Public regional budget

Wertach Vital is a project to reconstitute the Wertach river between the southern Augsburg limits and its confluence with the river Lech. Starting from the south, the flood protection has been improved, the depth of the river bottom has been halted, the river bed has been expanded and the banks have been upgraded as a recreational area. A major part of the measures has been completed. The project is supported by the Free State of Bavaria and the City of Augsburg, co-financed by the EU (Ref. 1).

'Groene Mient' (Green Commons) is a citizen initiative that realized an exceptional social-ecological residential project consisting of three housing buildings of energy neutral homes and a 3,500 m2 communal garden (1,6). Storm water is captured from the roofs of the buildings into bioswales, permeable paving is applied, the shared garden is 'eatable' and houses run on sustainable energy (1). The houses do not have a gas connection and have three different sustainable energy systems: heat pump with heat-cold storage, solar boiler or electric heating (6).

The ‘Mountain Forest Initiative’ was launched in 2009 by the Bavarian Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Forestry to restore the protective function of the vulnerable alpine forest in light of climate change, and was ongoing until 2014. To create a general sense of ownership in the process, the Mountain Forest Initiative sought the involvement of different stakeholders at the local level (e.g., private forest owners, land-use related authorities, hunters, nature conservationists, and tourism associations) (Ref. 1).

The acronym VERDIR stands for Sustainable Rehabilitation and Responsible Innovation (Valorisation de l’Environnement par la Réhabilitation Durable et l’Innovation Responsable) and is a project of the University of Liège, about the development of local economic activities based on urban and peri-urban agriculture. It aims to convert existing brownfield sites according to the needs of the population. This involves the large-scale production of vegetables and plants which can be used for food but also for the pharmaceutical industry and the production of biomass, which is increasingly needed (Ref. 1).

The Environmental Conditioning Project of the surroundings of the Contraparada (Murcia) intends to environmentally recover one of the most emblematic cultural places in Murcia while enhancing a social and educational use of the area. The project intends to recover and regenerate the river ecosystem, which has practically disappeared and make it easy to visit and to contemplate. This intervention includes the creation of the infrastructure of education and research purposes. It is part the first of a four steps project to recover La Contraparada as a natural and cultural location (Ref 1).

"Formerly a 10 hectare market gardening site, the Repainville area is rich in environmental potential: ponds, streams, springs ... the aquatic environment is present everywhere. There is a great variety of fauna and flora. As an ecosystem that is particularly rare in urban areas, protection and recovery measures are being undertaken" (Ref. 1). The restoration of the wetland of Repainville is part of a flagship project of the municipality in terms of safeguarding biodiversity in urban areas. With arrangements allowing the public to walk there without harming the biological and natural diversity of the place, the site has an educational dimension in order in particular to make young audiences aware of the preservation of the ecosystem (Ref. 7).

Located in the south of the town, this garden is an ideal place for family walks. Very popular, it also responds to a scientific vocation for the conservation of plant species from the five continents. In the spring of 2013, the Jardin des Plantes was enriched by a honey garden with a pedagogical vocation, which houses plants whose juice is used by bees to produce honey. The City of Rouen undertook the renovation of historic greenhouses, work on which was completed in 2019. The objective is to enhance the treasures of this extraordinary greenery (Ref. 1). "The collections reach more than 6000 species and the garden contributes to the development of sciences, to the preparation of medical students and to the dissemination of species, thanks to the exchange of seeds" (Ref. 10).

Birkenhead Park is one of the most important public parks in Britain. It is registered Grade I in English Heritage’s Register of Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest. In 2002 to 2007, funding was made available to restore the park, and now in 2017 a master plan aims to further “enhance and secure” the park. (Ref. 1, 2, 3). Birkenhead park is considered the first publicly funded park in the world, and not only holds the Grade I in English Heritage’s Register of Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest award but also the Green Flag award. (Ref 6, 7, 8)

The Sand Motor is a hook-shaped peninsula that is artificially created at the coast near The Hague in order to protect the coast on the long-term. Not only provides the Sand Motor coastal protection, but it also allows for new forms of recreation and supports biodiversity as it creates habitat and allows for more varieties of species to live in the area. The Sand Motor is a unique pilot project in coastal management and follows the principle of 'building with nature' (1).

The Center for Initiatives for an Ecological Transition (CITE ASBL) developed an eco-center; a center of demonstration of the techniques respectful of the environment, that functions as an educational community garden. They wanted to create an ecologically-managed and user-friendly green space, that is conducive to the exchange of knowledge and skills but also to mutual aid and dialogue (Ref. 1). Located on the meadow of the Bâneux, in the Saint-léonard district of Liège, the eco-center is integrated in the eastern part of the slopes of the citadel of Liège. (The plot of the eco-center is located on the vestiges of the old coal mine of Bâneux that was closed in 1942.) .Characteristics of the place include proximity to a multicultural urban center, post-industrial environment, accessible by public transport, natural area of tourist interest (Ref. 2).