Postdoctoral student of Ecology at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki Nefta-Eleftheria Votsi has been awarded the European Soundscape Award 2014 for her research on developing a new practical and low-cost methodology for identifying "quiet (noise-free) places." The Award was launched by the European Environment Agency (EEA) together with the Noise Abatement Societies in the The Netherlands and the United Kingdom to raise awareness about the health impacts of noise and to reward European initiatives that can help reduce excessive noise.

According to Votsi’s research, 16% of Greece’s territory can be identified as "quiet, meaning free of noise caused by human activity. These are primarily mountainous areas at the Mounts of Pindos and Rodopi. Votsi’s methodology can be used to identify such "quiet zones" all over Europe.

Irish artist Sven Anderson was also awarded for his proposal to create a Manual for Acoustic Planning and Urban Sound Design.