ICONIC is a three-year Horizon Europe project (2025–2028) designed to turn rural and island territories into living laboratories for climate neutrality and sustainable development. Its core ambition is to demonstrate that small, remote communities can lead the transition towards energy independence, resource efficiency and climate resilience.

The project focuses on three pilot sites—Inis Mór (Ireland), La Graciosa (Spain) and Berchidda (Italy)—chosen from dozens of candidates as representative examples of rural and island challenges in Europe. These territories face persistent issues such as external energy dependence, water scarcity, waste management, seasonal tourism pressure and limited mobility options, all of which are exacerbated by climate change and demographic trends.

Working hand in hand with local communities, municipalities, cooperatives, SMEs and research institutions, ICONIC co-designs integrated solutions that combine renewable energy systems, solar desalination, circular economy initiatives, sustainable mobility schemes and innovative governance models. Rather than imposing generic blueprints, the project adapts each intervention to the social, environmental and cultural fabric of the islands.

To support this transformation, ICONIC deploys advanced digital tools such as digital twins, real-time analytics, 3D visualisation and integrated resource-management platforms. These technologies turn fragmented datasets into actionable insights for both day-to-day operations and long-term strategic planning, helping decision-makers test scenarios, compare options and reduce investment risk.

Ultimately, ICONIC aims to deliver replicable, evidence-based models and policy recommendations that other rural and island regions across Europe can adopt. By aligning local experiments with the European Green Deal, the EU’s long-term rural vision and climate-neutrality targets, the project positions these territories as demonstrators for Europe’s sustainable future.

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Our Digital Twin is not just a 3D model; it is a living, evolving representation of La Graciosa’s daily rhythms. It blends satellite imagery, 3D terrain models, mobility data, sensor readings, and infrastructure maps into a unified, navigable environment. In a single interface, decision-makers can explore how people move, how vehicles and ferries operate, how energy flows, how water is used, and how all of this shifts with tourism peaks, seasons, and weather.

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• Immersive 3D visualisation
  The twin recreates La Graciosa’s terrain, paths, buildings, coastlines, and key infrastructures in an intuitive 3D canvas. Planners and citizens can virtually “walk” the island, understanding impacts spatially rather than through static reports.
• Real-time analytics & data fusion
  Traffic flows, public transport usage, charging points, desalination output, and grid exchanges can be monitored nearly in real time. Multiple data streams are harmonised, revealing how changes in mobility or demand affect energy use, grid stability, water security, and emissions.
• AI-powered predictive modelling
  Scenario engines simulate future states: high-season congestion, new electric mobility services, additional solar generation, or a local energy market. Decision-makers see projected emissions, costs, and service levels before committing to regulations or investments, reducing risk and avoiding stranded assets.

For the people of La Graciosa, the Digital Twin translates complexity into clarity. It supports sustainable resource management, ensures that local renewables and water are used where they matter most, and provides a shared visual evidence base to align tourism, conservation, and community wellbeing. It also offers a replicable model for island-scale digital twins that connect climate goals to everyday decisions.

The work in La Graciosa is deliberately designed to travel beyond the island. Although the Digital Twin is tailored to its unique geography, infrastructure and community dynamics, the underlying architecture is modular and reusable. Core services for geospatial integration, real-time analytics, predictive modelling and 3D visualisation can be redeployed in other rural and island territories, while datasets, indicators and governance rules are adapted locally.

Within ICONIC, this makes La Graciosa a strategic demonstrator: a concrete proof of how digital twins can support climate-neutral strategies at island scale, bridging the gap between EU targets and daily decisions on the ground. For GeoAI, the project is a catalyst to refine methods, data pipelines and interfaces that can later be connected to broader platforms and replicated in new contexts.

As Europe advances towards its long-term rural vision and climate-neutrality goals, experiences like ICONIC show that innovation is most powerful when it combines cutting-edge technology, grounded territorial knowledge and genuine community participation. La Graciosa becomes not only a beneficiary, but a reference point for other regions seeking to turn data into fair, transparent and sustainable decisions.