Call for applications: 2nd Edition of the Istanbul Environment Friendly City Award

Local authorities from Mediterranean coastal cities are invited to submit their candidacies for the second edition of the “Istanbul Environment Friendly City Award”. The call for applications is open until 7 June 2019

Background and context

At their 19th Ordinary Meeting (COP 19) held in Athens, Greece, in February 2016, the Contracting Parties to the Barcelona Convention adopted Decision IG.22/19 “Istanbul Environment Friendly City Award”. The first, pilot edition of the Award was granted on the occasion of the COP 20 Ministerial Session in Tirana, Albania, in December 2017 and the second edition is included in the UNEP/MAP Programme of Work and Budget for 2018-2019 (Decision IG.23/14). The Istanbul Environment Friendly City Award responds to one of the Flagship Initiative recommended by the Mediterranean Strategy for Sustainable Development (MSSD) under its Objective 3 “Planning and managing sustainable Mediterranean Cities”.

Objectives

The objectives of the Istanbul Environment Friendly City Award are to:

Recognize and reward the efforts of local authorities to improve the environment and quality of life and promote sustainable development in Mediterranean coastal towns and cities;
Encourage local authorities to move towards a more environment friendly future;
Enable local authorities to act a role-model to inspire other towns and cities;
Raise the awareness of the general public regarding the quality of environment and therefore the quality of life in their towns and cities.

Eligibility criteria

Applications should be submitted by local authorities of Mediterranean coastal towns or cities of a Contracting Party to the Barcelona Convention

Both small towns and metropolitan cities are eligible to apply.
It is encouraged to develop partnerships with NGOs, scientific community, private sector or other stakeholders for the submission.
The application should be either signed by the mayor (or legal representative) or duly accompanied with a mayoral declaration (letter).

Application

The completed application form should be submitted to Julien.Letellier@un.org copied to Irene.Cavoura@un.org by 7 June 2019.

Additional resources:

Evaluation

The evaluation will be undertaken through criteria defined under four main categories:

Nature and Biodiversity Protection
Built Environment
Social, Economic and Cultural Sustainability
Governance

In addition to the proposed criteria, the historical perspective of the applicant city will also be considered. The improvement towards sustainability already implemented, as well as the city’s efforts and perspectives for the future are a benchmark criterion.

Selection process

The selection will be carried out in three phases:

First phase: Initial screening
With the end of the submission deadline, an initial screening will be conducted by the MAP – Barcelona Convention Secretariat to ensure that the candidate cities fulfill the eligibility criteria and that the submission forms are correctly filled. The Secretariat will then forward the files of the applicant cities to the Technical Committee.

Second phase: Short-listing
The Technical Committee will nominate up to three candidate cities for the Award. The committee will prepare an evaluation report and submit these nominations electronically to the Bureau of the Barcelona Convention for consideration and selection.

Third phase: Selection
The Jury will select the winning city through online consultation.

Award giving

The Istanbul Environment Friendly City Award is expected to be conferred on the occasion of the 21st Ordinary Meeting of the Contracting Parties to the Barcelona Convention (COP 21) to be held in Naples, Italy, 2-5 December 2019.

For further information please visit the following website: http://web.unep.org/unepmap/call-applications-istanbul-environment-friendly-city-award