Guimarães elected European Green Capital 2026
Guimarães was elected European Green Capital 2026. The award was given today in Valencia, Spain, the city that holds the distinction of European Green Capital 2024. The Portuguese city competed with Heilbronn (Germany) and Klagenfurt (Austria), and has now been declared the winner, after having been among the three finalist cities last year. As part of the award, the municipality of Guimarães will receive financial support that will be applied to sustainability projects and initiatives, as part of the strategy carried out by the municipality.
Throughout the various stages of the award, the panel responsible for evaluating the applications for 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 Municipality, 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 team, technical and political, and all the members of the Guimarães 2030 Mission Structure, for the resilience they have shown throughout this process of three applications.
But above all, I want to congratulate, with special emotion, the entire community of Guimarães, from the students of our schools to the Green Brigades, from the scientific community to the business community. Everyone was important in this success because of the involvement they demonstrated, and everyone will be fundamental so that 2026 is another great moment of collective celebration for Guimarães”, said the mayor.
Guimarães: More than a decade of climate transition
Guimarães’ candidacy for European Green Capital is supported by more than a decade of work on climate transition, focused on the seven areas of environmental indicators defined by the European Commission. It is worth remembering that Guimarães had submitted the first application for the award in 2017 – achieving fifth place among the 13 competing cities. This year, and like last year, the application was composed of a broad portfolio of environmental initiatives that have already earned international recognition.
For example, the municipality of Guimarães is one of the 100 European cities committed to climate neutrality by 2030, demonstrating a joint effort between the local community, the private sector, academia, and the municipal administration.
This commitment is reflected in the Strategic Plan and Governance Ecosystem Guimarães 2030, which promotes integrated and multidisciplinary environmental management, involving various sectors of society: research, citizen involvement, and environmental education. In this regard, the Landscape Laboratory and the PEGADAS program stand out, through which Guimarães has promoted awareness of environmental issues, encouraging more sustainable behaviors among citizens and schools. This commitment is also reflected in innovative projects such as Carbon Zero Sport and Neighborhood C, initiatives that aim at decarbonization and the creation of sustainable communities.Guimarães é, também, signatária do Green City Accord e recebeu o prestigiado Mission Label da Comissão Europeia, no âmbito da EU Mission: Climate-Neutral and Smart Cities. A cidade está ainda envolvida em várias missões europeias relacionadas com os oceanos, solos e alterações climáticas, com projetos já em fase de implementação.
Having now been named European Green Capital 2026 – the second Portuguese city to receive the title, after Lisbon (2020) –, Guimarães will continue its city revitalisation projects, promote new initiatives aimed at achieving climate neutrality by 2030, as well as initiatives to improve territorial conditions, waste management and biodiversity protection.
About the European Green Capital Award
The European Green Capital Award is awarded annually to European cities with more than 100,000 inhabitants that excel in environmental, social and economic sustainability. The award is the result of a rigorous selection process, during which candidate cities must present arguments and evidence of what has already been implemented and what will still be done to become more sustainable.