Architecture and sustainability, protagonists of the Barcelona + Sustainable Agenda 2030 Awards

The fourth edition of the Barcelona + Sustainable Agenda 2030 Awards from the Barcelona City Council has once again recognized and given visibility to extraordinary projects, initiatives, and actions in favor of sustainability and a more sustainable city, also from the field of architecture. The awards have distinguished initiatives aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the 2030 Agenda and with the Citizen Commitment for a More Sustainable Barcelona 2024-2034, with special recognition for architecture coinciding with the year of the World Capital of Architecture.

This year, the competition—the second since the unification of the Agenda 2030 and the B+S citizen network recognitions—has also focused on buildings that, through their conception, design, construction, and operation, offer excellent responses to the climate and sustainability challenges of Barcelona.

With 10 categories divided into two major groups, the 2030 Agenda Awards have given visibility to projects linked to the Sustainable Development Goals –people, planet, prosperity, peace, and partnerships– and to the City Challenges –decarbonization, water saving, and heat adaptation–. Hence, three of the six awards linked to the City Challenges were specifically aimed at the best solutions applied to buildings for decarbonization and water saving, as well as the best climate shelter located in a building.

A total of 59 applications from organizations in the Barcelona + Sustainable Network were submitted to the call, all published in summary format on the decidim.barcelona platform. The award ceremony was held on June 11, within the framework of the Barcelona for Climate Conference.

The awards are part of the Climate Plan, specifically under the 'Let's Change for the Climate' axis, which aims to promote a culture of sustainability, leading by example and encouraging participation. Among the awarded projects are educational proposals to combat climate misinformation, support programs for people in situations of energy vulnerability, community composting models, innovative solutions to reduce emissions in the healthcare system, and new urban strategies to face heatwaves.

Among the criteria most valued by the jury when selecting the awarded initiatives are aspects such as the quality and efficiency of the initiative, participation, impact, replicability or scalability, and coherence.

The evaluation jury was chaired by Deputy Mayor Laia Bonet and included fifteen representatives from member organizations of the Citizen Council for Sustainability and the City Council.