1. General information
Location and description of the intervention
City or FUA
Münster
Region
Europe
Native title of the NBS intervention
Grüne Beete Campusgarten
Short description of the intervention
Urban gardening or gardening in the city is a form of agriculture that is about more than just producing food: community gardens involves also social, cultural and political components. It's about actively participating in urban development, creating new living spaces or making a contribution to biological diversity (ref. 3). The campus garden on a surface area of 1,200 sqm provided by the university was created by a group of students in 2013. It is open every day to everyone interested in gardening and serves as a place for recreation and exchange for students of different disciplines and citizens. Apart from herbs, vegetables and fruits, also flowers are planted. Seeds and materials used as plant beds, such as tires or rice bags are often donated from the city or local businesses (ref. 3 and 4).
Address

Steinfurter Straße / Leonardo Campus 18
48149 Münster
Germany

Location
Point location, which indicates where the NBS takes place
Total area
1200.00m²
NBS area
1200.00m²
Type of area before implementation of the NBS
Building
Website of the intervention
https://campusgarten.wordpress.com/uber-uns/
Timeline of intervention
Start date of the intervention (planning process)
2012
Start date of intervention (implementation process)
2013
End date of the intervention
2013
Present stage of the intervention
Completed
Goals of the intervention
-Fostering independent decentralized food production as a means for strengthening local resilience (Ref. 3)
-Actively contributing to the construction of urban space (Ref. 3)
-Creating a space for learning, knowledge dissemination and exchange that inspires the development of creative projects (Ref. 3)
-Introducing urban agriculture in order to produce fresh organic food in urban environments (Ref. 1)
-Creating new habitats and contributing to biological diversity (Ref. 1)
Quantitative targets
No quantitative targets, it's a voluntary project
Monitoring indicators defined
Unknown
Sustainability challenge(s) addressed
Green space, habitats and biodiversity (SDG 15)
Habitat and biodiversity conservation
Green space creation and/or management
Regeneration, land-use and urban development
Promote natural styles of landscape design for urban development
Inclusive and effective governance (SDG 16)
Effective management
Social justice, cohesion and equity (SDG 10)
Environmental education
Social cohesion
Social interaction
Health and well-being (SDG 3)
Enabling opportunities for physical activity
Creation of opportunities for recreation
Economic development and employment (SDG 8)
Economic development: agriculture
Sustainable consumption and production (SDG 12)
Sustainable consumption
Sustainable production
Habitats and biodiversity conservation: What types of conservation goals are / were defined for the NBS intervention?
Ecosystem-focused
Habitats and biodiversity conservation: What activities are implemented to realize the conservation goals and targets?
Protect and enhance urban habitats
Preserve and strengthen existing habitats and ecosystems
Create new habitats
Reduce negative impacts and avoid the alteration/damage of ecosystem
Protect species
Undertake specific measures to protect species
Means for conservation governance
Raise public awareness
Public engagement
Create and use scientific knowledge for conservation
Implementation activities
The campus garden "GrüneBeete" is a community garden used by students and citizens likewise. Vegetables, fruits, plants and also flowers to attract bees and insects were seeded in donated, recycled materials, such as tetra packs, bakery boxes, rice bags, palettes or self-constructed raised beds (closing the cycle). Allotments to not have particular owners but are shared along with the agricultural produce which is mostly used for joint cooking and consumed mostly in the garden (Ref. 1, 2, and 3). Several joint projects and initiatives arose from its location at the intersection between different universities collaborations. For instance, the architecture department built a greenhouse and a „field kitchen“ or a raised-bed garden was implemented during course work of design students (Ref. 4).
Type of NBS project
Creation of new green areas
Knowledge creation and awareness raising
NBS domain and interventions
Ecological domain(s) where the NBS intervention(s) is/are implemented
Community gardens and allotments
Community gardens
Please specify the number of plots or allotment gardens
Unknown
Vegetation Type
Flower beds
Garden beds
Other
Amenities offered by the NBS
Benches and drinking water stations
Educational and research amenities (nature protection centre, monitoring stations)
Services
Expected ecosystem services delivered
Provisioning services
Food for human consumption (crops, vegetables)
Medicinal resources
Regulating services
Local climate regulation (temperature reduction)
Air quality regulation
Pollination
Habitat and supporting services
Habitats for species
Cultural services
Inspiration for culture, art and design
Recreation
Mental and physical health and wellbeing
Intellectual interactions (scientific and / or educational)
Physical and experiential interactions with plants and animals
Social and community interactions
Scale
Spatial scale
Sub-microscale: Street scale (including buildings)
Beneficiaries
Primary Beneficiaries
Researchers/University
Citizens or community groups
Governance
Governance arrangements
Led by non-government actors
Non-government actors
Non-governmental organisation (NGO) / Civil society / Churches
Researchers, university
Please specify the roles of the specific government and non-government actor groups involved in the initiative
The garden was initiated and erected by a group of students in communal work, they have also founded an underlying association on which they base their activities. Students and citizens work in the garden, organize events there and harvest the produce together. Furthermore, local companies, the city of Münster and associations are involved via donations, funding and network support (Ref. 3).
Key actors - initiating organization
Non-government organisation/civil society
Researchers/university
Land owners
Educational actor (schools or universities)
Key actors - Other stakeholders involved (besides initiating actors)
Local government/municipality
Public sector institution
Non-government organisation/civil society
Researchers/university
Citizens or community group
Land owners
Educational actor (schools or universities)
Participatory methods/forms of community involvement used
Dissemination of information and education
Joint implementation (e.g. tree planting)
Co-management/Joint management
Policy drivers
NBS intervention implemented in response to an 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)
Please specify other type of voluntary intervention
The idea for implementing the campus garden was born during coursework by students who have delved into urban gardening scientifically since 2012 (Ref. 3)
Enablers
Presence of specific city-level GI/NBS vision/strategy/plan - mentioned in connection to the project
Unknown
Presence of specific city-level GI/NBS section/part in a more general plan - mentioned in connection to the project
Unknown
Please specify other vegetation type
Herbs, vegetables, fruits, green beds (ref. 1, 3, 7)
berry bushes (ref. 4)
Presence of city network or regional partnerships focused on NBS - mentioned in connection to the project
Yes
Please specify
There are several networks mentioned in relation to the campus garden. First, a regional urban gardening network called "Urbane Oasen" which connects active citizens, gardeners, project, associations, institutions, landlords, cities, municipalities in other administrative authorities and provides information about ongoing projects and initiatives (Ref. 4). Second, there is an overall civic society movement called transition towns which also has an organization in Münster (Ref. 5). Third, there is a foundation called "anstiftung" which fosters innovative urban solutions such as urban gardening, open source projects or citizen-led neighbourhood initiatives. through empowerment, networking and research (Ref. 6).
Presence of GI / NBS research project - mentioned in connection to the project
Yes
Please specify
The management and planning of the garden as well as the general value of urban gardening projects for self-sufficiency and securing decentralized, local food production were documented in a master thesis by Nicole Rogge (Ref. 3).
Subsidies/investment for GI / NBS in the city - mentioned in connection to the project
Yes
Please specify
The project is subsidized by several parties with financial and material donations, such as the university, the science bureau of the city of Münster, transition town Münster (expertise), ecological seed companies and the local waste management company, which provided 2 tons of soil (Ref. 3).
Co-finance for NBS
Yes
Co-financing governance arrangements
Unknown
Was this co-governance arrangement already in place, or was it set up specifically for this NBS?
Unknown
Financing
Total cost
Unknown
What is/was the Cost/Budget (EUR) of the NBS or green infrastructure elements?
Unknown
What are the total amount of expected annual maintenance costs?
Unknown
What is the expected annual maintenance costs of the NBS or GI elements?
Unknown
Please specify cost savings
Unknown
Please specify total cost (EUR)
Unknown
Source(s) of funding
Public local authority budget
Corporate investment
Funds provided by non-governmental organization (NGO)
Type of fund(s) used
Earmarked public budget
Direct funding (grants, subsidies, or self-financed projects by private entities)
Donations
Non-financial contribution
Yes
Type of non-financial contribution
Provision of land
Provision of goods
Provision of labour
Who provided the non-financial contribution?
Public authorities (e.g. land, utility services)
Citizens (e.g. volunteering)
Business models
Local stewardship model
Green education model
Which of the involved actors was motivated by this model?
Public actor (e.g. municipality)
Citizens / local communities
Type of innovation
Social
Governance innovation
Please specify social innovation
Innovation in the way the space was appropriated by the group of students and the way it is governed and managed by a variety of stakeholders without formal rules (Ref. 1 and 2).
Novelty level of the innovation
The innovation is copied/derived from previous initiative(s) with substantial adaptation
Please specify novelty level of the innovation
The novelty of this garden in comparison with other community gardens is its multifunctionality. It serves for food production, as urban garden for recreation, but in addition to that, also constitutes a place for the implementation of creative projects by students from neighbouring faculties with substantial adaptation from other likewise projects (Ref. 4).
Replicability/Transferability
Unknown
Please specify Replicability/Transferability
Unknown
Impacts, benefits
Environmental impacts
Environmental quality
Improved air quality
Green space and habitat
Promotion of naturalistic styles of landscape design for urban development
Increased green space area
Enhanced support of pollination
Description of environmental benefits
-The resources used in the development of the community garden are mainly recycled materials available in the city (ref. 3)
- The GrünBeete campus garden is supported by the Münster University of Applied Sciences; furthermore from the AStA of the FH as well as the science office of the city of Münster, Transition Town Münster, the WildnisWerkstatt, EPAL, ecological seed companies such as Bingenheimer Saatgut AG, Freie Saaten or Dreschflegel and the waste management companies Münster (AWM) (ref. 3)
-Improved air quality (ref. 7)
- According to the project website, bees could be attracted to the campus garden (Ref. 1)
Economic impacts
Increase of green jobs (e.g. paid employment positions)
Description of economic benefits
- The gardeners are employed, pensioners, schoolchildren, job seekers and students from various fields. (ref. 1)
Social and cultural impacts
Social justice and cohesion
Improved social cohesion
Improved access to urban green space
Increased opportunities for social interaction
Increased involvement of locals in the management of green spaces
Increased access to healthy/affordable food
Health and wellbeing
Improved physical health
Gain in activities for recreation and exercise
Education
Increased knowledge of locals about local nature
Description of social and cultural benefits
- Everyone involved takes care of everything and everything belongs to everyone involved. The harvest is also shared between the users at the end of the day or preferably prepared and eaten together on site (ref. 1)
- The community garden is open to anyone interested, it should be a place for gardening, but also a meeting point, a learning platform and a space for creative projects. The main goal is to implement urban agriculture in a variety of ways and to pass on knowledge in this area (ref. 3)
- The gardeners are interested citizens and students from various departments who enjoy exchanging ideas and creating things together, be it in the horticultural or craft sector (ref. 3)
- The project promotes, networks and researches spaces where people can practice gardening. This includes intercultural and urban gardens, open workshops, repair initiatives, open source projects as well as initiatives to revitalize neighborhoods or interventions in public space (ref. 6)
- The GrünBeete campus garden also offer opportunities of relaxation for the students. " It is not just about the common gardening, but also about new encounters, knowledge exchange or encounters, or the consumption of the joint harvest.
Type of reported impacts
Expected impacts
Achieved impacts
Indicators
Unknwon
Environmental, social and economic impacts
Cultural heritage and cultural diversity
Green space, habitats and biodiversity (SDG 15)
Sustainable consumption and production (SDG 12)
Analysis of specific impact categories
Job creation: The NBS created ...
Paid employment positions
Voluntary work opportunities
Negative impacts: Did the project cause any problems or concerns?
No information was found regarding negative impacts of the project
COVID-19 pandemic
This project information was updated on 8 August 2020.
"Despite the contact restrictions as part of the corona pandemic, we are making great efforts to make the garden bloom. So far it works quite well. The exchange and planning are contactless thanks to social media, there are numerous good ideas and energetic hands.
Preparing the beds, sowing the seeds, making new buttons, building projects such as repairing the greenhouse door or building insect hotels is taking place.
New people have also found their way to us despite the difficult conditions and are still very welcome! We hope that we can get together again soon for the official garden times !! We will keep you up to date" (ref. 2)
Methods of impact monitoring
Process of recording NBS impacts
No evidence in public records
Methods used to evaluate the impacts of NBS
Unknown
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
Impact assessment mechanism
Name of any specific impact assessment tools
unknown
Use of GIS in mapping impacts
No evidence in public records
Citizen involvement
Citizens involvement in assessment/evaluation
Yes
Mode(s) of citizen involvement in evaluation/assessment
Other
Please specify other modes of citizen involvement in evaluation/assessment
Since citizens are also visiting the garden or actively participate in gardening, its assessment is made based on direct feedback.
Citizens involvement in the analysis of the assessment/evaluation
Unknown
Follow-up to the evaluation / assessment
Unknown
References
Web links relevant to the intervention
Major website
Information folder campus garden
A city-wide initiative to depict future-oriented projects
Documents relevant to the intervention
Attachment Size
Folder of the campus garden (2.98 MB) 2.98 MB
List of references
1. GrüneBeete e.V. (n.d.) Über uns. Was ist der Campusgarten GrüneBeete? Available at: https://campusgarten.wordpress.com/uber-uns/ (Accessed 8 August 2020)
2. GrüneBeete e.V. (2014). ‘GrüneBeete Campusgarten. Gemeinschaftlich gärtnern in Münster’. Münster: GrüneBeete e.V. Available at: https://campusgarten.wordpress.com/ (Accessed 8 August 2020)
3. Stadt Münster (n.d.) Gutes Morgen Münster. Campusgarten GrüneBeete e.V. Available at: http://www.gutes-morgen.ms/de/campusgarten-gruenebete-ev/ (Accessed 8 August 2020)
4. die Urbanisten e.V. (2017). Campusgarten GrüneBeete, Münster. Available at: https://www.urbaneoasen.de/project/campusgarten-gruenebeete/ (Accessed 8 August 2020)
5. Kulturquartier Münster GmbH. (2017). transition Münster. Available at: http://www.transition-muenster.de/ (Accessed 8 August 2020)
6. Stiftungsgemeinschaft anstiftung & ertomis. (2017). anstiftung. Offene Werkstätten, Reparatur-Initiativen, Interkulturelle und Urbane Gemeinschaftsgärten. Available at: https://anstiftung.de/die-stiftung (Accessed 8 August 2020)
7. Mitmache. (n.d). Intervention Flyer. Available at: https://campusgarten.files.wordpress.com/2015/05/grne-beete_flyer2016.pdf (Accessed 8 August 2020)
Comments and notes
Public Images
Community Garden on Campus
Community Garden on Campus
Nicole Rogge, retrieved 08/29/2018
Community Garden on Campus
Community Garden on Campus
Nicole Rogge, retrieved 08/29/2018