LOOK: Mayor Vico Sotto in Madrid as Pasig secures $1 million Bloomberg Philanthropies grant

Pasig City Mayor Vico Sotto joined fellow winners of the 2026 Bloomberg Mayors Challenge in Madrid, Spain, for the Bloomberg CityLab summit.

During the event, the winning mayors discussed strategies for scaling urban innovations and utilizing prize funding to enhance the quality of life for residents.

Last February, Bloomberg announced that Pasig City, under Sotto, won a $1 million grant from Bloomberg Philanthropies for its floating parks concept in flood-prone waterways to reduce overflow, add green space, and strengthen community ties.

Other winners include As-Salt, Jordan; Barcelona, Spain; Beira, Mozambique; Belfast, United Kingdom; Benin City, Nigeria; Boise, United States; Budapest, Hungary; Cape Town, South Africa; Cartagena, Colombia; Fez, Morocco; Fukuoka, Japan; Ghaziabad, India; Ghent, Belgium; Kanifing, The Gambia; Lafayette, United States; Medellín, Colombia; Netanya, Israel; Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; South Bend, United States; Surabaya, Indonesia; Toronto, Canada; Turku, Finland; and Visakhapatnam, India.

According to Bloomberg Philanthropies, the winning ideas were chosen for their "novelty, potential impact, and strength of implementation plans."

The $1 million grant will serve as "operational support and additional funding for dedicated staff to bring their ideas to life."

In a statement, the Pasig City Public Information Office expressed its gratitude to those who helped make the project possible.

"Ang pagkapanalong ito ay hudyat ng simula para sa pagsasakatuparan ng floating parks sa Lungsod ng Pasig sa tulong ng mga Pasigueño, mula sa pagpaplano, pagbuo, hanggang sa pag-manage at pag-operate ng mga ito, at iba pang sektor ng lipunan," it said.