On 22 October 2024, an award ceremony was held in Strasbourg for the presentation of the title of Climate-Neutral and Smart City. The title was presented to 20 cities, including Ljubljana. This signifies that we have officially embarked on the path towards decarbonisation.

The title of Climate-Neutral and Smart City is a prestigious award and confirmation that Ljubljana is on the right path towards climate neutrality and therefore to an additional increase in the quality of life in our city.

Within the scope of the process of running for the title, we submitted an extensive proposal for the city’s climate contract, which includes an action plan for the decarbonisation of Ljubljana by 2030, an investment plan and the city's commitment to decarbonisation, as well as demonstrated support from various stakeholders. Ljubljana received an excellent rating, and the evaluators singled us out as a model for other cities.

Deputy Mayor Dajan Crnek pointed out that this recognition represents an important achievement and a great responsibility for Ljubljana, as it makes us a part of a distinguished group of European cities that have the privilege of showing all other cities around the world the path towards a carbon-neutral future. »Ljubljana has been recognised in the past for its environmental initiatives, including having been named the European Green Capital 2016. The title of Climate-Neutral and Smart City builds upon this heritage and is a testament to the city's ongoing commitment to sustainability and innovation. This is also a confirmation that Ljubljana is not afraid of the challenges ahead of us«, added the Deputy Mayor.

The title award ceremony was also attended by Iliana Ivanova, European Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth, and Elisa Ferreira, European Commissioner for Cohesion and Reforms.

Ljubljana is part of the Mission 100

The Mission of 100 Climate-Neutral and Smart Cities by 2030 includes 112 cities (100 from EU countries and 12 from non-member countries in Europe), which have demonstrated their sustainable development in their efforts so far and have shown an interest in achieving highly ambitious environmental and climate goals. The included cities act as experimental and innovation centres that will show other European cities the path towards achieving climate neutrality accompanied with support and advice, advantages in drawing European funds, participation in innovation activities as well as pilot and demonstration projects, networking opportunities, exchange of good practices and high recognisability.