The challenges of the climate change, environmental degradation and sustainability are becoming ever more pressing. In response to those issues, the European Union has launched an ambitious strategy known as the Green Deal. The aim of this strategy is to transform the European economy into a more sustainable and environmentally friendly one. Within the Green Deal, public administration employees play a key role in the implementation and enforcement of policies related to sustainable development. This article briefly discusses the competences that public administration employees should have in the context of the Green Deal challenges, focusing on the results of the work on a pan-European Competence Manual developed by the Capable project – Capacity building for public administration in the area of public building renovation.