The European Sustainable Cities and Towns Campaign was launched following the First European Sustainable Cities and Towns Conference in Aalborg, Denmark, in 1994. Its aim is to promote the idea of sustainable development in Europe and assist the implementation process. The Campaign is sponsored by European Commission DG XI - Environment, Nuclear Safety and Civil Protection.

The European Sustainable City Award

The European Sustainable City Award is a project of the European Sustainable Cities and Towns Campaign and was launched in 1996 by the Council of European Municipalities and Regions (CEMR) with the technical support of the International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives (ICLEI) and in co-operation with the United Towns Organisation (UTO), EUROCITIES and the World Health Organisation - Healthy Cities Project (WHO). The other partners of the European Sustainable Cities and Towns Campaign - the European Commission Expert Group on the Urban Environment and the City of Aalborg - contributed their share in conducting and realising this project.

The second round of the European Sustainable City Award was launched in 1997.

The Sustainable City Award 1997 was presented to the three following local authorities:

• Municipality of Calvià, Spain
• City of Heidelberg, Germany
• City of Stockholm, Sweden

The municipality of Veliko Tarnovo, Bulgaria, received a Special Distinction for Central and Eastern Europe and 13 other cities were awarded with Certificates of Distinction.

Following the very positive response to this Award in 1996 and 1997, the CEMR, in close co-operation with the other Campaign Partners and with the generous support of European Commission DG XI, announces the launch of a new call for applications for the:

EUROPEAN SUSTAINABLE CITY AWARD 1999

This year, the Award will be presented on behalf of the Campaign Partners during the fourth regional campaign conference on sustainable development "Strategies for Sustainable Towns" which will take place in The Hague (NL) on 23, 24 and 25 June 1999.

Campaign Partners:
CEMR, Eurocities, ICLEI, UTO WHO, The European Commission Expert Group on the Urban Environment, The City of Aalborg.