Vitoria-Gasteiz, European Green Capital 2012

Peaceful and accessible, dynamic, vibrant and modern – that is Vitoria-Gasteiz, the capital of the Basque Country, in northern Spain. This is one of the cities in Europe with the largest surface area of green spaces per inhabitant, with 45 square metres per person, in addition to over 10 million square metres of parks and green spaces which entice one to take a stroll, go on a bike ride or watch birds and deer.

The Basque capital is the first city in southern Europe to be awarded this prize and has laid down the guidelines to be followed by other cities on the continent, as the European Commission has decided to bestow the title on this medium-sized city (260,000 inhabitants) from northern Spain in this, the third year it has been awarded. Justification for this decision is obvious, as 84% of Europeans live in cities of this type, which means that the environmental criteria by which Vitoria-Gasteiz is governed are more readily assimilated by other EU cities.

The initiatives pursued in dealing with environmental problems and improving the quality of life of its inhabitants has meant that Vitoria-Gasteiz is even more committed to caring for its environment although, as the Mayor, Javier Maroto stresses: “The designation of Vitoria-Gasteiz as European Green Capital in 2012 is a triumph achieved by over three decades of sustainable environmental policies by municipal governments under different political parties. It also acknowledges the commitment on the part of citizens to recycling, mobility and water consumption, because our goal is to achieve a sustainable urban system.” For its part, the jury for the European award justified its decision owing to the ambitious plans being pursued by the city against climate change, the improvement in air quality, reduction in water consumption per inhabitant, optimization of energy efficiency and management of residues.

The sustainable urban development plan has also been recognised by the jury, with attention being especially drawn to the Green Belt in addition to the planning of parks and gardens that favours the use of bicycles and public transport. In this respect, it is the Spanish city where the bicycle is most used for travelling around its streets and also boasts a new tram, complemented by an extensive network of public buses, which avoids the need to use a private car to reach the city centre. Vitoria-Gasteiz aims to become a reference point for ensuring that the concept of sustainable city is transformed into a reality in other large European cities, and that this dream – unimaginable until a few years ago – is pursued via common challenges that will be able to generate employment, knowledge and citizens’ involvement from a new, environmental perspective.

Vitoria-Gasteiz differs from the previous northern European Green Capitals - Stockholm (2010) and Hamburg (2011) – in its size and location, but stands out above them for the involvement being shown by its citizens. It is the inhabitants themselves who judge their city to be sustainable, compact, accessible, healthy, caring, committed, open and green – local citizens who without doubt have come to signify one of the essential values for the place to have been chosen European Green Capital in 2012.

Within the programme that is structuring this green year, in addition to ten strategic projects designed to change the face of the city in sustainable terms and make it a reference point both on a national and International level, there are also 20 plans that include citizens’ participation, as the Vitoria-Gasteiz philosophy is to ensure that it is the citizens themselves who are the ambassadors of green criteria. Some of these plans are based on citizens’ collaboration in sustainable matters, tours of companies that implement sustainable criteria, European student exchanges and shopkeepers’ associations – in short, a citizens’ unit to ensure that this philosophy is transferred first hand to the city’s visitors, and that the image of Vitoria-Gasteiz is disseminated both on a domestic front and overseas using the same criterion to strengthen its financial and international network of contacts.