Sustainability encompasses numerous aspects – but its key components are ecology, economy, and social issues. In urban environments it’s about things like sustainable energy and water supply concepts, building sustainably, locally produced, and fair-trade commodities, as well as mutual respect.
Sustainability is reflected across many different areas in Cologne: in fair procurement and nutrition, water management, urban gardens and the use of digital technologies. Various initiatives and projects address specific environmental and social issues, developing new approaches for the city and its communities.
From the Cologne-founded Fairtrade label and the nationwide water transition initiative under the slogan “Drinking Water Is Climate Action” to urban gardening projects and SmartCity Cologne: the following examples provide insights into projects, ideas and measures that are being implemented, supported or further developed in Cologne.
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Making a contribution to climate protection is easy: drink tap water instead of bottled water. This not only avoids amounts of plastic waste, but also unnecessary CO₂ emissions from bottle production, filling and transportation. According to the German Environment Agency, this can save up to 202 g of CO₂ per litre of water. Since 2020, Cologne’s utility company RheinEnergie has been involved in the nationwide project “Drinking Water Is Climate Action.” To accelerate the “water transition”, so-called water neighbourhoods are being established across Germany. For Cologne, RheinEnergie selected the Nippes district as the city’s first water neighbourhood and currently the largest such neighbourhood nationwide. Together, the City of Cologne and RheinEnergie operate 16 public drinking water fountains across the city.
Public drinking water and refill stations in neighbourhoods and schools are planned and, in some cases, already in place, alongside educational programmes, information and talks on switching to tap water at events, as well as advisory services for companies, public authorities and educational institutions.
Find out more here.
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Fairtrade Deutschland e.V. supports disadvantaged producer families in Africa, Asia and Latin America, enabling them to improve their living and working conditions independently. The association does not sell products itself. As an independent initiative, it awards the Fairtrade label to fairly traded products that meet the requirements of the international Fairtrade Standards. This is intended to ensure that producers in growing countries receive stable prices above the world market price. The association’s demands are clear: living wages and incomes, compliance with labour rights, protection against exploitative child labour, gender equality, and measures to improve environmental protection and combat climate change.
The Fairtrade label has been based in Cologne since it was founded 30 years ago. Today, more than 7,800 products carrying the label are available in Germany.
Further information on the work of Fairtrade Deutschland e.V. can be found here.
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The United Nations’ 2030 Agenda serves as the overarching framework for municipal sustainability strategies. Through the Agenda, the international community has adopted 17 ambitious goals – the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) – for sustainable development. For the first time, it also emphasises the responsibility of municipalities for socially equitable and environmentally friendly development.
With its Cologne Perspectives 2030+ city strategy, Cologne developed a framework and concrete measures in 2021 that integrate the UN’s 17 goals as guiding principles for sustainable urban development. The aim is to strengthen Cologne as a sustainably operating metropolis. Find out here how the City of Cologne intends to achieve its goals.
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“Cologne Community Gardens” Network
An annual seed festival, advice on all urban gardening matters, networking and – in practical terms – seeds and plants! This and much more is offered by the Cologne Community Gardens initiative.
The network, which was established in 2016 on the basis of the Urban Gardening Manifesto, is committed to environmental education, climate and environmental protection, and biodiversity. The people involved in the Cologne Community Gardens aim to integrate “citizen-centred green concepts” into Cologne. They advocate for more edible greenery, the protection of existing gardens and the promotion of new gardens throughout the city. Network members are convinced that urban gardens not only help Cologne keep pace with international standards of green urban development, but also provide ideal spaces for experimentation towards a good life in the city. Green urban development includes, for example, the expansion and protection of parks, avenues, green roofs and façades, and nature-oriented open spaces; reducing car traffic while expanding public transport and cycle paths; and using renewable energy.
The Edible City …
Entering, gardening and picking are encouraged.Cherries on playgrounds, a fig tree at Chlodwigplatz, apple trees in the Belgian Quarter, and green beans growing along the Green Belt: in the Urban Agriculture and Edible City committee of the Food Council for Cologne and the Surrounding Area, the Cologne Community Gardens network developed a concept for the Edible City in dialogue with the Parks and Green Spaces Department and other stakeholders. The focus is on greater food sovereignty and regional food production. Edible cities are there for residents, foster community and support self-sufficiency. The Edible City concept refers to gardening – particularly the cultivation of fruit, herbs and vegetables – in urban spaces: on balconies, in gardens, in front of people’s homes, along roadsides, in public squares, schoolyards and on rooftops.
More information about the project is available here.
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Cologne has numerous zero-waste shops: at Tante Olga, migori in the Südstadt district and many other stores, customers can buy pasta, rice, lentils, muesli and much more without packaging. Pasta and other goods are filled into jars, containers or bottles that customers can either bring themselves or obtain on site. The Zero-Waste Route provides an overview of zero-waste shops in Cologne.
Other Cologne-based projects demonstrate the wide range of approaches to conserving resources and preventing waste. These include the Cologne start-up Vytal, which has introduced reusable takeaway containers in numerous restaurants since 2019; the The Good Food project, which offers food that does not meet the standards of conventional supermarkets, such as undersized fruit, misshapen vegetables or food past its best-before date; and Cologne’s Rhine clean-up task force, K.R.A.K.E..
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Cologne is and should remain a place of diversity. Diversity management is concerned with implementing diversity strategies, the reasons for which vary. Companies implement them to comply with legal requirements, for example. Some feel this will bring them benefits, while others act according to their convictions.
In deciding to establish a diversity management program in Cologne, the city is demonstrating its commitment to and respect for diversity, as well as its conviction that diversity offers the potential for sustainable development.
Diversity cannot constitute grounds for discrimination.
According to the General Equality Act (Allgemeinen Gleichbehandlungsgesetz or AGG), institutions are legally obligated to provide freedom from discrimination.
"No one shall be discriminated against on the grounds of ethnic origin, gender, religion or belief, disability, age or sexual identity."
Towards sustainable urban development
End poverty, zero hunger, quality education, gender equality and reduced inequalities – these are 5 of the United Nations Agenda 2030's 17 sustainability goals. In Cologne, the Agenda serves as a compass for sustainable and social urban development.
Inequalities also exist in cities that are perceived to be "open". Social inequalities impact societal stability and hence social sustainability. In other words, only by promoting diversity can we act sustainably. The goal is to turn Cologne into a city of diversity, openness, public spirit, and cohesion.
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SmartCity Cologne (SCC) is a local network and communication platform for innovation, digitalisation and climate action in Cologne. Individuals, companies, associations, universities and initiatives can take part. Its focus is on projects that test digital technologies and new solutions for energy, mobility and urban development.
The City of Cologne and RheinEnergie AG launched SmartCity Cologne. The initiative connects a range of stakeholders and projects, creating a space for dialogue on climate action, energy efficiency and innovation.
One example is the GrowSmarter project, which was implemented in Cologne from 2015 to 2019. It focused on solutions for energy management as well as urban transport and mobility. Information and communication technologies served as a connecting element. Measures relating to energy-efficient refurbishment, energy supply and mobility were implemented in Cologne’s Stegerwaldsiedlung neighbourhood in Mülheim, among other locations.
The ParkPilot project in Cologne-Nippes also relied on digital technologies. Smart sensors and LED displays on lampposts provided information about available parking spaces and guided road users to them. An evaluation found that traffic caused by drivers searching for parking could be reduced by up to 45 per cent in the project area. The pilot project was completed in 2024, and the insights gained are being incorporated into the further planning of the City of Cologne’s mobility and parking strategy.
Additional projects were also supported through funding programmes such as SmartCity Cologne GO. These include initiatives to harness the hydropower of the Rhine or digitally map Cologne’s urban landscape.
More info on the SmartCity Cologne initiative can be found here.