For the second time running, Geneva has won the Gold European Energy Award (EEA) for its visionary energy policies. Considered the most prestigious distinction of its kind for European cities and issued every four years, the award recognizes Geneva’s performance with a top rating of 82% of renewable energy initiatives compared to 77% in 2010, when it last won the accolade. Geneva’s objective is to attain 100% by 2050.
According to the European-wide EEA Association, the Swiss city has demonstrated a “powerful commitment with a long-term vision for achieving renewable projects in a manner that is both realistic and integrated”. This includes improved performance efforts for buildings, the promotion of “soft mobility”, local energy infrastructure and renewable energy networks.
One notable initiative is the Jonction Ecoquartier, which seeks to supply buildings with a heating pump fed by water from the Rhône River. Another is the renovation of the 1970s Minoteries, which became the first building complex in Geneva to be furnished 100% with renewable energy. The EEA’s Gold award is only granted to cities that have achieved 75% or more of their urban energy development goals.
