1. General information Location and description of the intervention City or FUA Iaşi (FUA) Region Europe Native title of the NBS intervention Frumoasa a devenit mai verde Short description of the intervention In 2021, the real estate company Inamstro, in collaboration with the Municipality of Iași, the civil organization "Glasul Vieții" (Voice of Life), and local citizens, initiated a tree-planting initiative that involved planting 250 trees near a residential area and a parking lot in the Frumoasa neighborhood of Iași. This neighborhood is smaller compared to other areas of the city and was developed during the communist systematization of the 1970s and 1980s. It consists of groups of four-story blocks arranged around common spaces, situated near the Frumoasa Monastery complex. The main goals of the 2021 planting action were to enhance green space, lower air temperatures, reduce urban air pollutants—such as fine particulate matter—absorb CO2, and improve overall health and quality of life (1–5). Additionally, the implementing company concluded that the trees planted near residential areas can significantly reduce energy needs for air conditioning and heating, leading to an average cost decrease of 30% during summer and winter (1, 2). Volunteers participating in the project received a "tree certificate," signifying their commitment to planting and adopting a tree (7). In this initiative, volunteers were also tasked with monitoring the growth of their adopted trees to ensure their health (1–6). Website of the intervention https://apix.ro/cartierul-frumoasa-din-iasi-a-devenit-mai-verde-cu-250-arbori-p/ Principal problems Climate-Related Hazards Heat stress & Extreme temperatures Environmental Degradation Air pollution Land use and Socio-economic change Unequal availability and access to public green spaces Health, Well-being and Social cohesion Physical health harm (from pollution, wildfire, extreme temperature) Poor community engagement Implementation area characterization Climate Continental (Cold-summer humid continental, Cold-winter dry continental, Cold-summer dry continental) Ecosystem Urban or built environment Address Strada Dimineții, 32 707252 Iași Romania 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 Screenshoot from google maps: https://www.google.com/maps/place/Frumoasa,+Ia%C8%99i,+Ruman%C3%ADa/@47.1378108,27.5893038,139m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m6!3m5!1s0x40cafbb6d591ae8d:0xb4dfd56a43854372!8m2!3d47.134551!4d27.5871095!16s%2Fg%2F1tgdrn87?entry=ttu Area description Urban (main city) Type of area before implementation of the NBS Residential Timeline of intervention Start date of the intervention (planning process) 2021 Start date of intervention (implementation process) 2021 End date of the intervention 2021 Present stage of the intervention Completed 2. Objectives of the intervention Objectives of the intervention Goals of the intervention 1. To increase the surface and quality of green spaces . 2. To address issues stemming from extreme temperatures . 3. To contribute to the reduction of urban air pollutants including fine particles, help with the absorption of CO2, lower the air temperature, and reduce noise by planting trees in the neighborhood . 4. To improve physical and mental health, and offer a better quality of life and to engage the community on a voluntary basis by monitoring the trees to ensure their growth . (1-5) 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 Climate change mitigation Environmental quality Air quality improvement Noise reduction Green space, habitats and biodiversity (SDG 15) Green space creation and/or management Health and well-being (SDG 3) Improving mental health Improving physical health Social justice, cohesion and equity (SDG 10) Sense of community and community engagement Climate change adaptation: What activities are implemented to realize the conservation goals and targets? Increase urban vegetation cover to reduce urban heat island effect Climate change mitigation: What activities are implemented to realize the conservation goals and targets? Increase the availability of green urban space for carbon storage (street tree cover) Mental health and well-being objectives The plantation of the trees and the assignment of responsibilities for their care to the volunteers aims at improving psychological health (1-5). Mental health and well-being activities Plantation of trees and assignment of some of them to volunteers, in a symbolic from of adoption (5). Implementation activities and NBS focus Implementation activities The initiative of the Inamstro construction company to plant several species of trees in the Frumoasa neighborhood was accepted by the Iași City Hall. The logistical support for the planting of trees in the Frumoasa neighborhood by the volunteers of the Inamstro company, the volunteers of the Glasul Vieții association, and other participants was granted by the Iași City Hall through Servicii Publice IAȘI S.A. The project successfully planted 250 trees of four different species—linden, maple, birch, and prunus—next to a parking lot adjacent to a residential area (1–5). Additionally, the project established a citizen-monitoring initiative under the project. In this initiative, volunteers were each assigned one tree to monitor, ensuring its growth and health. To symbolize their commitment, each volunteer received a "tree certificate," marking their adoption of the trees (1–5). Type of NBS project Creation of new green areas Creation of any other green urban spaces Monitoring and maintenance of habitats and/or biodiversity Citizen science and monitoring initiatives (e.g. species observations, habitat assessments, and data collection efforts) 3. NBS domains, ES and scale NBS domain and interventions Ecological domain(s) where the NBS intervention(s) is/are implemented Grey infrastructure featuring greens Alley or street trees and other street vegetation Amenities offered by the NBS Unknown Design elements for well-being None of the above Services Expected ecosystem services delivered Regulating services Local climate regulation (temperature reduction) Air quality regulation Noise reduction Carbon storage/sequestration Cultural services Mental and physical health and wellbeing Physical and experiential interactions with plants and animals Scale Spatial scale Micro-scale: District/neighbourhood level Beneficiaries Demographics in implementation area The district of Frumoasa is one of the smallest ones in the city of Iasi, and is undergoing many development projects (10). Nonetheless, the district is very negatively percieved by citizens, both by inhabitants of the district or other citizens (8). Following a public questionnaire, the inhabitants expressed displeasure about transport and mobility, sewage infrastructure, access to public services such as kindergartens, and others (9, p. 478 to 490). Contrastingly, it is portrayed as a calm and relaxed area for living (10). Socio-economic profile of the area Unknown Communities vulnerable to environmental hazards or climate change impacts Unknown Non-government actors Non-governmental organisation (NGO) / Civil society / Churches Private sector/Corporate/Business Citizens or community groups Primary Beneficiaries Citizens or community groups Specify primary beneficiaries Citizens or community groups: "People who will live in residential neighborhoods surrounded by green spaces and trees will have a better quality of life" (ref. 1) Marginalized groups Unknown Other beneficiaries Ecosystem services (e.g. improved air quality, water purification) Public health (e.g. increased physical activity opportunities, reduced stress) 4. Governance and financing Governance Governance arrangements Co-governance with government and non-government actors Please specify the roles of the specific government and non-government actor groups involved in the initiative The private construction company Inamstro started and financed through direct funding and tax exemption the initiative in partnership with the municipality of Iasi. The municipality provided volunteers, trees, and strategic advice through its public service institution , and the religious civil society organisation "Glasul Vietii" provided volunteers as well ). Citizens provided labour force through volunteering, and were tasked to monitor trees after their plantation (1-7). Key actors - initiating organization Private sector/corporate actor/company Key actors - Other stakeholders involved (besides initiating actors) Local government/municipality Non-government organisation/civil society Citizens or community group Stages of citizen and community engagement On-the-ground implementation Monitoring and evaluation of project outcomes Level of citizen and community engagement Moderate Community empowerment or capacity-building initiatives Formation of community-led groups responsible for the the implementation, maintenace or monitoring of the project Participatory methods/forms of stakeholder involvement (all stakeholders) Co-planning (e.g. stakeholder workshops, focus groups, participatory mapping) Joint implementation (e.g. tree planting) Citizen monitoring and review Uncommon actors ("Missing actors") Community & Social Groups Churches and other religious organisations or faith communities Land owners Private sector or company 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 Voluntary (spontaneous) Enablers & Barriers Type of enablers Governance innovations (such as public private partnerships) Collaboration with other projects that implemented NBS Please provide details (e.g, name of the plan or strategy) for the selected policies or initiatives. Governance innovations (such as public private partnerships): Partnership between Iasi City Hall and Inamstro (11). Collaboration with other projects that implemented NBS: The project was part of a bigger campaign developed by the company, "Adopta un copac" (7). Governace and decison-making instruments Public - private business agreement (e.g. public private collaborations, public-private-partnerships (PPP)) Arrangements for governance cooperation Performance monitoring and evaluation frameworks (e.g. adoption of KPIs, or establishment or monitoring and evaluation processes) Please specify other form of governance cooperation The volunteers were tasked with monitoring the trees after their plantation (1 to 4). Barriers Unknown. Financing Total cost €50,000 - €100,000 Please specify total cost (EUR) 78,949 (11). What is/was the Cost/Budget (EUR) of the NBS or green infrastructure elements? Unknown. Source(s) of funding Corporate investment Type of fund(s) used Direct funding (grants, subsidies, or self-financed projects by private entities) Tax exemption Non-financial contribution Yes Who provided the non-financial contribution? Public authorities (e.g. land, utility services) Citizens (e.g. volunteering) Type of non-financial contribution Provision of goods Provision of labour Provision of expertise Co-finance for NBS No Entrepreneurship opportunities No Business models Business models Risk reduction model Green densification model Which of the involved actors was motivated by this model? Private for-profit actor (e.g. firm, insurer) 5. Evaluation and learning Impacts, benefits Environmental impacts Climate change Lowered local temperature Expected lowered local temperature Reduced emissions Expected reduced emissions 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 Achieved increased number of species present Description of environmental benefits -Expected lowered local temperature: "The appropriate placement of trees in urban environments can contribute to lowering the air temperature by 2-8 ºC" (1). -Expected enhanced carbon sequestration: "A tree can absorb up to 150 CO per year, can contribute to carbon sequestration and, consequently, adaptation to climate change" (1). -Expected improved air quality: "It contributes to the reduction of urban air pollutants, including fine particles" (5). -Expected reduced noise exposure: "The role of urban green spaces is to improve air quality, reduce noise and increase biodiversity."(3) -Achieved increased number of species present: "The action of planting 250 trees in the Frumoasa Iași neighborhood was successfully completed" (5); "In total, 250 trees of different species were planted, including linden, paltin, birch and prunus." (3) Environmental impact indicators Total number of vascular plant species protected or introduced 4 Economic impacts Generation of other type of work opportunities (e.g. voluntary, work for rehabilitation) Achieved generation of other type of work opportunities (e.g. voluntary, work for rehabilitation) Reduce financial cost for urban management Expected reduce financial cost for urban management Description of economic benefits -Achieved generation of other type of work opportunities (e.g. voluntary, work for rehabilitation): "Logistical support for the planting of trees in the Frumoasa neighborhood by the volunteers of the Inamstro company" (1). -Expected reduce financial cost for urban management: "Helps reduce electricity needs by up to 30% in summer and 20-50% in winter" (5). Social and cultural impacts Social justice and cohesion Improved liveability Expected improved liveability Increased involvement of locals in the management of green spaces Achieved increased involvement of locals in the management of green spaces Health and wellbeing Improved physical health Expected improved physical health Improved mental health Expected improved mental health Cultural heritage and sense of place Improvement in people’s connection to nature Expected improvement in people’s connection to nature Social and cultural impact indicators Number of community events, gatherings, or volunteer activities organized in green spaces 1 Description of social and cultural benefits -Expected improved liveability: "This means that people who will live in residential neighborhoods surrounded by green spaces and trees will have a better quality of life" (1). -Achieved increased involvement of locals in the management of green spaces: "Thus, the volunteers will not only participate in the planting of the trees, but will also monitor them for a certain period of time, and in the end they will obtain an adoption certificate" (11). -Expected improved mental health: "Spending time in the vicinity of areas with tree vegetation improves physical and mental health by increasing energy levels and speed of recovery" (1). -Expected improved physical health: "People who will live in residential neighborhoods surrounded by green spaces and trees will have a better quality of life" (1). Mental health benefits Increased feelings of nature connection Evidence for use of assessment Presence of an assessment, evaluation and/or monitoring process Yes Actors involved in the assessment, monitoring or evaluation of NBS impacts Citizens or community group Private sector/corporate actor/company Presence of indicators used in reporting Yes Type of indicators Outcome indicators 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 Inclusion of diverse stakeholders in project governance processes (e.g. planning, implementation, monitoring, etc.) Public disclosure of project funding sources and/or budgets Justice Community satisfaction Unknown Description of locals satisfaction with the project Unknown. 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 No initiatives or policies were implemented 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 goals: -Expected lowered local temperature: "The appropriate placement of trees in urban environments can contribute to lowering the air temperature by 2-8 ºC" (1). -Expected enhanced carbon sequestration: "A tree can absorb up to 150 CO per year, can contribute to carbon sequestration and, consequently, adaptation to climate change" (1). -Expected improved air quality: "It contributes to the reduction of urban air pollutants, including fine particles" (5). -Expected reduced noise exposure: "The role of urban green spaces is to improve air quality, reduce noise and increase biodiversity."(3) -Achieved increased number of species present: "The action of planting 250 trees in the Frumoasa Iași neighborhood was successfully completed" (5); "In total, 250 trees of different species were planted, including linden, paltin, birch and prunus." (3) Social justice and community goals: -Expected improved liveability: "This means that people who will live in residential neighborhoods surrounded by green spaces and trees will have a better quality of life" (1). -Achieved increased involvement of locals in the management of green spaces: "Thus, the volunteers will not only participate in the planting of the trees, but will also monitor them for a certain period of time, and in the end they will obtain an adoption certificate" (11). -Expected improved mental health: "Spending time in the vicinity of areas with tree vegetation improves physical and mental health by increasing energy levels and speed of recovery" (1). -Expected improved physical health: "People who will live in residential neighborhoods surrounded by green spaces and trees will have a better quality of life" (1). 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) Magnitude of change Incremental: shallow; that is, mostly maintaining business-as-usual approaches to adaptation Application of lessons learned Unknown Perception of Environmental Change Unknown 6. Sources References 1. Ziarul de Iasi (2021). Compania de construcții Inamstro va contribui la îmbunătățirea spațiilor verzi din cartierul Frumoasa (P). Accessed on August 15, 2024, [Source link] [Archive]; 2. APIX (2021). Compania Inamstro plantează 250 de copaci în Frumoasa (P). Accessed on August 15, 2024, [Source link] [Archive]; 3. APIX (2021). Spații verzi Cartierul Frumoasa din Iași a devenit mai verde cu 250 arbori (P). Accessed on August 15, 2024, [Source link] [Archive]; 4. Tanasa, C. (2021). Cartierul Frumoasa a devenit mai verde cu 250 arbori. O inițiativă Inamstro. ReporterIS, Accessed on August 15, 2024, [Source link] [Archive]; 5. Inamstro Romania (2021). Inamstro Romania "plantare" Facebook . Facebook, Accessed on August 15, 2024, [Source link] [Archive]; 6. Agora (2021). Infrastructură modernă de cartier, grație unui parteneriat dintre Inamstro și Primăria Municipiului Iași . Accessed on August 15, 2024, [Source link] [Archive]; 7. Adopta un Copac (n.d.). Program Adopta un Copac . Accessed on August 15, 2024, [Source link] [Archive]; 8. STORIA (n.d.). Trai Storia Frumoasa. Accessed on October 7, 2024, [Source link] [Archive]; 9. Primaria Municipiului Iasi (2015 ). Strategia Integrata de Dezvoltare Urbana 2015-2030. p. 478 to 490. Accessed on October 7, 2024, [Source link] [Archive]; 10. Ziarul de Iasi (2022). Frumoasa - cartierul născut din istorie, tradiție, pitoresc și armonia naturii (P) . Accessed on October 7, 2024, [Source link] [Archive]; 11. Jurnal Trust Media (2021). Compania de construcții INAMSTRO în parteneriat cu Primăria Municipiului Iași a efectuat lucrări edilitare. Accessed on October 7, 2024, [Source link] [Archive]; Comments and notes Public Images Image Frumoasa https://apix.ro/cartierul-frumoasa-din-iasi-a-devenit-mai-verde-cu-250-arbori-p/ Image Frumoasa https://apix.ro/cartierul-frumoasa-din-iasi-a-devenit-mai-verde-cu-250-arbori-p/ Image Planted tree with volunteer tag https://www.facebook.com/photo?fbid=1261391804310899&set=pcb.1261391957644217 Image Planted tree with volunter tag https://reporteris.ro/iasi/social/item/109596-cartierul-frumoasa-a-devenit-mai-verde-cu-250-arbori-o-ini%C8%9Biativ%C4%83-inamstro.html
Image Planted tree with volunteer tag https://www.facebook.com/photo?fbid=1261391804310899&set=pcb.1261391957644217
Image Planted tree with volunter tag https://reporteris.ro/iasi/social/item/109596-cartierul-frumoasa-a-devenit-mai-verde-cu-250-arbori-o-ini%C8%9Biativ%C4%83-inamstro.html
