1. General information Location and description of the intervention City or FUA Berlin (FUA) Region Europe Native title of the NBS intervention Begrünte Fassade in Kreuzberg Short description of the intervention The project features a vertical garden, or "living wall," on the facade of a residential building in Berlin’s Kreuzberg district. Constructed in 2016, the building replaced a WWII-damaged plot situated between two existing structures. With a strong emphasis on sustainability, the project minimizes its ecological footprint in various ways. The 660-square-meter plot retained original elements of the location’s history: the two surviving sections along Glogauer and Reichenberger Strasse were restored after the war, while the rubble from the destroyed corner was used to fill in the basement. This approach allowed the new construction to be built over the original foundations, preserving historical integrity while reducing construction costs and material use. At the core of the building’s design is a green agenda, embodied in the vertical garden that helps absorb noise and pollution from the bustling street below, improving air quality for residents and passersby. The selection of winter-hardy plants ensures that the facade remains green year-round, while also cooling the surrounding area and mitigating the urban heat effect, which is especially valuable in densely populated neighborhoods. The greenery contributes to the local microclimate, providing both environmental and aesthetic benefits. For residents, the garden is made accessible through rectangular box balconies that project from the green wall, allowing them to engage closely with the plants and enjoy the immersive garden atmosphere. The plants grow on a support structure that is securely anchored in the brickwork, receiving water and nutrients through an integrated, precision-controlled irrigation and fertilization system. Maintenance of the plants occurs twice a year, with new additions planted each spring to maintain the garden’s health and visual appeal. The building itself, privately owned, contains a mix of holiday rentals and residential apartments. Architect Sarah Revière designed the project. (1-6) Website of the intervention https://www.sarahrivierearchitect.com/de/architektur-urbanes-wohnhaus-mit-begru… Principal problems Climate-Related Hazards Heat stress & Extreme temperatures Environmental Degradation Air pollution Other Please specify other principal problem Traffic noise in urban areas (1) Implementation area characterization Climate Continental (Cold-summer humid continental, Cold-winter dry continental, Cold-summer dry continental) Ecosystem Urban or built environment Address Reichenberger Straße / Glogauer Straße 10999 Berlin Germany Location The NBS is situated in an area, with clear delineation of boundaries and a specific shape (polygon). The NBS project can also have more than one area location (more than one polygon, situated close by). Area boundary (map-based) NBS area image Source of NBS area image Source: https://www.google.com/maps/place/Reichenberger+Str.+86,+10999+Berlin,+Germany/@52.492367,13.4365995,127a,35y,45t/data=!3m1!1e3!4m6!3m5!1s0x47a84fb2f6f08abf:0x40372c2a27759a2a!8m2!3d52.4933849!4d13.4368672!16s%2Fg%2F11s1xb6_0p?entry=ttu&g_ep=EgoyMDI0MTExMi4wIKXMDSoASAFQAw%3D%3D Total area 660.00m² NBS area 200.00m² Area description Urban (main city) Type of area before implementation of the NBS Building Please specify “other type of area” before implementation of the NBS Private car park (1) Timeline of intervention Start date of the intervention (planning process) 2014 Start date of intervention (implementation process) 2016 End date of the intervention 2016 Present stage of the intervention Completed 2. Objectives of the intervention Objectives of the intervention Goals of the intervention To make a positive ecological contribution to the neighborhood To provide a remedy against overheating, traffic pollution, and noise To enhance life in the surrounding Kreuzberg neighborhood by addressing urban planning, social, ecological, and community aspects To provide accessible green space for tenants of the apartments (1-4) Key Priorities Climate action (adaptation and/or mitigation) Social Justice and community Sustainability challenge(s) addressed Climate action for adaptation, resilience and mitigation (SDG 13) Climate change adaptation Environmental quality Air quality improvement Noise reduction Green space, habitats and biodiversity (SDG 15) Green space creation and/or management Regeneration, land-use and urban development Promote natural styles of landscape design for urban development Social justice, cohesion and equity (SDG 10) Social justice and equity Climate change adaptation: What activities are implemented to realize the conservation goals and targets? Increase urban vegetation cover to reduce urban heat island effect Habitats and biodiversity conservation: What types of conservation goals are / were defined for the NBS intervention? No information provided regarding the goals of the intervention. Habitats and biodiversity conservation: What activities are implemented to realize the conservation goals and targets? Create new habitats Implementation activities and NBS focus Implementation activities The new residential building on the corner of Glogauer and Reichenberger Strasse in Berlin features green roofs on both facades, enhancing the building’s ecological footprint and contributing to the local environment. A redesigned backyard provides a protected garden with play areas for residents and children, offering a safe and vibrant community space. A ramp leading to new basement stairs expands bicycle parking options in the revitalized basement area, promoting sustainable urban living. The building's facade is planted with hardy, perennial greenery, including various grasses and herbs, to foster local biodiversity and reduce heat. This vertical garden is maintained twice a year, with fresh plants introduced each spring to keep the foliage lush and thriving. Balconies constructed on the facade allow residents to be surrounded by greenery, giving them direct access to the garden atmosphere from their homes. Architect Sarah Revière designed the project, and it was brought to life by a Berlin-based architecture firm. (1, 3, 5, 6) Type of NBS project Creation of new green areas Creation of green roofs and walls 3. NBS domains, ES and scale NBS domain and interventions Ecological domain(s) where the NBS intervention(s) is/are implemented Nature on buildings (external) Green walls or facades Amenities offered by the NBS Unknown Design elements for well-being Visual elements (e.g., expansive views, scenic views, natural light, diverse vegetation) Services Expected ecosystem services delivered Regulating services Local climate regulation (temperature reduction) Air quality regulation Noise reduction Cultural services Aesthetic appreciation Scale Spatial scale Sub-microscale: Street scale (including buildings) Beneficiaries Demographics in implementation area The project is located in Berlin-Kreuzberg. The average age of citizens is 39, and 293.454 people live in Kreuzberg in total as of 2023 (Ref. 8). In 2019, more than 126.000 people from over 170 countries around the world were counted among the inhabitants of the district (Ref. 9). Socio-economic profile of the area Unknown Communities vulnerable to environmental hazards or climate change impacts Unknown Non-government actors Private sector/Corporate/Business Citizens or community groups Primary Beneficiaries Citizens or community groups Other Please specify "other primary beneficiary" Tourists, some apartments in the house are rented out as holiday homes. (1) Specify primary beneficiaries The building's design and green wall aims to enrich life in the surrounding Kreuzberg neighbourhood in a number of ways - in terms of urban planning, social, ecological and neighbourly aspects, whereby the community in the district is a beneficiary (Ref. 3). With the balconies enabling a close connection to the plants, the residents of the house and apartments are another beneficiary. As some flats are rented out as holiday homes, tourists and tenants (citizens) renting them can be identified as beneficiaries (Ref. 1; Ref. 4). Marginalized groups Unknown Other beneficiaries Local wildlife (e.g., birds, pollinators) Ecosystem services (e.g. improved air quality, water purification) 4. Governance and financing Governance Governance arrangements Led by non-government actors Please specify other non-government actors involved Official client/house owner (1) Please specify the roles of the specific government and non-government actor groups involved in the initiative The project was designed and implemented by two different architect offices. The official clients for the construction of the building and the wall are the two owners of the house. Two companies were respectively responsible for the greening of the wall and for providing the outer construction and frame for the plants. (Ref. 5; Ref. 6) Key actors - initiating organization Citizens or community group Private sector/corporate actor/company Please specify other key actors – Initiating organization House owners/individuals (1) Key actors - Other stakeholders involved (besides initiating actors) Private sector/corporate actor/company Please specify other Key actors - Other stakeholders involved Tourists and Tenants of the apartments Stages of citizen and community engagement Unknown Level of citizen and community engagement Unknown Community empowerment or capacity-building initiatives Unknwon Participatory methods/forms of stakeholder involvement (all stakeholders) Co-planning (e.g. stakeholder workshops, focus groups, participatory mapping) Joint implementation (e.g. tree planting) Uncommon actors ("Missing actors") Unknown Land owners Other Please specify other landowner Two individuals who own the house and therefore the land of the project (1) Policy drivers NBS intervention implemented in response to a Regional Directive/Strategy Unknown NBS intervention implemented in response to a national regulations/strategy/plan Unknown NBS intervention implemented in response to a local regulation/strategy/plan Unknown Mandatory or voluntary intervention Unknown Enablers & Barriers Type of enablers Change agents (individual with major role influence on launching) Please provide details (e.g, name of the plan or strategy) for the selected policies or initiatives. Two house owners, David Evans and Charles Skinner (Ref. 6) Governace and decison-making instruments Unknown Arrangements for governance cooperation Unknown Barriers Increased costs and limited financial resources, due to currency changes as an effect of Brexit. (Ref. 7) Financing Total cost Unknown Please specify total cost (EUR) Unknown What is/was the Cost/Budget (EUR) of the NBS or green infrastructure elements? n/a Source(s) of funding Private funding by citizens Type of fund(s) used Direct funding (grants, subsidies, or self-financed projects by private entities) Non-financial contribution Yes Who provided the non-financial contribution? Citizens (e.g. volunteering) Type of non-financial contribution Provision of land Co-finance for NBS No Entrepreneurship opportunities No Business models Business models Green densification model Which of the involved actors was motivated by this model? Citizens / local communities 5. Evaluation and learning Impacts, benefits Environmental impacts Climate change Lowered local temperature Expected lowered local temperature Environmental quality Improved air quality Expected improved air quality Reduced noise exposure Expected reduced noise exposure Green space and habitat Increased number of species present Expected increased number of species present Description of environmental benefits --Expected lowered local temperature : "The natural building material brick regulates both room temperature and humidity perfectly and ensures a pleasant living climate all year round" (3) Improved air quality: "By absorbing nitrogen oxides and reducing particulate matter, the so-called ‘Living Wall’ leads to a significant improvement in the microclimate of the street." (Ref. 3) Reduced noise exposure: "With an ecological future in mind and as part of a green agenda for the building, a vertical ‘living wall’ was built on the Glogauer Strasse side - a planted façade that absorbs traffic nuisance and noise from the neighbouring streets." (Ref. 6) --Expected increased number of species present: "The vertical green wall is made habitable via the balconies from the first to fourth floors of Glogauer Strasse. You are practically standing in the middle of the garden on the balconies. Hardy plants were selected for the "living wall" and are watered and fertilized using a precisely controlled irrigation system. " (1) Environmental impact indicators Green space area created (in ha) 0.02 Economic impacts Unknown Description of economic benefits Unknown Social and cultural impacts Social justice and cohesion Improved liveability Expected improved liveability Improved access to urban green space Expected improved access to urban green space Description of social and cultural benefits --Expected improved access to urban green space/--Expected improved liveability : "The design aims to build a residential building that enriches life in the surrounding Kreuzberg neighborhood in many ways - urban, social, ecological and neighborly." ; "Overall, we as a team have created a project that will benefit the residents of the building and the people from the surrounding area in the long term." (3) Evidence for use of assessment Presence of an assessment, evaluation and/or monitoring process Unknown Presence of indicators used in reporting No evidence in public records Presence of monitoring/evaluation reports No evidence in public records Availability of a web-based monitoring tool No evidence in public records Name of any specific impact assessment tools Unknown Use of GIS in mapping impacts No evidence in public records Cost-benefit analysis Unknown Transparency Unknown Justice Community satisfaction Positive: The majority of feedback and reports indicate high levels of satisfaction and appreciation for the NBS project within the community. Description of locals satisfaction with the project One source stated that the project enjoys popularity in the community (Ref. 5). Trade-offs & Negative impacts Unknown Emphasis of existing social inequalities or injustices No information reported related to negative social justice-related impacts of the NBS project Measures to prevent gentrification or displacement Unknown High-quality & Transformative NBS Multiple impacts delivery (climate, biodiversity, just community) Yes Goal setting and impacts delivery No, although benefits were delivered in all the 3 key areas, but in the planning phase, the project did not aim to address issues in all the 3 key priority areas. Reaching original project goals Most of the project goals were achieved Please specify the achievements of the project goals Climate action: --Expected lowered local temperature : "The natural building material brick regulates both room temperature and humidity perfectly and ensures a pleasant living climate all year round" (3) Improved air quality: "By absorbing nitrogen oxides and reducing particulate matter, the so-called ‘Living Wall’ leads to a significant improvement in the microclimate of the street." (Ref. 3) Reduced noise exposure: "With an ecological future in mind and as part of a green agenda for the building, a vertical ‘living wall’ was built on the Glogauer Strasse side - a planted façade that absorbs traffic nuisance and noise from the neighbouring streets." (Ref. 6) --Expected increased number of species present: "The vertical green wall is made habitable via the balconies from the first to fourth floors of Glogauer Strasse. You are practically standing in the middle of the garden on the balconies. Hardy plants were selected for the "living wall" and are watered and fertilized using a precisely controlled irrigation system. " (1) Social justice and community: --Expected improved access to urban green space/--Expected improved liveability : "The design aims to build a residential building that enriches life in the surrounding Kreuzberg neighborhood in many ways - urban, social, ecological and neighborly." ; "Overall, we as a team have created a project that will benefit the residents of the building and the people from the surrounding area in the long term." (3) Long-term perspective Unknown: No information about the project's long-term sustainability. Cost-effective solutions Unknown Equitable impacts A. All stakeholders benefit fairly from the project Transformative capacity Social change (e.g. social relationships, networks and dynamics within them) Ecological change (e.g. ecosystem functions and their distribution) Magnitude of change Incremental: shallow; that is, mostly maintaining business-as-usual approaches to adaptation Application of lessons learned The NBS has been shared or used as a good practice to trigger transformative change Perception of Environmental Change Unknown 6. Sources References 1. Sarah Rivière (n.d.). Wohnhaus mit begrünter Fassade in Berlin-Kreuzberg. Accessed on August 13, 2024, [Source link] [Archive]; 2. archello (n.d.). Urban apartment building with green vertical garden. Accessed on August 13, 2024, [Source link] [Archive]; 3. Deil, W. (2018). Gelungene Integration. BundesBauBlatt, Accessed on August 13, 2024, [Source link] [Archive]; 4. Backes, J. & Weigand, A. (2016). Kreuzberg ist machtlos gegen den Bau von Ferienwohnungen. B.Z., Accessed on August 13, 2024, [Source link] [Archive]; 5. Barndhorst, S. (n.d.). Fassadenbegrünung in Berlin-Kreuzberg, Glogauerstraße 9. p. 18-22 Accessed on August 13, 2024, [Source link] [Archive]; 6. Grün statt Grau (n.d.). Wohnhaus Glogauer Straße in Berlin. Accessed on August 15, 2024, [Source link] [Archive]; 7. Lang-Lendorff, A. (2017). Gentrifizierung in Kreuzberg :„Wir haben einen Fehler gemacht“. Accessed on August 15, 2024, [Source link] [Archive]; 8. Bezirksamt Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg von Berlin (n.d.). Zahlen und Fakten. Accessed on August 15, 2024, [Source link] [Archive]; 9. Bezirksamt Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg von Berlin (n.d.). Zuwanderung. Accessed on August 15, 2024, [Source link] [Archive]; Comments and notes Comments The two house owners do not live in Berlin, wherefore they were not selected as "citizens" in the actor groups. Public Images Image Living Wall Vertiko GmbH Image Green facade on a residental house Vertiko GmbH Image Urban apartment building with a green vertical garden https://archello.com/story/46737/attachments/photos-videos/1 Image Urban apartment building with a green vertical garden https://archello.com/story/46737/attachments/photos-videos/1 Image Urban apartment building with a green vertical garden https://archello.com/story/46737/attachments/photos-videos/1 Image Urban apartment building with a green vertical garden https://archello.com/story/46737/attachments/photos-videos/1 Image Urban apartment building with a green vertical garden https://archello.com/story/46737/attachments/photos-videos/1
Image Urban apartment building with a green vertical garden https://archello.com/story/46737/attachments/photos-videos/1
Image Urban apartment building with a green vertical garden https://archello.com/story/46737/attachments/photos-videos/1
Image Urban apartment building with a green vertical garden https://archello.com/story/46737/attachments/photos-videos/1
Image Urban apartment building with a green vertical garden https://archello.com/story/46737/attachments/photos-videos/1
Image Urban apartment building with a green vertical garden https://archello.com/story/46737/attachments/photos-videos/1
