Product innovation

Parque Central da Asprela is being designed by a team of specialists who see the great challenge of hydrographic control of Ribeira da Asprela and all other surrounding streams as an opportunity to create a unique landscape space in Porto, pleasant not only for the enjoyment of population but also as a crossing solution (pedestrian or cycling) for the academic community that daily studies and works in this area of ​​the city. The park is part of the green lung of the city. This NBS is a continuation of an action implemented in 2015 by the Municipality of Porto that had in mind the creation of a park which eventually had to be renovated and integrated and this is how this new NBS came to be implemented. (1)

The experimental green facade system consisting of four different types of green wall was installed in Nurnberg from 2013 until 2016 on Adolf-Braun-Strasse 33 and is an integrated greening system that enables self-sufficient, low-maintenance "hanging gardens" on facades and other vertical walls. The aim of the project is to experiment with recreating green spaces in the streets, asphalt surfaces, and backyards of some parts of Nuremberg overcoming numerous constraints and competing uses (1) The implementation has helped improve air quality, thermal insulation, wind and rain protection and lowering local temperatures in its proximity. (2)

After relevant local regulations had been adapted and allowed for keeping apiaries in the city of Białystok, in 2016, the Institute of Biology at the University of Bialystok put six beehives on its rooftop. The initiative aims at increasing biodiversity and pollination in the city. It promotes beekeeping and sustainable production and consumption patterns, and the honey is a brand product of the University [1,3,4].

The Podlasie Opera and Philharmonic – European Art Centre in Białystok ("green opera") in Białystok, is known for its green roofs, green walls and extensive gardens, which perfectly harmonize with the surroundings. The green area serves as a platform for cultural events and successfully promotes the city. Opera gardens are divided into several levels with lawns, walking paths, bridges, sculptures, and small ponds. Different green elements of the building reduce heat effect and noise, increase the thermal insulation of the building, improve local biodiversity and limit rain drainage to the city centre [1].

In 2014, students, instructors and representatives of an appropriate company built a "small green roof" on the balcony above the entrance to the Department of Architecture at the Bialystok University of Technology. The initiative was a part of the "Green City by nature" project - a nationwide educational campaign about nature-based urban solutions. It took only 5 hours to unfold the roll of grass and prepare the ground for all year thuja and vines [1,2].

As part of a larger project, this project aimed at creating a vertical garden in the Levante Square, in the Deustro neighborhood, the city of Bilbao. The intervention was initiated by the Bilbao's municipality in 2016 and aimed at creating a green area that was a bit unconventional and artistic at the same time. The landscape design incorporates local elements such as the trawlers, the cliffs of the Cantabrian coast and the local architecture, integrating nature and tradition (Ref 1).

Abandoibarra is an area of ​​the town of Bilbao, next to the Bilbao estuary, sizing ​​348,500 square meters. Abandoibarra has been the industrial zone of Bilbao, where shipyards and other companies related to the industrial sector were located. Building upon the 1997 master plan completed by Balmori Associates, Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects and Aguinaga y Asociados, the area has been reinvented as an international cultural district and tourist destination. Two-thirds of the 30-hectare site is dedicated to parks and open spaces, creating a public oasis and grounds for a suite of buildings by master architects (Ref 1,2).

Vertical Garden is a 110 m2 garden installed in 2015 by Singular Green in front of the Hotel HM Tropical, as an outdoor project. (Ref 1) In October 2016, there was another 100m2 of garden installed. In 2020, there are also other companies that are trying to install vertical gardens on the island (Ref 4). There are special plants that were chosen due to its adaptive characteristics, as well as a special arrangement of the plants for aesthetics (Ref 1).

The drought-tolerant garden was established by Portsmouth Water at its Head Office entrance in 2007. The plants in the garden, all of which require little or no watering, were chosen to be visually stimulating whilst contributing colour, scent and variation in leaf texture and shape (1). This garden has been designed to be drought-tolerant, easily maintained and can take some wear and tear. The planting reflects the changing seasons with something of interest all year. None of the plants is difficult to grow and is easily obtainable (2).

The Salitre Garden was a public park inaugurated in 1994 and built around the area of the former gunpowder factory. For this reason, it is also known as the Garden of Gunpowder (Ref 2). It is a green space planned in the urban centre, that has gone through different rehabilitation and remodelling stages. The first one was in 1987 when the land was bought by the municipality and made into the park (Ref 2 and 3). The second one was in 2012 by covering a green space around the powder factory (Ref 5). Another one was the inclusion of a new green labyrinth was installed in 2017 (Ref 4). The last one was in 2020 when a new botanical garden will be created on the island, with an open-air gym and a children's area (Ref 8).