The European Green Capital Award as an award for a European Capital based on its environmental record. The award was launched by the European Commission on 22 May 2008 and the first award was given to Stockholm for the year 2010. The aim of this award is to recognise and reward local efforts to improve the environment, the economy and the quality of life of growing urban populations and to provide an incentive for cities to inspire each other, and share best practices, while at the same time engaging in friendly competition.
Aim
Cities as role models
The aim of this European Green Capital Award is to recognise and reward local efforts to improve the environment, the economy and the quality of life of growing urban populations. With around 80 per cent of Europeans living in urban areas, the establishment of the award is timely. Most of the environmental challenges facing our society originate from urban areas, but it is also these urban areas that bring together the commitment and innovation needed to resolve them. It is therefore natural that cities play a key role in making the environment greener and improving the quality of life of its citizens. The award aims to provide an incentive for cities to inspire each other and share best practices, while at the same time engaging in friendly competition. In other words, cities become role models for each other.
Healthy urban living
The European Green Capital Award is given to a city that has improved its urban living environment as a whole through concrete activities such as:
- Cooperation and partnership between authorities, citizens, business and other stakeholders aimed at developing and improving urban living conditions
- Implementation of sustainable mobility solutions
- Introduction and expansion of parks and recreational areas
- A modern approach to waste management • Innovative solutions to noise pollution
- An integrated approach to urban management ensuring positive long-term effects.
Eligibility
All cities across Europe with more than 200,000 inhabitants can apply for the title of European Green Capital 2014. The award is open to EU Member States, Candidate Countries (Turkey, Macedonia, Croatia, Montenegro and Iceland) and European Economic Area countries (Iceland, Norway and Liechtenstein). In countries where there is no city with more than 200,000 inhabitants, the largest city is eligible to apply.
Entries will be assessed on the basis of 12 indicators: local contribution to global climate change, transport, green urban areas, noise, waste production and management, nature and biodiversity, air, water consumption, waste water treatment, eco-innovation and sustainable employment, environmental management of the local authority and energy performance.
The title is awarded by an international jury supported by a panel of supposed experts in different environmental fields.[1]
The winner will be announced in June 2012.
History
The European Green Capital Award is run by the European Commission.
The idea of a European Green Capital was originally conceived at a meeting in Tallinn, Estonia. The meeting was held in May 2006 on the initiative of the former City Mayor, Jüri Ratas. He says: "It is my belief that a green and sustainable Europe is essential for improving public health and the quality of life of our citizens".[2]
The Tallinn Memorandum: The EGCA is the result of an initiative taken by 15 European cities and the Association of Estonian cities in May 2006 in Tallinn. The 15 cities were Tallinn itself, Helsinki, Riga, Vilnius, Berlin, Warsaw, Madrid, Ljubjana, Prague, Vienna, Kiel, Kotka, Dartford, Tartu and Glasgow. The initiative was turned into a joint Memorandum and submitted to the European Commission in which they proposed the establishment of an award rewarding cities that are leading the way in environmentally friendly urban living.
This meeting was held on the initiative of former Tallinn City Mayor, Jüri Ratas, and resulted in a joint statement, known as the Tallinn Memorandum, proposing the establishment of the European Green Capital Award.[3]
Winners
The Award was launched in May 2008, and each year one European city will be selected as the European Green Capital of the year. The first Award was given to Stockholm in 2010.
The award is given to a city that:
- Has a consistent record of achieving high environmental standards;
- Is committed to ongoing and ambitious goals for further environmental improvement and sustainable development;
- Can act as a role model to inspire other cities and promote best practices to all other European cities.
The award marks a city's wish and capability to solve environmental problems in order to both improve the quality of life of its citizens and reduce the contribution it makes to the global environment as a whole.
After two application award cycles, the first winners of the European Green Capital Award have been selected and announced. The European Green Capitals are:
2010: 
Stockholm
2011: 
Hamburg
2012: 
Vitoria-Gasteiz
2013: 
Nantes
European Green Capital Conference 2010 (EGCC)
From 20 to 22 October 2010 the official European Green Capital Conference was held in Stockholm. European mayors and other decision makers in the environmental field met to exchange ideas on how European cities can improve their environmental efforts. The conference also featured the European Green Capital Award Ceremony presenting the European Green Capitals for 2012 and 2013.
