“Green Technologies for Urban Heat Mitigation in Malta for an improved experience for residents and visitors”
Fresh Air for the Market Square: Moss as a Natural Climate Ally
A major international success for Green City Solutions: the innovation team has officially won the global UN challenge “Green Technologies for Urban Heat Mitigation in Malta for an improved experience for residents and visitors”. With its forward-looking concept of using biological moss technology for targeted air purification and urban cooling, the Berlin-based pioneers prevailed against a highly competitive field of 104 submissions from 35 countries.
Photo: UN Tourism
A Compelling Pitch to an International Expert Jury
After advancing to the final round as one of the top three concepts, Green City Solutions had the opportunity to present on site in Malta as part of the 72nd UN Tourism Conference, pitching to an international panel of experts. The well-founded combination of natural sciences and engineering impressed the jury and secured Green City Solutions the overall win.
“On behalf of the UN Tourism Secretariat, we would like to extend our sincere gratitude for your valuable contribution the Green Technologies for Urban Heat Mitigation Challenge held in Malta”, wrote Shaikha Al Nuwais, Secretary-General UN Tourism. “As a forward-looking initiative addressing one of the most pressing challenges facing urban destinations today, the Challenge marked an important step in advancing sustainable and climate-resilient tourism in Malta. Your participation and insights played a key role in shaping discussions around innovative green technologies and the future of tourism in warming urban environments.
Your engagement helped highlight the importance of fostering practical, scalable solutions that enhance the experience of both residents and visitors, while strengthening environmental sustainability. By bringing together diverse perspectives, the initiative contributed to building a stronger ecosystem for innovation and collaboration in Malta and beyond.
This initiative has laid the groundwork for continued efforts in addressing urban heat challenges, and we are encouraged by the momentum it has generated. We look forward to future opportunities to collaborate and further advance innovation in sustainable tourism”, she added.
Photo: UN Tourism
The Future of Tourism and Quality of Life in Our Major Cities
“Europe is the world champion in tourism, and the industry forms a fundamental economic backbone of our continent. Yet the future of tourism — and the quality of life in our metropolitan areas — depends dramatically on the progressing impacts of climate change“, explains Peter Sänger, Managing Director and Co-Founder of Green City Solutions.
“Our special thanks go to UN Tourism, the UN Tourism Academy, as well as our Maltese partners, the jury, F6S, and all organizers for initiating this challenge. They provide an indispensable stage for green innovations and demonstrate how important collaboration between international organizations and technology pioneers is for protecting our cities.
This is particularly relevant as Southern European destinations risk becoming among the biggest losers as warming continues. Data shows that once temperatures in urban areas exceed the 30°C threshold, pedestrian and visitor footfall in city centers drops by around 25%” , Peter Sänger continues.
This is exactly where Green City Solutions comes in: “With our moss-based, multifunctional products, we can effectively mitigate climate impacts and deliver tangible adaptation for inner-city areas”, emphasizes Peter Sänger.
He adds that winning the challenge is “a great success —b ut now it is about turning words into action and implementing projects. Only then will the competition have real impact”, the CEO concludes.
Photos: UN Tourism
From Award to Implementation: A Lighthouse Project with International Reach
Green City Solutions is already in discussions with the responsible stakeholders to develop a tailored implementation concept for Malta. The initiative is designed as a pioneering lighthouse project. It is intended to serve as a global benchmark and validation standard for architects, cities, and tourism destinations that want to proactively reduce urban heat hot spots and sustainably enhance key tourism zones.
A key factor behind this success is the proven readiness of the technology for real-world application. “A big thank-you at this point goes to all our existing customers who already trust in our solutions“, says Peter Sänger. “Our successful, field-tested customer projects in Germany and abroad have played a major role in demonstrating the feasibility and scalability of our approach — and ultimately in convincing the UN jury.”
Given that Europe, according to current climate reports, is the fastest-warming continent on Earth, Green City Solutions sees the award as a clear mandate for the future: to make urban spaces resilient and future-ready — and to actively and measurably help shape the sustainability transformation ahead.