ICLEI Member Freiburg (Germany) is among the winners recently announced at the German “Klimaaktiv Kommune 2019” awards (“Climate Active Communities” awards). Freiburg was recognised for their urban climate adaptation concept, which builds resilience against heat stress and is used in all town and urban planning procedures.

This award is associated with a €25,000 prize, which Freiburg plans to put towards a pilot project using innovative methods for greening facades in heat-stressed areas. Green facades are particularly interesting for rapidly growing cities, as they do not require converting space used for other purposes, such as for housing.

Ten German municipalities in total received Klimaaktiv Kommune awards on 5 November. In addition to Freiburg, these include ICLEI Members Hannover and Ludwigsburg. Hannover was recognised in the category of Participatory Local Climate Activities – for which there were 52 applicants – for their participatory energy saving work in schools and day-care centres. This approach to energy saving has already curbed 3,700 tonnes of CO2 emissions per year!

Ludwigsburg won the award for Climate-Friendly Municipal Procurement for using a circular procurement approach to achieve better public health, to lower carbon emissions, and to improve resource efficiency.

The nationwide awards were first established in 2009 as part of the German National Climate Initiative. Best practice examples from across the country are highlighted to showcase different paths being taken to successfully and inclusively combat climate change.

For more information on the Klimaaktiv Kommune awards, click here.