Valencia European Green Capital: discover the city's sustainable commitment Valencia will be the European Green Capital in 2024. What does this mean? It means that it will be recognized by the European Union as one of the most sustainable and environmentally friendly cities on the planet. 🌱👏🏻 In this article
Valencia will be the next year 2024 European Green Capital.
What does this mean? It means that it will be recognized by the European Union as one of the more sustainable cities and environmentalists of the planet. 🌱👏🏻
In this article we will see why Valencia has been the winner of this such a special distinction, the European Green Capital 2024.
We will talk about the most famous natural parks, their commitment to sustainable mobility, the importance of our garden and other things that make Valencia such an ecological city.
We will also talk about the benefits What gives people to live in a city like this.
Finally, we will see some objectives that the city of Valencia regarding sustainable development in the future. We still want more!
Therefore, if you are thinking of coming to Valencia to live for a while or go sightseeing, know that here you can breathe fresh air and enjoy the European Green Capital.
Would you like to learn Spanish? We have great news. In Valencia we are: Hispania, Spanish school.
Our school takes more than 20 years teaching Spanish to thousands of students from all over the world.
Attend our spanish courses and you will understand why we are a prestigious school throughout the world.
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Do you want to find out why Valencia is chosen as European Green Capital 2024?
Well let's go there!
The great commitment of this city to sustainable urban development has turned Valencia into the European Green Capital 2024.
There are many actions that Valencia has taken to reach this point. Let's see them one by one.
Do you know there is a prize? The European Commission will provide the city with 600,000 euros as a reward for our policies in favor of the European Green Deal. 🥰
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We start with the parks.
In recent years, Valencia has been concerned with creating extensive green areas so that people can walk and relax in them.
Furthermore, these parks absorb CO2 emissions, which benefits air quality and the environment.
Of among the 14 big parks and gardens there is in Valencia, let's see the 3 most famous:
The old bed of the Turia River is undoubtedly one of the most emblematic spaces in the city.
The Turia Garden it's the urban park longest in Europe and is located in the old channel of the Turia River, which was diverted to prevent flooding in the city.
It was inaugurated as park in 1986. Since then it has become a fundamental area for Valencians.
This extensive natural park covers more than 9 kilometers in length and offers a wide variety of green areas and paths for pedestrians, cyclists and runners.
It also has large areas for practice sports.
Here you will see people running, cyclists, people who dance salsa, people who box, others who do fitness and calisthenics... Sometimes it looks like a gym!
Throughout its 136 hectares you will find more than 4,000 trees.
If one day you feel like hiking in nature but you don't have time, just walk through the Turia Garden and you will have almost the same feeling. 😉
It is the lung of the city and a place very loved by all the inhabitants of Valencia.
The Royal Gardens, also known as the Nursery Gardens, is a beautiful park located near the historic center of Valencia.
These gardens are famous for their rich history and beauty.
They house a wide variety of plants, trees and fountains. Your careful design creates a very special atmosphere.
In the Jardines del Real there are often cultural events and exhibitions.
In this way, in addition to being one of the most beautiful parks, it is also an important cultural place in the city.
The Central Park It is one of the most ambitious projects in the city.
It is an old railway area which has become a large public park of more than 230,000 square meters.
Furthermore, it has also been very important for connect different neighborhoods which were previously separated due to railway tracks.
Due to the combination of gardens with typical train station infrastructure, this park becomes one of the most original.
The Central Park is one of the projects of recovery of public space most notable in the city.
In this biodiversity strategy there are other projects, such as the restoration of the Devesa dune and the wetland ecosystems, among which stands out the Albufera.
Finally, we want to remind you that Valencia is a coastal city surrounded by countryside and mountains.
It is very easy to access from the city to beautiful beaches, charming towns and hiking trails with natural rivers.
So much nature in the palm of your hand. How wonderful!
We have already written articles about these beaches, towns and natural pools.
If you like nature, check them out. I'm sure you'll like them!
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Valencia has one of the larger orchards throughout Spain.
It is one of the largest exporters of vegetables and fruits in the country and around the world.
In recent decades much has been done promotion of Valencian agriculture at the local level.
This is beneficial for the city as it protects local farmers, reduces the ecological footprint and promotes a healthier lifestyle.
Would you like to try the best products of the capital of Turia? You will find them in the main markets, such as Central Market.
In addition, the city also encourages people to rent urban community gardens.
In this Spanish city there are plenty of plots so that interested people can grow their own food.
Would you like to create your small garden? fresh fruits and vegetables?
In Valencia you can do it!
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Valencia is European Green Capital also for his use of sustainable transport.
A wide network of bike lanes and several programs that encourage public transportation have been the main measures.
Today, Valencia has more than 160 kilometers of bike path, becoming one of the cities with the most bike lanes in the world.
This encourages many people to move around the city in bicycle or in electric scooter.
The flat land of the city makes bike rides pleasant and bearable.
Every day more people prefer to use these lanes to go to work, leaving behind the stress of driving the car.
Valencia promotes the use of these green transports with a multitude of companies that rent bicycles and scooters. The most famous is Valenbisi, which is public.
Thanks to it, you will find hundreds of bicycles parked throughout the city for you to use.
Currently, Valencia is one of the cities in Spain where More people ride bicycles. 🚲🙌🏻
Likewise, there are a lot of bike routes through Valencia beautiful things you can do, both within the city and in the natural landscapes that surround it.
In addition to promoting transportation in non-polluting vehicles, there are other projects to reduce the CO2 emissions.
These projects focus on public transport.
Valencia capital has a good communication system bus, metro and tram.
The bus can take you practically to any place within Valencia.
There are also buses that travel to surrounding towns for excursions.
With the 6 metro lines you can quickly move to the busiest places of the city; such as the Estación del Norte, the City of Sciences, the Nuevo Centro shopping center or the Manises airport.
There is also the possibility of going to nearby towns by metro.
The interurban network of tram has 4 lines and connects very well with all universities and the beach of the Malvarrosa.
And what are the initiatives to support public transportation? Basically lower prices.
The price of the tickets is has reduced by 50%. For example, years ago a 10-trip tram and metro zone A ticket cost around 8 euros. Now it costs 4.
Also, right now the project is «Join the savings movement with public transport».
With this program, all under 31 years oldThey will be able to access any public transport… totally free.
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Valencia is the European Green City also for the great work that has been done to pedestrianize the squares most important in the old town.
The main ones are the Town Hall Square, Queen's Square and Market Square.
Now Valencians can take a pleasant walk through these squares, have a coffee with a friend on the spacious terraces or better contemplate the beautiful architecture of the buildings without worrying about traffic.
Before, there was a lot of traffic in these squares and they were not as enjoyable. Now they have a lot more charm and they feel much more spacious.
A historic center as beautiful as Valencia is to be seen on foot, not by car!
Furthermore, thanks to this pedestrianization, carbon emissions in this part of the city are considerably reduced.
Another of the great pillars to turn Valencia into European Green Capital is the application of a circular economy and of a good waste management.
What is the circular economy? It is an economic and sustainable model that seeks to minimize the waste of resources and maximize their energy efficiency.
The circular economy proposes a continuous cycle of reuse, recycling and regeneration of materials and resources.
In recent years, Valencia has encouraged recycling and the reduction of single-use plastics.
Almost on every street there are waste containers and recycling of materials.
Are you in Valencia and don't know what each container is for? We explain it to you!
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The blue container it's for recycling paper and cardboard.
Here you can throw shoe boxes, magazines and newspapers, cardboard egg cups, paper bags, cardboard boxes and tubes.
The container yellow is that of packaging. It is one of the most used.
A lot of materials are thrown away here: plastics (bags, yogurts, food containers, bottles, etc.), caps, cans of food or beverages, trays and aluminum foil, cartons or wooden boxes.
The green container It is for glass materials; such as bottles, jars or jars.
In the brown container should be thrown away organic waste.
Here go the food scraps. Also dirty napkins, eggshells, coffee grounds and the remains of flowers and plants.
In the gray container Other things such as tampons and pads, sanitary wipes, ceramic scraps, bottles, pacifiers and diapers are discarded.
There are also specific containers for throwing away batteries and appliances. Some of these containers are in supermarkets.
And what about the orange containers?
You've probably seen them in some neighborhoods. These are fordonate clothes to the most economically disadvantaged people. 😊
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Valencia is a green city also because it has developed a metric to evaluate the environmental impact of tourist activity.
In fact, it was the first city in the world to verify and certify the carbon footprint of its tourism sector.
Valencia receives a lot of tourism, and the objective is reduce the negative impact on the environment that can cause the displacement of tourists and the activities they carry out
Practices are promoted to reduce the carbon footprint, such as the use of efficient hotel facilities or non-polluting vehicles.
Valencia seeks that all companies and organizations related to tourism demonstrate that they do not harm the environment within a period of 10 years.
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Valencia is a sustainable city and, as you can imagine, living in a place like this provides many benefits to its inhabitants.
Here you can breathe a fresher air, not as overloaded or polluted as in other big cities.
If you enter the Turia Garden, you will notice how the air is even purer and you will be able to perceive the typical natural aroma of the forests.
Green spaces also offer a healthier environment for people. tranquility and spaciousness.
Here you can practice sports outdoors, sunbathe or read a book under the shade of a beautiful tree.
Regarding the promotion of public transport and bicycles, this helps make trips easier. more pleasant and much less dangerous than in a private car or motorcycle.
Furthermore, the reduction in traffic and noise pollution can reduce stress and improve people's quality of life.
In Valencia there is a lot of promotion local economy, promoting the production and consumption of local products and services.
This increases employment opportunities and economic prosperity in the city.
What did you think? Now you understand better why European Green Capital is in Valencia in the year 2024?
Valencia's ambition to be one of the most sustainable cities in the world goes further and has even more challenges and commitments for the 2030 agenda.
Some of these challenges are a greater commitment to renewable energies or use the new technologies in favor of environmental policies.
Another objective for this ecological transition It is to create that smart tourism that we have already talked about before and that companies in the sector commit to not polluting.
We hope this article encourages you to visit Valencia and that it has been of interest to you to get to know it better.
Remember that, if you want to learn Spanish, we are in Valencia. In Hispania, Spanish school We will welcome you with open arms.
Have you already walked through the beautiful gardens of Valencia or the pedestrian squares of the old town?
If you compare it with your city of origin, is there any sustainable action that is being done and that we could implement in Valencia?
We will be happy to read your comments.
A big hug!
Article written by Carlos Martinez for Hispania, Spanish school
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