Thessaloniki has won an important distinction, having been selected to participate in the European mission for the 100 Climate Neutral and Smart Cities by 2030.

“Thessaloniki – Climate Neutral and Smart City by 2030: This is the goal and we are working systematically towards it”, said Thessaloniki Mayor Konstantinos Zervas, with the announcement by the European Commission that Thessaloniki is one of a total of 100 cities from across Europe – including six Greek cities – that will take part in this pan-European effort.

“Through a network of green policies that touch on energy, waste management, transport, public space and the use of new technologies, we can make Thessaloniki a climate-neutral and smart city. A city to live in. We have a lot of work ahead of us, but I am confident that we will succeed”, noted Mr. Zervas, who expressed his warm congratulations to the executives of the Municipality of Thessaloniki who were involved in the preparation of the proposal as well as to the special working group that was set up.

“The effort is now beginning and this success gives us significant advantages and additional financial resources, new financial tools to succeed”, the Mayor of Thessaloniki noted.

Thessaloniki was selected among 377 European cities that expressed interest and after an intensive process under the responsibility of independent experts from the European Commission. The elements that contributed to the selection of Thessaloniki are the city’s unique identity, its climate footprint, the operation of an innovation ecosystem and the existence of a Sustainable Urban Mobility Plan.

The inclusion in the initiative was made after the coordinated efforts of the officials of the Department of Operational Planning and the Office of Urban Resilience of the Municipality of Thessaloniki, coordinated by the Vice Mayor of Finance Michael Koupkas and in cooperation with a special working group set up by city institutions and civil society, with the participation of, among others, the National Research Institute of Technology, the University of Thessaloniki, MATH SA AOTA, EYATH SA, etc.

The initiative for 100 climate-neutral and smart cities by 2030 will receive a total funding of 360 million euros from the Horizon Europe programme for the period 2022-23, in order to immediately start innovation actions towards climate neutrality. These actions will address multiple areas such as clean mobility, energy efficiency and green urban design. In addition, opportunities will be offered to take joint initiatives and develop partnerships under other EU funded programmes.