Tallinn, Valongo and Winterswijk win this year’s European Green Capital Awards

In an Awards Ceremony that took place last night in the European Green Capital 2021, Lahti, Finland, the city of Tallinn was granted the European Green Capital 2023 Award. The title of European Green Leaf 2022 jointly went to the Portuguese city of Valongo and the Dutch city of Winterswijk.  In his video message on the occasion of the ceremony Commissioner for Environment, Oceans and Fisheries, Virginijus Sinkevičius, highlighted the crucial role of cities in the social, environmental and economic transformation initiated by the European Green Deal. Commissioner Sinkevičius said: “The cities of Tallinn, Valongo and Winterswijk have demonstrated commitment and concrete actions to create healthier, better and greener places for their citizens. Despite another year under Covid-19 constraints, the ambitions for a green transition remain high. The winners this year have convinced us of their ability to go the extra mile for sustainability and lead the way in creating cities that are fit for life”. Tallinn stood out to the international jury with their systemic approach to green governance and interlinked strategic goals, which reflect the ambitions of the European Green Deal. The city of Valongo prioritizes the engagement of citizens, focuses on natural areas, as nearly 60% of their municipality is covered by forest, and offers support to low-income citizens in the transition to sustainability. Winterswijk was rewarded by the jury for its commitment to increase energy efficiency in citizens’ homes and for the citizens’ active commitment to the green transition. Tallinn will be granted a financial prize of 600.000 €. The prize is deemed to be used to help the winning city kick-start the projects and events for their European Green Capital year 2023. The European Green Leaf 2022 winners will each receive a financial prize of 200.000 €. All winning cities to date are recognised for their efforts to achieve high environmental standards. European Green Capital winners are important catalysts and ambassadors in driving other cities to take action. More information is in the news item.