Background and context

At their 19th Ordinary Meeting (COP 19) held in Athens, Greece, in February 2016, the Contracting Parties to the Barcelona Convention adopted Decision IG.22/19 « Istanbul Environment Friendly City Award ». The first, pilot edition of the Award was granted on the occasion of the COP 20 Ministerial Session in Tirana, Albania, in December 2017 and the second edition is included in the UNEP/MAP Programme of Work and Budget for 2018-2019 (Decision IG.23/14).

The Istanbul Environment Friendly City Award responds to one of the Flagship Initiative recommended by the Mediterranean Strategy for Sustainable Development (MSSD) under its Objective 3 « Planning and managing sustainable Mediterranean Cities ». 

A sustainable coastal city is: « A coastal city in harmony with the sea, utilizing its resources efficiently, equitably and sustainably, reducing its impact on marine and coastal environment and climate change, and managing the environment for the benefit of current and future generations ». A Mediterranean environment friendly coastal city is a coastal city in which people enjoy a high quality of life and where sustainable development takes place within the carrying capacity of healthy ecosystems.

Objectives

The objectives of the Istanbul Environment Friendly City Award are to:
•Recognize and reward the efforts of local authorities to improve the environment and quality of life and promote sustainable development in Mediterranean coastal towns and cities;
•Encourage local authorities to move towards a more environment friendly future;
•Enable local authorities to act a role-model to inspire other towns and cities;
•Raise the awareness of the general public regarding the quality of environment and therefore the quality of life in their towns and cities.

Award giving

The Istanbul Environment Friendly City Award is expected to be conferred on the occasion of the 21st Ordinary Meeting of the Contracting Parties to the Barcelona Convention (COP 21) to be held in Naples, Italy, 2-5 December 2019.

Funded by the Government of Turkey, the Istanbul Environment Friendly City Award is managed by the MAP – Barcelona Convention Secretariat. 

Please visit the Istambul Environmental Friendly City Award Website for more information :

web.unep.org/unepmap/call-applications-istanbul-environment-friendly-city-award