Five cities going green

Stockholm

The first winner of the European Green Capital Award, in 2010. One third of its land area is green space, including 12 large parks. The city pioneered the bike-hire infrastructure now used in many European cities. Copenhagen

One of the most bike-friendly cities in the world, Copenhagen has a free bike-share scheme and is 80 per cent on the way to being carbonneutral by 2025. There are also electric and solar-powered boat services in Copenhagen. Eco-friendly hotels are becoming the norm. Vancouver

Vancouver’s Greenest City Action Team policies of planting trees, improving air and water quality, promoting local food production, increasing recycling, expanding the cycling infrastructure, and the use of electric vehicles are making it one of the world’s greenest cities.

San Francisco

Along with San Diego, San Francisco is always at the top of the list of green cities in the United States, ranking first for eco-tourism and transportation. As well as its record number of green certified hotels, it also has the most farmers’ markets and community gardens per capita. Lisbon

The 2020 winner of the European Green Capital Award is implementing a sustainable transport policy restricting car use and prioritising walking, cycling and public transport. It has one of the largest electric vehicle charging point networks, with more than 500 around the city.