If in 2012 Vitoria-Gasteiz was chosen ‘green capital’ of Europe, it has now been when the Basque capital can boast of being proclaimed ‘global green city’ with its 250,000 inhabitants, 112,000 trees, 150 kilometers of bike lanes and 146,000 cars. It is an award given by the UN-sponsored Global Forum on Human Settlements and was confirmed last Friday in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, to where a Victorian delegation led by the mayor, Gorka Urtaran, moved.
The mayor explained, in collecting the award that Vitoria has in his hands “successful” initiatives such as the Mobility Plan, the urban planning of the city, the regeneration of degraded spaces, the creation of the Green Ring and the economic measures to fight inequality. Vitoria-Gasteiz inherits the throne that in other editions achieved cities such as Vienna (Austria), Vancouver (Canada), Oakland (USA), Curitiba (Brazil), Nantes (France), Mannheim (Germany) or Yokohama (Japan)