.png)
.png)
Climate Week Zurich 2026: 15,000 participations recorded across 270+ events
Zurich, 18 May 2026 — Climate Week Zurich (CWZ) has successfully concluded its inaugural edition, marking a milestone moment for Europe’s climate agenda. From 4–9 May 2026, the city hosted a city‑wide programme of more than 270 events delivered by 244 partner organisations of all sectors and sizes.
Over 15,000 participations were recorded during the week, positioning CWZ as mainland Europe’s largest climate and sustainability platform already in its very first year.
A new European climate powerhouse
The inaugural edition brought together B2B and B2C audiences from business, finance, science, policy, culture and civil society to accelerate practical climate solutions and spark collaboration across sectors.
Almost 20% of all participations came from outside Switzerland, representing 70 different countries. Among Switzerland‑based participations, two‑thirds came from the Zurich region and one‑third from other Swiss regions.
“In May 2026, Zurich became Europe’s climate capital: 270 events, 244 partners and 15,000 participations made CWZ the largest climate and sustainability platform in mainland Europe – and this already in its inaugural edition. We showed how climate action can shape everyday life and business, and deliver real value in practice,” exclaimed Johannes Pokorny, Managing Director of Climate Week Zurich.
He added, “Now, the work continues: As we move beyond CWZ 2026 and look ahead to next year, we press ahead with building a cross‑sector platform accelerating scalable climate solutions that are driven by business, collaboration, and impact.”
From summits to festivals: a week of 270+ climate events
Across six days and more than 270 events, CWZ transformed Zurich into a city‑wide climate innovation stage. The programme – hosted at over 150 venues – spanned executive‑level summits, public festivals, workshops and panel discussions, investor pitch sessions, site visits showcasing cleantech innovations, guided tours in natural and urban settings, as well as a range of sports and film events.
More than 500 expert speakers contributed insights across the week, reflecting the breadth and depth of climate action represented at CWZ 2026.
Highlights included:
- Opening Ceremony at the Zurich Opera House, featuring keynotes from Johan Rockström, Sabine Keller-Busse, Balthasar Glättli, Leslie Johnston and others, alongside a powerful musical performance by artists of the Internationales Opernstudio Zurich Opera House.
- A week-long Exhibition Centre at Europaallee, located directly in front of Zurich’s main station, where thousands of passers-by experienced sustainability solutions and innovations up close.
- On Saturday, the #MoveTheDate festival, a full‑day celebration of tangible climate action for all ages with over 2000 participants.
A collaborative path to long‑term economic resilience
Zurich has firmly joined the world’s major climate hubs with a model built on collaboration, innovation and measurable impact. Switzerland’s strengths – from research excellence to financial leadership and a thriving climate‑tech ecosystem – make the city a natural home for a European climate week of global relevance.
Johan Rockström, keynote speaker at the Opening Ceremony and Director of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, said, “Economic prosperity and ecological stability are fundamentally interdependent, and Climate Week Zurich, at the heart of Europe, comes at a critical time. Science, business, and policy need to work together to drive the systemic transformation required to stay within our planetary boundaries – while strengthening long-term economic resilience and prosperity.”
Impact at the core
CWZ introduced two unique dimensions to the concept of climate weeks: Firstly, a model of centralised programme curation paired with decentralised event organisation, ensuring high‑quality content and credible, well‑matched audiences across all 270 events.
Secondly, CWZ embeds impact measurement at its core: a dedicated framework will track outcomes in the short term (post‑week), medium term (nine months) and long term, ensuring that outputs from the week translate into tangible progress and that future editions build on evidence‑based results.
Nic Meyer, Board Chair of Climate Week Zurich, reinforced the vision of a business- and impact-driven climate platform: “At CWZ 2026, we clearly showed that sustainability and economic success reinforce each other. Climate Week Zurich exists to host a collaborative environment that transforms sustainability into a real competitive edge for organisations and individuals of every sector and scale.”
A collective effort across sectors
Climate Week Zurich was made possible thanks to the commitment of its sponsors:
- ecoinvent, GreenBuzz, and UBS (platinum);
- EY, Google, HeadsQuarter, InTent, responsAbility, and S&P Global (gold);
- Argus Data Insights, Nestlé, Rent.Group, Schindler, City of Zurich, Swiss Re, and Zurich Insurance (silver); and
- Burson, CRIF, MSCI, Sustainserv, SV, and Swiss Life Asset Managers (bronze).
In total, 244 organisations – from corporates and start‑ups to academia, NGOs, cultural institutions and public bodies – came together to bring CWZ 2026 to life, underscoring the collaborative spirit at its core.
***
Images: see Download Centre or contact us
Media contact: Sophie Dres │ media@climateweekzurich.org │ +4176 805 2111
About Climate Week Zurich
Climate Week Zurich is Europe’s leading business-driven climate platform – bringing together business leaders, policymakers, researchers, creatives and innovators to co-create and scale smart climate action.
CWZ isn't just a conference: It’s a week-long, city-wide takeover featuring hundreds of events curated for a 'glocal' audience. In its inaugural edition in May 2026, Zurich hosted 270+ events showcasing how we can accelerate climate impact in everyday life and business. Save the date for next year: 10–15 May 2027!
More than 240 partner organisations from every sector and scale come together to move the needle on concrete and measurable solutions for climate mitigation, resilience and adaptation.
We're shaping tomorrow, together: climateweekzurich.org │ LinkedIn │ Instagram
