Special Edition

Invitation to join the 2026 MCE Community Annual Conference

Grand Tour – Cities and Regions in Action

After more than 40 years Major Cities of Europe has now become the MCE Community – Cities and Regions for Innovation. This evolution aims to strengthen our association’s distinctive value as a collaborative and knowledge-sharing community.

We are excited to announce that our 2026 annual gathering will be an immersive peer-to-peer working experience entitled “Grand Tour – Cities and Regions in Action”, held as a side event of the Barcelona Smart City Expo & World Congress (SCEWC), the premier global event on urban innovation.

OVERVIEW: NEW CONFERENCE FORMAT

The Grand Tour – Cities and Regions in Action introduces a new format for the MCE annual conference. Unlike previous editions, it will not follow a traditional speaker-based model, but instead offer a peer-to-peer working experience.

Participants will actively engage with real and challenging cases. Starting from ongoing projects, we will share strategies, issues and approaches with peers, and translate those insights into action through a curated walkthrough of the SCEWC exhibition where specific challenges will be connected with the actual technologies and vendors on the floor.

Participation to the conference is free of charge.

Until 12 September 2026, registration is open exclusively to MCE Community members. After 12
September, registration will be open to both members and non-members.

Participants will also have free time on 3 November (full day) and 5 November (late morning and afternoon) to explore the SCEWC independently using the received free pass for the fair area.

Opportunities for Participants

• • Engage in open discussions on real and relevant cases

• • Receive a free pass to access the SCEWC exhibition

• • Participate in a guided and thematic visit of the Expo

• • Gain a unique and practical learning experience to bring back to your organisation

We hope that you will be interested both in this new conference format and in the opportunity to also be part of the internationally recognised Barcelona fair.