Cultural innovation

The restoration of the Nesttun watercourse was made in order to secure the watercourse’s surroundings against damaging floods and to develop its urban qualities as a blue/green structure traversing this part of the city. The City of Bergen has exploited possibilities in flood control measures to develop the watercourse’s natural qualities and improve accessibility. A number of measures were completed in order to give the watercourse a positive ecological status and make it into an attractive recreation corridor, learning arena and secure ‘blue-green’ urban structure. (Ref 1, 2)

In 2007 the Lisboa City Hall began the development of a strategy for urban agriculture, having created in 2011 several allotment parks. Beyond the provision of plots, the Council also provided the fences, shelters for storage, water irrigation, training and technical support. In 2011 there were already 56 plots of 150 m2 at a location named Granja Farm (2)

Just outside a densely built-up area in Bergen, a 6km nature-trail is being built. The trail brings citizens closer to nature and gives great opportunities for recreation. The trail runs up on the mountains and into the forest, and at selected points along the trail there are beautiful look-outs, picnic areas and places for children to play. Løvstien is being built with materials and a design that will tolerate high levels of rainfall, as Bergen is experiencing a lot of rain, and are projected to get even more over the coming decades due to climate change. (Ref. 1,3)

A previous mining site was redeveloped into the Puits Couriot Park-Museum of Mining. "A first part of the park was opened to the public in 2006. Since then, the developments have followed one another and others are to come in the near future, among others, the footbridge spanning the railway line" (Ref. 5). The park was redesigned from 2014-2017 with the intention to preserve the historical heritage of this museum of the mine. "The park Joseph Sanguedolce (or also mentioned as Couriot Park) is designed to meet the usages of all, in a gentle logic of appropriation of the site by nature, conducive to walking and relaxation. The large lawn is maintained for sporting activities or relaxing in the grass, in the sun ..." (Ref. 3).

"Tirone Alto Vesuvio" is a park situated within the Vesuvio area in Naples, this area was recently qualified as an eco-campus (green infrastructure), a project realized in 2011 according to the European guidelines for sustainable tourism. In particular, the eco-campus has the goal to promote sustainable and zero-impact sports activities, in order to spread awareness on ecological issues. In addition, it provides important health benefits and social and cultural advantages (Ref.1).

The green wall was built as a pilot project in cooperation between the national government, the University of Genova and the Ecosystemic Research Group with the aim to assess urban air pollution. The wall is being monitored to understand which plant species are the most ideal for carbon sequestration in cities (2 and 3).

The urban development project between Little Lungegård Lake and Big Lungegård Lake (Store Lungegårdsvann) involves the creation of a canal between the two lakes as a means of runoff management, among other things. Water quality and flood protection are fundamental issues that are considered in this project as the city is expecting increased levels of precipitation due to climate change. The rest of the urban area will be transformed into an attractive modern city centre area with water as the most important element (Ref 1, 4).

In 2019, the city of Poznań finalized works on another city park, as a part of its long-term urban redevelopment plan. When designing the park, the focus was on creating a place for relaxing and recreation for all residents - regardless of what forms of activity and relaxation they prefer. Therefore, the entire area has been divided into zones adapted to different needs, be it for active adults, children, or dog owners. The park comprises of an extensive lawn and is separated from a noisy street by a corridor of trees. Everything is lit with solar lamps [1,2,5].

The Jardin des Plantes represents a space rich in nature in the heart of the city and also hosts the Opera Theater of Saint-Etienne (Ref. 2). In 2015, "A thematic urban commission (with the citizens' district representatives) is set up to enhance the "Jardin des Plantes" while keeping its wild side but with a controlled vegetation." For instance, the social center proposed a fitness trail and elected representatives propose a signage of trees, the integration of design, thanks to urban furniture and ephemeral works" (Ref. 1). Citizens requested that vegetation of walls be undertaken to "avoid the flourish of unattractive tags" (Ref. 1).

In the course of 7 years from 2010, the Newcastle City Council's budget for Parks has been cut by 90%. A public consultation was carried out in partnership with the National Trust and National Lottery Heritage Fund, on the proposed transfer of the operation, delivery and maintenance of parks and allotments from the government to a new Charitable Trust (Charity). Under the new governing model, the land would remain owned by Newcastle City Council, and the trust would be able to generate additional revenue to maintain the parks. (1, 2, 3). The proposal was accepted and the Urban Green Newcastle, an independent charity was formed in 2019, taking over the management and maintenance of the 33 parks and 61 allotment sites in Newcastle upon Tyne. (10)
Urban Green Newcastle generates its own revenue to pay for operations via fundraising, grants and commercial activities which then are reinvested back into the parks and allotments. The aim is to cover the annual running costs of £2m pounds. (10)