Hamburg for a workshop focused on social acceptance and citizen engagement for the deployment of urban air mobility (UAM). The two-day event brought together UIC2 member cities, to exchange knowledge, share local experiences, and discuss the key conditions for socially inclusive and publicly supported UAM.

Highlights from the Workshop

Drone port visit and live demonstration
The workshop opened with a visit to the Hamburg drone port at the Hamburg Port Authority, where participants attended a live drone flight demonstration and explored the site’s operational setup and coordination mechanisms with local authorities.

Presentation of the CITYAM project
Representatives from the cities of Hamburg and Helsinki introduced the CITYAM project, sharing insights from the citizen survey conducted across six cities. The results helped frame the conversation on public acceptance, use cases, and context-specific challenges of UAM.

Academic perspectives on participatory governance
Svantje Kähler opened the second day with a framework for shifting from passive public acceptance to active social embracement of UAM. The presentation explored psychological factors, participatory governance models, and the importance of co-creation in aligning drone services with citizen expectations.

Exchange on citizen engagement
A hybrid session gave members the opportunity to exchange hands-on experiences and approaches to citizen engagement, communication campaigns, and local pilots aimed at building trust and visibility around UAM initiatives.

Community governance
The UIC2 Community appointed its new leadership:

• Chair: Robert Weist (Hamburg Aviation)
• Co-Chair: Pedro Fernandez (Madrid City Council)

The new coordination team will lead the next phase of UIC2’s work, with the support of the broader network of cities. The formalisation of their roles and responsibilities will take place this month.

Co-created document on local authorities' roles
The workshop also featured a presentation of the initial results of the co-created document on the roles and responsibilities of local authorities in drone services and logistics operations. The group discussed next steps for its finalisation, with the final version expected by May 2025.

What’s next?
The next UIC2 workshop will take place in Helsinki on 11–12 June 2025 as a joint event with POLIS, focusing on the Integration of diverse data sources for UAV operations within the city's digital twin.  

If your city or region is involved in UAM and would like to join the UIC2 Community, you can find more information and sign up here.

Author: Dearbhla Mullin

Views and opinions expressed are those of the author(s) and do not reflect those of the European Commission.