Green space and habitat

In 2014, a high school in the center of Craiova decided to transform a part of its space into a vegetable garden, National Pedagogical College "Stefan Velovan". The initiative is the only one implemented in the region and aims not only at teaching children about the benefits of bio food but also aims to save consumption costs (1, 3).

The largest park that Craiova has (third in Europe and second in Romania), the Nicolae Romanescu park is a historical area which includes green space, a hippodrome, a lake and a zoo. In 2015 the park went into rehabilitation with money allocated by the EU (1).

Forests fulfil several important climate functions, they are carbon sinks, regulate the local climate or buffer heatwaves and cloudbursts. Based on climate projections, longer dry periods are to be expected during summer months which have major implications for local humid forests. The “fit for climate change” project was initiated to develop and implement climate adaptation measures for the latter, for instance via hydrological regulation, the use and reinstatement of resilient, adapted tree species or revitalizing moors and swamps. It was administered by the regional forestry authority and the nature conservation station Münster (Ref. 1 and 2).

The Restoration of degraded wetlands in Wolfschlugen (in the administrative district of Stuttgart) was conducted within the wider regional level of sustainable urban development to enhance resilience, protect the city from flooding, support sustainable development, and safeguard biodiversity. Ditches and craters line the 700 metres long and 50 - 70 metres wide strip of landscape northeast of the development boundary behind the Wolfschlugen forest cemetery. This is formed by the Riederwiesen, which absorb water to protect the place from flooding. The wetland should protect people at least during a so-called hundred-year flood and at the same time offer animals and plants a habitat. (ref 3, 11)

At the primary school Laterna Magica, a green rainproof playground was created that is effective in stormwater retention, reduces soil erosion, supports biodiversity and provides education possibilities for the children. The playground consists of bioswales, terraces, diverse and pollen-rich vegetation and a vegetable garden. (1,2)

The Garden Janine (formerly called Jardin Nouveau) group is participating in the "Aix en Transition" initiative, which wants to increase food and energy resilience in order to better prepare for the future. This group initiated and supported the establishment of a vegetable garden benefiting homeless people, hosted in the Humanitarian Division of the "Jas de Bouffan" district (Ref. 1). A garden was previously cultivated on the area, but had become dilapidated. In 2019, much of the area was repurposed as an orchard as the vegetable garden was deemed to require too much continual presence/labour (Ref. 6).

“The Went Water Vole Project, a two year project working with local people and landowners throughout the River Went catchment to secure the future survival for one of the most significant water vole populations in West Yorkshire. Work also involves carry out habitat restoration and creation schemes across the area to link up isolated water vole colonies and encourage the re-population of some of their old ranges.” (Ref. 1)

The Sunderland Greenspace Audit explained the city's green space in detail and set guidelines and standards that will help to ensure that all areas of the city have a range of quality green spaces available to them. Hereby the Sunderland City Council wished to improve the green public spaces to retain existing residents and attract new ones, to enhance the image of the city and for it to be used as a means to attract future investment in the form of new shops and jobs (Ref 1).

The green initiative 'Oost Indisch Groen' (East Indian Green) is a citizen initiative to make the neighbourhood more sustainable, fun and healthy by means of active citizenship. The key NBS initiative is the neighbourhood garden ('Buurttuin Oost Indisch Groen') in which vegetables are grown with a community kitchen that supports social cohesion and that also gives space for an educational workshop on gardening and sustainability-related topics (1, 6,7)

The Aa promenade, created in 1950 to provide the citizens of Muenster with a green experience trail in the inner city, was redeveloped in the 90s with several planting measures on riverbanks, walls and in adjacent areas. Next to a brochure, a nature trail which combines the existing recreational with an educational component was created with 18 site-specific signposting points. They cover multiple benefits and ecological functions of urban green spaces, city trees and green facades/walls (microclimate regulation, air quality, CO2 capture), anthropogenic threats, unknown biodiversity hotspots and natural monuments (Ref. 1, 3 and 6).