Guimarães

Portugal

Mission city Pilot city
Portugal National Platform
Guimarães Mission City Label
Population 157k
City Area 241 km²
City active since June 2022

Guimarães, one of the three EU Mission Cities in Portugal, is a historic city embracing modern green initiatives.

 

It has set an ambitious goal to become climate neutral by 2030 and an even more ambitious long-term vision to become a ’one planet city’ with 100% ’eco citizens’ by 2050. This means that Guimarães strives to become a city with an ecological footprint within the planet’s capacity to sustain it through joint efforts of sustainable and resource-efficient living.

Key Learnings

Guimarães - One planet city

With the ambition of becoming a one-planet city, Guimarães needed a way to measure how many planets-worth of resources the city and its residents are consuming. This would allow for monitoring progress towards the shared vision. In collaboration with the Global Footprint Network and the University of Aveiro, the city introduced two types of ecological footprint interfaces: A research-based municipal ecological footprint (2018) and an individual ecological footprint calculator (2021).

Guimarães, Portugal case studies - Intelligent Cities Challenge

The Intelligent Cities Challenge (ICC) is a European Commission initiative bringing together 136 cities to achieve intelligent, socially responsible and sustainable growth through advanced technologies. This resources includes case studies from the city of Guimarães, Portugal related to: Cultural and Creative Industries (fashion, clothing and textile) Collaboration with private sector to provide charging stations and decarbonise the company's fleet

Detailed Summary: Private Sector Engagement in the EU Cities Mission

This is a summary of a case study that provides a comprehensive comparative analysis of private sector engagement in four Mission Cities: Gothenburg (Sweden) Guimarães (Portugal) Budapest (Hungary) Valladolid (Spain)  These cities are early adopters of Climate City Contracts (CCCs), which are designed to catalyze collaborative climate governance involving a broad range of stakeholders, including the private sector.

3D Participatory Approach to Stakeholder Engagement in Guimarães

Climate transition is not only technological or regulatory but also social, cultural, and participatory. Therefore, Guimarães has implemented a systemic approach to stakeholder engagement to ensure that climate action is not perceived as a top-down process, but rather as a shared effort shaped by those who live and work in the city. The city designed and implemented the 3D Participatory Approach, a stakeholder engagement model built on three dimensions: creating identity, transforming the landscape, and building the future.

EU Policy Labs Session #4 – Enabling Energy Communities

This Policy Lab opens a space for exploring different policy scenarios and strategies to tackle city-level challenges in the field of Energy Communities at EU level.   Antwerp, Guimarães and Rome will be the challenge owners, presenting their case studies to the other mission cities, namely :   Antwerp: How can the EU ensure that local authorities can become pioneers in more equitable energy redistribution? Guimarães: How can Guimarães effectively introduce the consumption of renewable energy in buildings located in World Heritage areas? Rome: How can Rome support energy communities that involve NGOs on social projects and tackle energy poverty?
View all Guimarães Resources

Latest updates from the city

Pilot project spotlight
Visit Guimarães City Website Read Guimarães Climate City Contract Hamburg City Profile (Twin City) Torres Vedras City Profile (Twin City)

External projects

City involvement in related European initiatives