April 3, 2021 - Lahti, Finland was announced as the unanimous winner of the 2021 European Green Capital Award, taking home the prize of 350,000 euros. Lahti is particularly strong in the fields of air quality, waste, green growth, eco-innovation and governance.

Three cities made it to the final stage of the competition: Lahti (Finland), Lille (France) and Strasbourg (France). Each made presentations to an international jury in June 2019 to outline their overall commitment to sustainable urban development, their capacity to act as a role model for other cities, and their strategy for communicating and engaging with their citizens. Lahti was announced as the winner at an awards ceremony in Oslo, Norway.

The European Green Capital Award pays tribute to European cities where innovative urban environmental management and initiatives have taken hold. Award-winning cities lead the way in setting higher standards in sustainable urban development, listening to what their citizens want and pioneering innovative solutions to environmental challenges.