Portuguese city was distinguished in Valencia, recognizing the continuous commitment of the municipality to environmental sustainability.
Guimarães elected European Green Capital 2026. The award was presented today in Valencia, Spain, which has been awarded the European Green Capital 2024. The Portuguese city competed with Heilbronn (Germany) and Klagenfurt (Austria), having now been crowned the winner after last year’s final three cities. Within the scope of the award, the municipality of Guimarães will receive financial support that will be applied to projects and sustainability initiatives, under the strategy carried out by the municipality.
Throughout the various phases of the award, the panel responsible for evaluating applications to the European Green Capital 2026, composed of seven independent experts, highlighted Guimarães for its exceptional performance in seven environmental parameters – “air quality”; “noise”; “water”; “biodiversity, green areas and land use”; “waste and circular economy”; “climate change: mitigation; and “climate change: adaptation” -, recognizing the municipality’s ongoing commitment to environmental sustainability.
Domingos Bragança, mayor of the city, expresses his great satisfaction with this award, which he considers deserved, for the path that has been taken since 2013: “I want to congratulate the entire technical and political team, and all elements of the Guimarães 2030 Mission Structure, for the resilience they showed during this three-nomination process. But I want to congratulate, with special emotion, the entire community of Vimaranense, from students of our schools to the Green Brigades, from the scientific community to the business. All were important in this success for the involvement they demonstrated, and all will be fundamental to 2026 is another great moment of collective celebration for Guimarães”, said the Domingos.
Guimarães: More than a decade of climate transition
Guimarães’ bid for the European Green Capital is underpinned by more than a decade of work on climate transition, focused on the seven areas of environmental indicators defined by the European Commission. Guimarães had submitted its first bid for the prize in 2017 – having reached fifth place among 13 competing cities. This year, and like last year, the application was composed of a wide portfolio of environmental initiatives that have already earned international recognition. By way of example, it should be noted that the municipality of Vimarão is one of 100 European cities committed to climate neutrality by 2030, showing a joint effort between the local community, the private sector, academia and municipal administration.
This commitment is reflected in the Guimarães 2030 Strategic and Governance Ecosystem Plan, which promotes integrated and multidisciplinary environmental management involving several sectors of society: research, citizen involvement and environmental education. At this point, highlight the action of the Landscape Laboratory and the FOOTPRINTS program, through which Guimarães has promoted awareness of environmental issues, encouraging more sustainable behaviours among citizens and schools. This commitment is also reflected in innovative projects such as Zero Carbon Sport and Bairro C, initiatives that aim at decarbonization and the creation of sustainable communities.
Guimarães is also a signatory of the Green City Accord and has received the prestigious Mission Label from the European Commission, within the framework of the EU Mission: Climate-Neutral and Smart Cities. The city is also involved in several European missions related to oceans, soils and climate change, with projects already in the implementation phase.
Becoming the European Green Capital 2026 – the second Portuguese city to win the title, after Lisbon (2020), Guimarães will continue its revitalization projects, promoting new initiatives for climate neutrality by 2030, as well as initiatives for the improvement of the conditions of the territory, waste management and protection of biodiversity.
About the European Green Capital award
The European Green Capital award is awarded annually to European cities with more than 100,000 inhabitants that stand out in matters of environmental, social and economic sustainability. The award results from a rigorous selection process, in which the candidate cities must present arguments and evidence of what has already been implemented and what will be done to become more sustainable.
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