Ongoing

The Faktory project claims to be the first European smart greenhouse, located in the Science Park of Liege. The building serves as a Private Incubator of young start-ups focusing on tech, but it has sustainability goals, too; it is a showcase of urban agriculture, there is biodiversity integration, and the plants produced in the building contribute to supplying the cafeteria (Ref. 1).

The entire neighbourhood area was calling for interventions, considering the conditions of decay of this part of the city. The initiative was requested by the residents of the area, in particular considering the state of plants and trees. What needs to be provided is a new surface of grass to replace the terrain on the ground to avoid problems of flooding and new plantations. The park has an important function in terms of mitigation of anthropogenic pressures, but also in terms of social value for the residents. (Ref.1.)

The project was started by a group of local people with the aim of turning a barren piece of land into allotments. The aim was to benefit residents/members of the public by growing their own (local) food (and learning e.g. how to grow fruit, vegetables, and flowers for wildlife as well as bee-keeping). 29 allotments were created. (Ref. 1, 2, 3)

'Proeftuin Erasmusveld' is a new and sustainable urban residential area in The Hague. It will be a new nature-inclusive, energy-efficient, car-free neighbourhood that is created for plants, animals and people promoting healthy living (1). As of November 2020, The building of the neighbourhood with its unique houses and buildings is still in progress (1).

Currently, the area is an 'experimental area' for all kinds of sustainability initiatives that may be used for the realization of the neighbourhood, including self-sufficient 'tiny houses' and urban farmland (1,2). The ambition for Erasmusveld is to become a leading sustainable neighbourhood with a sustainable water system, the use of sustainable energy and a vegetable garden with high connectedness between citizens (4).

The association Legambiente Catania has presented a project to protect and enhance the biodiversity of the Cibali forest, a natural reserve in Catania close to the volcano Etna. The area has been subjected to strong anthropogenic pressures in the last decades, and the area is home of several species of flora and fauna. The main aim of this intervention Is to protect endangered species and to preserve the services the forest provides in terms of air quality regulation and heat mitigation. In addition, the entire zone is a cultural heritage for the whole island (Ref.1.)

North Wirral Coastal Rangers and volunteers are working together to plant discarded Christmas trees to stabilise sand dunes between Leasowe Bay and the Gunsite area of the North Wirral Coastal Park. The Christmas trees help to catch and trap sand blowing in from the beach and in a few years will create artificial dune shapes, benefiting plants and animals. (Ref. 1)

In 2016 the Rangers and volunteers undertook a dune restoration project at the Gunsite. They advertised for the public to drop off their old Christmas trees at a collection point. The trees were then used to reinforce the dunes and trap sand. This was very successful and in 2017 they continued with the project, again with great success. In 2018 they ran a high profile social media campaign using Twitter and Facebook, asking for more Christmas Trees. This has generated a huge response and generated over 900 trees. It also prompted Radio Merseyside to interview Dave Stevenson, the Coastal Ranger, over the project and how it was helping to stabilize and re-establish the dunes (Ref 8).

The Natural Park of Augsburg - Western Forests covers a 1,200 square kilometer of the natural area. Founded in 2007, the park aims at preservation and development the natural biotopes in the area. As a supplier of timber, as a guarantor for clean air and pure water, and last but not least for recreation seekers, it is of outstanding importance in Bavarian Swabia (Ref. 1).

This NBS is implemented on a nature reserve site, Ciuperceni-Desa, a protected area that has habitat types with natural eutrophic lakes, oligotrophic seawaters, panonic salty marshes, sandy panonic meadows, low altitude meadows, clusters of walnut vegetation and white poplar and cultivated arable land. In 2016 the Romanian Government alongside an NGO developed a plan for its protection and conservation since locals complained that it is not taken care off accordingly, that the area became a dump for people to trow their garbage and that it affects the species (1, 2)

Sofia is Europe's most polluted capital and the World Health Organization alarmed that Bulgaria ranks second in the world in terms of deaths due to air pollution per capita. In response to that, the coalition Sofia - Green Capital planned to buy neglected urban land and plant an Urban Forest in order to restore the green passes that lead the fresh air from the mountain to the city. The Urban Forest is expected to improve the air quality, sequestrate carbon emissions, and also provide a place for walks and play. (Ref. 1; Ref. 2). The planting process started in 2018 and around nearly 60,000 saplings were planted over 225 acres by over 6,500 volunteers and over 50 companies joined in. (Ref 7, 8)

Wirral Waters is the largest regeneration project in the UK. It will transform over 500 acres of the Birkenhead docklands into an internationally recognizable destination (where e.g. innovation and sustainability will thrive). (Ref. 1, 2). While the whole project will take up to 30 years to finish, the first phase has started in 2019 and building work has begun on three projects which will bring 1,000 homes and breathe new life into 500 acres of former dockland in the town. £220 million will be invested in the next three to four years alone in an effort to build high quality, high-density accommodation with lots of green space and employment opportunities close by (Ref 10,11).