Although the coronavirus pandemic now dominates people’s interests and news portals, climate change is still a problem looming over our heads, and while the restrictions made by governments all over the world helped our environment to regenerate somewhat, going green is just as important as ever.
Highlighting the ever-important topic of protecting our environment, National Geographic made a list of the five most forward-thinking European cities, and Budapest stands proudly among them. It is no wonder, however, as for many Hungarians, climate change is considered to be one of the most pressing problems of our modern world. In 2018, E.ON, an energy supplier company, conducted a survey in seven countries and found that Hungarians considered climate change to be the most pressing problem of modern society. 81% of the participants also said that they had made changes in their lifestyle to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Apart from Budapest, the four other places are Lahti, a Finnish city that might become carbon-neutral by 2025, Lisbon, the Portuguese capital halving its CO2 emission, Lyon, the gastronomic centre of France, and Edinburgh, the UK’s greenest city with 112 parks.
“The Hungarian capital recently saw the launch of the crowd-funded Green Guide Budapest map. Printed using soy-based ink, the free fold-out guide aims to steer visitors away from the usual attractions by highlighting parks, markets, and eco-friendly stores around the city,” said National Geographic about Budapest.
Over the past couple of years, Hungary’s capital has been going greener and greener. There are many similar movements, like Green Guide Budapest, that try and help change people’s lifestyle to become more eco-friendly or to produce less waste. For example, last Summer, the zero-waste approach skyrocketed, and several shops opened not only in Budapest but in several other cities in Hungary. If you would like to find out more about these stores and more environmentally friendly ideas, start here: