Bratislava Mayor's Climate Challenge

Bratislava had its first Climate Plan aproved in April 2024. The city is committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 55% by 2030. This is a big goal that Bratislava cannot achieve on its own. For our climate journey to be successful, it is key to kick-start the city's long-term cooperation with responsible companies and residents.

The city 's Mayor Matúš Vallo is therefore inviting local business leaders to join the first ever Climate Challenge and help us prepare Bratislava for a sustainable, healthy and safe future.

The Climate Challenge is a voluntary program of cooperation between the city and companies operating in Bratislava to meet climate goals.

Goals of the Program

Reduce emissions from existing buildings and support the city's adaptation to climate change.
Build strong and long-term partnerships between the city and the businesses.
Recognize responsible companies that actively participate in building a sustainable city.
Demonstrate practical climate solutions

Participating companies in the pilot cohort

The 2025 pilot year of the challenge is opened for companies operating in Bratislava in two sectors:

retailers, especially grocery stores,
owners and managers of large office and retail buildings. In the coming years, we plan to open the challenge to other sectors.

Why should companies join?

Become local leaders: Participating companies can show customers, employees and partners that they are making a real environmental impact in the communities they care about.
Get communication support: The results that companies achieve within the challenge will be presented within the city's communication and at the final event to the speakers.
Receive expert support: We offer tailor-made training with city experts or external consultants on energy and sustainability topics according to the needs of the participants.

How does it work?

Participants will join the challenge with one or more buildings, choosing two goals from the following areas for each operation.

Energy: Participating companies will choose one or two topics in this area:

energy efficiency,
renewable energy sources.

Sustainability: In case of involvement in only one of the energy topics, companies can choose one of the following topics:

parking lots,
waste and recycling,
greenery and water,
mobility and logistics,
supply chain,
neighborhood cooperation,
other according to the priorities of the participating company.

Get involved

Check the terms of participation: Detailed terms of participation can be found below in the Climate Challenge Participant Guide.
Express preliminary interest: Contact the Climate Office, which will guide you through the application process.
Choose goals: Choose goals from the program areas and plan activities at the selected facility.
Confirm your commitment: Complete the application form and sign the memorandum of cooperation for the two years of the challenge.
Get involved: In addition to fulfilling the set goals, use training, consultations and communication activities as appropriate.
Monitor: Provide input and output data to measure progress.

The application for the 2025 pilot cohort was closed but we plan to open the challenge annually. If you couldn’t participate in 2025, please contact the Climate Office and we will inform you about the possibilities of participation in future years. A comprehensive list of conditions for participation in the program can be found in the Climate Challenge Participant Guide below (only Slovak version).

Mayor Matúš Vallo:

„I am proud that 10 partners joined the Climate Challenge in the first year, expressing their confidence in our climate efforts.“

Challenge’s timeline

Participants are participating in two years of the challenge by submitting an application. During 2025, they will fulfill the goals of the first year and choose goals for 2026. During 2025, new participants will be able to apply for the second year of the challenge. You can find a detailed schedule of the pilot year in the downloadable documents below (only Slovak version).

November 29, 2024 Applications deadline

January 2025 Signing of the Memorandum of Cooperation and launch of the 1st year

2025 Fulfillment of the call objectives and support activities for participants

November 28, 2025 Applications deadline for the second year

March 2026 End of the first year

April 2026 Recognition Event with the Mayor

2026 Second year of the call