1. General information
Location and description of the intervention
City or FUA
Szczecin
Region
Europe
Native title of the NBS intervention
Zielone podwórka Szczecina
Short description of the intervention
The program aims to change gray urban courtyards into friendly places - the green oasis for neighborhood meetings and resting areas. Small project proposals developed by the housing associations for the revitalization/transformation of courtyards from all over the city compete for co-funding (up to 75%) from the city council. Many projects (over 86 by the year 2015) have been funded and implemented since the beginning of the initiative in 2008.(1)(2)
Address

Szczecin
Poland

Location
The NBS is a city-wide initiative, the GIS point marks the centre of the city
Type of area before implementation of the NBS
Residential
Website of the intervention
http://zbilk.szczecin.pl/?type=article&action=view&id=22
Timeline of intervention
Start date of the intervention (planning process)
2008
Start date of intervention (implementation process)
2008
End date of the intervention
ongoing
Present stage of the intervention
Ongoing
Please specify "other" stage of the intervention
The project runs since 2008 every year. Each year a number of neighbourhood initiatives were co-funded from the city budget.
Goals of the intervention
To improve the image of the Szczecin city by investing in multiple small-scale projects that will turn gray courtyard infrastructure into green spaces of esthetical value, where citizens could relax and where children could play in the open-air playgrounds [1,2,7].
Quantitative targets
To co-fund multiple courtyard projects around the city - up to 75% in case of the planned 'green spaces' and up to 95% in case of the green playgrounds.(1)(2)
Monitoring indicators defined
% of planned green space, and % of green playgrounds
Sustainability challenge(s) addressed
Green space, habitats and biodiversity (SDG 15)
Green space creation and/or management
Regeneration, land-use and urban development
Regulation of built environment
Promote natural styles of landscape design for urban development
Inclusive and effective governance (SDG 16)
Effective management
Social justice, cohesion and equity (SDG 10)
Social interaction
Health and well-being (SDG 3)
Improving mental health
Creation of opportunities for recreation
Cultural heritage and cultural diversity
Protection of historic and cultural landscape/infrastructure
Implementation activities
Implementation of the individual projects' plans - greenery planting, playgrounds building [1]. The utilisation of historic inner courtyards in attempts to raise the attractiveness of old tenements by creating residents-friendly mini gardens [7].
Type of NBS project
Creation of new green areas
Strategy, plan or policy development
NBS domain and interventions
Ecological domain(s) where the NBS intervention(s) is/are implemented
Grey infrastructure featuring greens
Green playgrounds and school grounds
Parks and urban forests
Pocket parks/neighbourhood green spaces
Nature in buildings (indoor)
Atriums/Courtyards
Vegetation Type
Grass
Shrubs
Trees
Flower beds
Garden beds
Please specify how many trees were planted
depends on the size of a courtyard
Please specify other amenities offered by the NBS
Recycling bins
Amenities offered by the NBS
Benches and drinking water stations
Playgrounds
Other
Services
Expected ecosystem services delivered
Cultural services
Aesthetic appreciation
Recreation
Mental and physical health and wellbeing
Social and community interactions
Scale
Spatial scale
Meso-scale: Regional, metropolitan and urban level
Beneficiaries
Primary Beneficiaries
Citizens or community groups
Governance
Governance arrangements
Co-governance with government and non-government actors
Non-government actors
Citizens or community groups
Please specify the roles of the specific government and non-government actor groups involved in the initiative
Housing associations initiate the NBS by developing project proposals for the revitalization of the gray courtyards. Local governments co-funds the projects within a common 'Green courtyards of Szczecin' program. Housing associations are responsible for their implementation.(1)(2)
Key actors - initiating organization
Local government/municipality
Citizens or community group
Land owners
Public space owned by the city
Key actors - Other stakeholders involved (besides initiating actors)
Local government/municipality
Private sector/corporate actor/company
Citizens or community group
Land owners
Public space owned by the city
Real estate developer
Participatory methods/forms of community involvement used
Co-planning (e.g. stakeholder workshops, focus groups, participatory mapping)
Joint implementation (e.g. tree planting)
Co-management/Joint management
Citizen oversight (e.g. boards, advisory)
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
Yes
Please specify the "local regulation/strategy/plan"
Part of the city-wide program 'Courtyards of Szczecin' (which is a part of the adopted by the City Council Housing Policy and Renovation Strategy), which aims to improve the image of Szczecin by the enhancement of the conditions and aesthetics of the surroundings of buildings, with particular emphasis on the creation of green areas with accompanying infrastructure, resting areas, squares and playgrounds for children.(1)

Mandatory or voluntary intervention
Voluntary (spontaneous)
Please specify other type of voluntary intervention
Housing associations develop project proposals and applied for funding from the city.
Enablers
Presence of specific city-level GI/NBS vision/strategy/plan - mentioned in connection to the project
Yes
Please specify
The Local Revitalisation Programme for the City of Szczecin 2017-2023, Available at: http://bip.um.szczecin.pl/UMSzczecinFiles/file/WUiAB_-_PAM/LPR_Szczecin_30_01_2018.pdf (Accessed 09 July 2020)
Presence of specific city-level GI/NBS section/part in a more general plan - mentioned in connection to the project
Yes
Please specify the general plan with GI/NBS section
The intervention is part of the city-wide program 'Courtyards of Szczecin' (which is a part of the adopted by the City Council Housing Policy and Renovation Strategy), which aims to improve the image of Szczecin by the enhancement of the conditions and aesthetics of the surroundings of buildings (1).
If there is a relevant strategy or plan, please specify the theme / type of the plan.
Urban redevelopment plan
Presence of city network or regional partnerships focused on NBS - mentioned in connection to the project
Unknown
Presence of GI / NBS research project - mentioned in connection to the project
Unknown
Subsidies/investment for GI / NBS in the city - mentioned in connection to the project
Yes
Please specify
City funding.
Co-finance for NBS
No
Co-financing governance arrangements
No
Was this co-governance arrangement already in place, or was it set up specifically for this NBS?
No
Financing
Total cost
€2,000,000 - €4,000,000
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)
7 mln PLN in the years 2008-2015.
2 mln PLN in 2016
3 mln PLN in 2017

Around 2.840 000 EUR (2)(3)(4)(5).
1500 000 PLN (~335 625 EUR) for 2018-2023
Source(s) of funding
Public local authority budget
Type of fund(s) used
Earmarked public budget
Non-financial contribution
Unknown
Business models
Green densification model
Local stewardship 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
Small scale projects implemented by the housing associations all around the city.
Novelty level of the innovation
Ambiguous (e.g. multiple interpretations)
Please specify novelty level of the innovation
Multiple small scale projects running for a number of consecutive years.
Replicability/Transferability
The innovation is transferred to new initiative(s) without substantial adaptation
Please specify Replicability/Transferability
Multiple small scale projects running for a number of consecutive years.
Impacts, benefits
Environmental impacts
Unknown
Description of environmental benefits
Unknown
Economic impacts
Unknown
Description of economic benefits
Unknown
Social and cultural impacts
Social justice and cohesion
Fair distribution of social, environmental and economic benefits of the NBS project
Improved liveability
Improved access to urban green space
Increased opportunities for social interaction
Increased involvement of locals in the management of green spaces
Health and wellbeing
Gain in activities for recreation and exercise
Education
Increased support for education and scientific research
Description of social and cultural benefits
The programme has been rewarding citizens who actively care about their courtyards and try to make their surroundings more liveable. The maintenance of each of the supported NBS stays in the hands of the community who had applied for the grant. Observations provide evidence that it is functioning very well in the majority of cases across the city. The wide-spread of the green courtyards has become a research topic for several Master students at the Westpomeranian University of Technology (ZUT). Finally, the project has targeted old tenements often inhabited by underprivileged members of society [5].
Type of reported impacts
Achieved impacts
Indicators
Unknown. The official website mentions the overall positive impact of the so far project on the green transformation of Szczecin.
Environmental, social and economic impacts
Green space, habitats and biodiversity (SDG 15)
Green space creation and/or management
Regeneration, land-use and urban development
Regulation of built environment
Promote natural styles of landscape design for urban development
Inclusive and effective governance (SDG 16)
Inclusive governance
Effective management
Health and well-being (SDG 3)
Creation of opportunities for recreation
Analysis of specific impact categories
Job creation: The NBS created ...
Voluntary work opportunities
Environmental justice: The implementation of the NBS project resulted in ...
Positive distribution of NBS benefits
Negative impacts: Did the project cause any problems or concerns?
No information was found regarding negative impacts of the project
COVID-19 pandemic
Unknown as of July 2020.
Methods of impact monitoring
Process of recording NBS impacts
Conduct a baseline survey before and after NBS implementation
Methods used to evaluate the impacts of NBS
Observation (including virtual surveillance methods)
Where can this data be accessed? Please include a link to a report or web-page.
http://e-czytelnia.abrys.pl/dodatek-specjalny/2010-1-467/ekologiczna-gospodarka…
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
Unknown
Citizens involvement in the analysis of the assessment/evaluation
Unknown
Follow-up to the evaluation / assessment
Unknown
References
Web links relevant to the intervention
Ref.1 (program regulations)
Ref.2 (program's website)
Ref.3 (online article)
Ref.4 (online article)
Ref.5 (online article)
Ref.9 (The Local Revitalisation Programme for the City of Szczecin 2017-2023)
List of references
1. Program regulations (2009) ('Regulamin programu zielone podwórka Szczecina), Zarząd Budynków i Lokali Komunalnych, http://zbilk.szczecin.pl/systemfiles/articlefiles/22/(20160223.145827).zielone_podworka_szczecina_-_regulamin_programu.pdf Last accessed July 9 2020
2. Program's official website, 'Green courtyards' ('Zielone podwórka'), http://zbilk.szczecin.pl/?type=article&action=view&id=22 Last accessed July 9 2020
3. Online article, 'We have more green courtyards' ('Mamy kolejne "Zielone Podwórka" w Szczecinie'), naszemiasto.pl, http://szczecin.naszemiasto.pl/artykul/mamy-kolejne-zielone-podworka-w-szczecinie,2790810,art,t,id,tm.html Last accessed July 9 2020
4. Rudnicki, M., (2017) 'Green courtyards in Szczecin! The city can grow more beautiful' ('Zielone Podwórka i Zielone Przedogródki w Szczecinie! Miasto może wypięknieć'), naszemiasto.pl, http://szczecin.naszemiasto.pl/artykul/zielone-podworka-i-zielone-przedogrodki-w-szczecinie-miasto,3986288,artgal,t,id,tm.html Last accessed July 9 2020
5. Krzyzanski, A., (2010) 'Szczecin the capital of green courtyards' ('Szczecin stolicą zielonych podwórek'), e-czytelnia.abrys.pl, http://e-czytelnia.abrys.pl/dodatek-specjalny/2010-1-467/ekologiczna-gospodarka-odpadami-dla-szczecina-4786/szczecin-stolica-zielonych-podworek-11074 Last accessed July 9 2020
6. Wiadomości Szczecin. (2019). Green instead of grey. More courtyards becoming beautiful (Zamiast szarego zielone. Kolejne podwórka wypięknieją). wiadomosci.szczecin.eu. Available at: https://wiadomosci.szczecin.eu/artykul/mieszkancy/zamiast-szarego-zielone-kolejne-podworka-wypieknieja (Accessed 09 July 2020).
7. The city of Szczecin. (2017). The Local Revitalisation Programme for the City of Szczecin 2017-2023. Available at: http://bip.um.szczecin.pl/UMSzczecinFiles/file/WUiAB_-_PAM/LPR_Szczecin_30_01_2018.pdf (Accessed 09 July 2020).
Interview comments
The responsible city council body was contacted for additional information and I'm waiting for the reply.
Comments and notes
Pictures of the NBS
/sites/default/files/nbs/images/green_courtyard_1.jpg
/sites/default/files/nbs/images/green_courtyard_2.jpg
Public Images
Green courtyards of Szczecin
Green courtyards of Szczecin
Source: http://e-czytelnia.abrys.pl/dodatek-specjalny/2010-1-467/ekologiczna-gospodarka-odpadami-dla-szczecina-4786/szczecin-stolica-zielonych-podworek-11074
Green courtyards of Szczecin
Green courtyards of Szczecin
Source: http://e-czytelnia.abrys.pl/dodatek-specjalny/2010-1-467/ekologiczna-gospodarka-odpadami-dla-szczecina-4786/szczecin-stolica-zielonych-podworek-11074