1. General information Location and description of the intervention City or FUA Thessaloniki (FUA) Region Europe Native title of the NBS intervention Πράσινου δώματος και κάθετων κήπων στα ΕΠΑΛ Σταυρούπολης Short description of the intervention The city of Thessaloniki is tackling the energy crisis and climate change risks by prioritizing the installation of green roofs and green walls on school and municipal buildings as part of its resilience strategy, Thessaloniki 2030 (Ref 1, 2). One key project under this strategy has been implemented at EPAL Stavroupoli, one of the largest school complexes in the metropolitan area. The school, with a total built area of 11,918 sq.m and roof surfaces covering 6,042 sq.m, now includes a green roof covering 3,087 sq.m with 25,000 ground-cover plants, along with a vertical garden on three walls at the entrance, covering 100 sq.m and featuring 3,098 plants (ibid.). The project is expected to yield multiple environmental benefits, such as reduced energy losses, improved thermal performance, enhanced sound insulation, better rainwater management, decreased runoff, and retention of harmful particles, all of which contribute to upgrading the area's green infrastructure (Ref 1). This initiative also strengthens the green fabric of western Thessaloniki and improves the local microclimate while addressing rainwater management issues (Ref 3, 4). Website of the intervention https://pavlosmelas.gr/epalstavroupolis_ergo_fitemenodoma_2022/ Principal problems Climate-Related Hazards Urban flooding (stormwater) Land use and Socio-economic change Unequal availability and access to public green spaces Implementation area characterization Climate Temperate ( Humid subtropical, Hot-summer Mediterranean, Warm-summer Mediterranean, Warm-temperate with dry winter) Ecosystem Urban or built environment Address Thrakis 4 Stavroupoli 564 30 Thessaloniki Greece 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 Municipality of Pavlo Mela (https://pavlosmelas.gr/epalstavroupolis_ergo_fitemenodoma_2022/) Total area 11918.00m² NBS area 3087.00m² Area description Urban (main city) Type of area before implementation of the NBS Building Timeline of intervention Start date of the intervention (planning process) 2018 Start date of intervention (implementation process) 2020 End date of the intervention 2022 Present stage of the intervention Completed 2. Objectives of the intervention Objectives of the intervention Goals of the intervention To strengthen the axis of the OCHE-BAA Thessaloniki strategy for a green and resilient city (Ref 1). To enhance the green fabric of western Thessaloniki and improve the local microclimate, addressing climate resilience against challenges like wind, hail, heavy rains, and high temperatures (Ref 3, 4). To aesthetically upgrade classrooms and school infrastructure in the Municipality of Pavlos Melas To deliver energy, environmental, and economic benefits by reducing energy losses, improving thermal insulation, and enhancing soundproofing To manage rainwater and reduce runoff To improve the daily quality of life for the student community by providing a recreational space and increasing human comfort (Ref 1). Key Priorities Climate action (adaptation and/or mitigation) Sustainability challenge(s) addressed Climate action for adaptation, resilience and mitigation (SDG 13) Climate change adaptation 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 Water management (SDG 6) Stormwater and rainfall management and storage Health and well-being (SDG 3) Creation of opportunities for recreation Climate change adaptation: What activities are implemented to realize the conservation goals and targets? Increase urban vegetation cover to reduce urban heat island effect Implement green walls or roofs to lower indoor temperature and provide insulation Implement sustainable urban drainage schemes to manage stormwater Implementation activities and NBS focus Implementation activities A public tender was held, and a contractor was commissioned for the project (Ref 9, 10). The initiative involved creating a planted roof covering a total area of 3,087 sq.m. with 25,000 ground cover plants, along with a vertical garden on three walls at the school entrance, covering 100 sq.m. and featuring 3,098 plants. The intervention on the school complex's roofs included waterproofing, shaping the substrate, and installing plant material along with an automatic irrigation system (Ref 8). Additionally, an integrated support base for photovoltaics was installed, combining the green roof with solar energy systems (Ref 1, 3). The green wall intervention involved setting up a vertical wall system, which included an infrastructure with integrated irrigation and drainage systems, the installation of plant pots, and the planting of vegetation (Ref 8). 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 roofs 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) Olfactory elements (e.g., floral scents, earthy smells) Tactile elements (e.g., natural materials like wood or stone, exposure to sunlight) Services Expected ecosystem services delivered Provisioning services Water (surface and ground water for drinking and non-drinking purposes) Regulating services Local climate regulation (temperature reduction) Noise reduction Flood regulation Cultural services Aesthetic appreciation Recreation Scale Spatial scale Sub-microscale: Street scale (including buildings) Beneficiaries Demographics in implementation area Demographics in implementation area are only available at the municipality (city) level. - Age groups: In total there is a population of 319 044 in the Municipality of Thessaloniki as of 2021 (Ref 5). There is an even distribution among age groups of every ten years, with slight higher percentage for age groups 10-19 (14.67%), 50-59 (13.72%) and 40-49 (13.63%) (ibid.); - Income levels: Average base salary in Thessaloniki is 31,530 € (EUR)/yr, higher than the national average (28,351 € (EUR)/yr), with an average hourly rate of 15.16 € (EUR)/hr (Ref 6); - Ethnicity: 12.97% of the population in the Municipality of Thessaloniki was born outside of Greece (Ref 5); - Household sizes: Average household size is 1.98 (Ref 7). 44.91% of the households are single-person household, while 28.10% are two-person households (ibid.). Socio-economic profile of the area Mixed income Communities vulnerable to environmental hazards or climate change impacts Unknown Primary Beneficiaries Local government/Municipality Public sector institution (e.g. school or hospital) Citizens or community groups Young people and children Marginalized groups Specify primary beneficiaries - Local government/Municipality: The intervention was part of the city's resilience strategy, the municipality benefits from increased urban greenery, improved energy efficiency and improved microclimate (Ref 1, 2, 3, 4). - Public sector institution (e.g. school or hospital): The intervention was implemented in a school complex, aesthetically upgrading the classrooms and school infrastructures and ensuring multiple energy-environmental-economic benefits and a better quality of daily life of living for our student community (Ref 1, 3). - Citizens or community groups: Local communities benefit from improved microclimate in the wider area through the reduction of the heat island effect and reduced environmental risks (Ref 1, 4). - Young people and children: The student communities benefit from increased urban green space, improved thermal and sound insulation and enhanced liveability (Ref 1, 3, 4). - Marginalized groups: see evidence for the above. Marginalized groups Children, young people or youth groups Measures for inclusion of marginalised groups Creation fo green walls and green roofs in the school complex. Specify measures taken for vulnerable or marginalized communities Other Please specify other measure Upgrade of infrastructure for the needs of these communities Other beneficiaries Local wildlife (e.g., birds, pollinators) City infrastructure (e.g., reduced flooding, improved water quality) 4. Governance and financing Governance Governance arrangements Government-led Please specify the roles of the specific government and non-government actor groups involved in the initiative The project was implemented by EPAL Stavroupoli, one of the largest school complexes in Thessaloniki. Deputy Mayor Anastasia Frankopoulou oversaw the architectural planning, project studies, and school roof improvements (Ref 1). The land for the project is owned by the city and forms part of the municipal school infrastructure within the Municipality of Pavlos Melas (Ref 1). A public tender was held to select a contractor, and a qualified company was commissioned to carry out the work (Ref 9, 10). The project was co-funded by the Greek national government and the European Union (European Regional Development Fund - ERDF) (Ref 1, 8). Key actors - initiating organization Local government/municipality Public sector institution Key actors - Other stakeholders involved (besides initiating actors) National government Private sector/corporate actor/company EU body 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") Public Services Schools Land owners Public space owned by the city 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 Yes Please specify the "local regulation/strategy/plan" - Installing green roofs and green walls on school and municipal buildings is one of the actions emphasised in Thessaloniki 2030, the city's resilience strategy (Ref 1, 2). Relevant strategy or plan City specific climate change policy or plan Municipal / city level environmental plan or programme Mandatory or voluntary intervention Mandatory (based on policy) Intervention is mandatory Environmental regulation Enablers & Barriers Type of enablers Governance innovations (such as public private partnerships) Support from transitional governance actors Change agents (individual with major role influence on launching) Funds, subsidies or investment for GI/NBS in the city (available for the city or provided by the city) Please provide details (e.g, name of the plan or strategy) for the selected policies or initiatives. Governance innovations: the local municipality collaborated with a private actor for the implementation. Support from transnational actors/Funds :With an initial budget of 1.5 million euros, the project was co-financed by Greece and the European Union (European Regional Development Fund - ERDF) (Ref 1, 8). Change agents: Deputy Mayor Anastasia Frankopoulou oversaw the architectural planning, project studies, and school roof improvements (Ref 1). Governace and decison-making instruments Strategic instruments (e.g. GI strategies, green space strategy or plans) Economic and fiscal instruments (e.g. subsidies or grants, charges or fees, payments for ecosystem services (PES)) Public - private business agreement (e.g. public private collaborations, public-private-partnerships (PPP)) Arrangements for governance cooperation Unknown Barriers No evidence are available in the public record Financing Total cost €500,000 - €2,000,000 Please specify total cost (EUR) The project was included with an initial budget of 1,500,000 euros in the "ESPA 2014-2020" and specifically in the Priority Axis "Protection of the environment and promotion of resource efficiency", of the Operational Program "Central Macedonia 2014-2020" co-financed by the European Fund of Regional Development (ERDF) (Ref 1). What is/was the Cost/Budget (EUR) of the NBS or green infrastructure elements? €1,500,000 (1) Source(s) of funding Public national budget EU funds Type of fund(s) used Earmarked public budget Direct funding (grants, subsidies, or self-financed projects by private entities) Non-financial contribution Yes Who provided the non-financial contribution? Public authorities (e.g. land, utility services) Type of non-financial contribution Provision of land Co-finance for NBS Yes Co-governance arrangement A fund / grant Entrepreneurship opportunities No Business models Business models Risk reduction model Which of the involved actors was motivated by this model? Public actor (e.g. municipality) 5. Evaluation and learning Impacts, benefits Environmental impacts Climate change Lowered local temperature Expected lowered local temperature Environmental quality Reduced noise exposure Expected reduced noise exposure Water management and blue areas Improved stormwater management Expected improved stormwater management Green space and habitat Increased green space area Achieved increased green space area Increased number of species present Expected increased number of species present Description of environmental benefits -Expected lowered local temperature: "from the cooling resulting from the evapotranspiration of the plants and the substrate"; "The reduction in temperature on a green roof, due to the evaporation of moisture as well as the transpiration of plants, optimizes the operation of the photovoltaic elements and contributes to the increase in energy production."(Ref.3) - Reduced noise exposure: "As far as the vertical garden is concerned , it offers sound insulation and thermal insulation of the building complex" (Ref 3). - Improved stormwater management: "The green roof has significant environmental benefits as it contributes to reducing energy needs, sound insulation, stormwater management and the retention of harmful particles" (ibid.). - Increased green space area/Increased number of species present: "The building has a planted roof with a total area of 3 acres with 25,000 ground cover plants as well as a vertical green garden on three walls with a total area of 100 sq.m. where 3,098 plants were planted (perennials and grasses)" (Ref 1, 3). Environmental impact indicators Total number of vascular plant species protected or introduced 28098 Green space area created (in ha) 3.187 Economic impacts Reduce financial cost for urban management Expected reduce financial cost for urban management Description of economic benefits - Reduce financial cost for urban management:"The green roof has significant environmental benefits as it contributes to reducing energy needs, sound insulation, stormwater management and the retention of harmful particles" (Ref 3). Social and cultural impacts Social justice and cohesion Improved liveability Achieved improved liveability Improved access to urban green space Achieved improved access to urban green space Description of social and cultural benefits - Improved liveability: "The green roof on the building modifies its thermal properties and helps to save energy and improve human comfort" (Ref 3). - Improved access to urban green space: "...includes the formation of a planted roof with a total area of 3,087 sq.m. with 25,000 ground cover plants and a vertical garden on three walls, at the entrance of the school, with a total area of 100 sq.m. with 3,098 plants" (Ref 1). 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 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: "from the cooling resulting from the evapotranspiration of the plants and the substrate"; "The reduction in temperature on a green roof, due to the evaporation of moisture as well as the transpiration of plants, optimizes the operation of the photovoltaic elements and contributes to the increase in energy production."(Ref.3) - Reduced noise exposure: "As far as the vertical garden is concerned , it offers sound insulation and thermal insulation of the building complex" (Ref 3). - Improved stormwater management: "The green roof has significant environmental benefits as it contributes to reducing energy needs, sound insulation, stormwater management and the retention of harmful particles" (ibid.). - Increased green space area/Increased number of species present: "The building has a planted roof with a total area of 3 acres with 25,000 ground cover plants as well as a vertical green garden on three walls with a total area of 100 sq.m. where 3,098 plants were planted (perennials and grasses)" (Ref 1, 3). Long-term perspective Yes Cost-effective solutions Unknown Equitable impacts C. Unknown Transformative capacity Ecological change (e.g. ecosystem functions and their distribution) Technical change (e.g. built infrastructure of cities and their parts, roads, buildings and so on) Magnitude of change Reformist: by focusing on addressing underlying drivers of change but failing to address the problem structurally or systemically 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. Municipality of Pavlos Melas (2022). Ολοκληρώνεται το χρηματοδοτούμενο έργο πράσινου δώματος και κάθετων κήπων στα ΕΠΑΛ Σταυρούπολης των 1.500 μαθητών. Municipality of Pavlos Melas, Accessed on September 5, 2024, [Source link] [Archive]; 2. Municipality of Thessaloniki (2020). Resilient Thessaloniki: A Strategy for 2030. Municipality of Thessaloniki, Accessed on August 19, 2024, [Source link] [Archive]; 3. GreenAgenda (2022). ΠΡΆΣΙΝΗ ΤΑΡΆΤΣΑ ΜΕ 25.000 ΦΥΤΆ ΚΑΙ ΚΆΘΕΤΟΣ ΚΉΠΟΣ ΜΕ ΆΛΛΑ 3.100 ΣΤΟ ΕΠΑΛ ΣΤΑΥΡΟΎΠΟΛΗΣ (ΦΩΤΟ). GreenAgenda, Accessed on September 5, 2024, [Source link] [Archive]; 4. Sarri, S. (2019). Αυτός είναι ο πρώτος κάθετος κήπος σε δημόσιο κτίριο. ΑΠΕ, Accessed on September 5, 2024, [Source link] [Archive]; 5. Hellenic Statistical Authority (ELSTAT) (2021). Δημογραφικά χαρακτηριστικά / 2021. Hellenic Statistical Authority (ELSTAT), Accessed on September 14, 2024, [Source link] [Archive]; 6. Salary Expert (n.d.). Average Salary in Thessaloniki, Greece. Salary Expert, Accessed on September 14, 2024, [Source link] [Archive]; 7. Hellenic Statistical Authority (ELSTAT) (2021). Χαρακτηριστικά κατοικιών - νοικοκυριών / 2021. Hellenic Statistical Authority (ELSTAT), Accessed on September 14, 2024, [Source link] [Archive]; 8. Municipality of Pavlos Melas (n.d.). Δημιουργία Πράσινου Δώματος στο Σχολικό Συγκρότημα ΕΠΑΛ Σταυρούπολης του Δήμου Παύλου Μελά. Municipality of Pavlos Melas, Accessed on September 15, 2024, [Source link] [Archive]; 9. Municipality of Pavlos Melas (2020). Δημοπρατείται το έργο πράσινου δώματος και κάθετου κήπου στα ΕΠΑΛ Σταυρούπολης με χρηματοδότηση 1,5 εκατομμυρίου ευρώ. Municipality of Pavlos Melas, Accessed on September 15, 2024, [Source link] [Archive]; 10. Municipality of Pavlos Melas (2023). Πρόσκληση υποβολής προσφοράς για την ανάθεση του έργου με τίτλο: «ΑΡΧΙΚΗ ΒΑΣΙΚΗ ΣΥΝΤΗΡΗΣΗ ΓΙΑ ΤΗΝ ΕΞΑΣΦΑΛΙΣΗ ΟΡΘΗΣ ΕΓΚΑΤΑΣΤΑΣΗΣ ΤΟΥ ΠΡΑΣΙΝΟΥ ΣΤΟ ΕΠΑΛ ΣΤΑΥΡΟΥΠΟΛΗΣ», Προϋπολογισμού 24.157,50€ (πλέον ΦΠΑ). Municipality of Pavlos Melas, Accessed on September 14, 2024, [Source link] [Archive]; Comments and notes Public Images Image green wall https://m.popaganda.gr/citylife/northwind/aftos-ine-o-protos-kathetos-kipos-se-dimosio-ktirio/ Image Green wall https://pavlosmelas.gr/epalstavroupolis_ergo_fitemenodoma_2022/ Image Green roof 1 https://pavlosmelas.gr/epalstavroupolis_ergo_fitemenodoma_2022/ Image Green roof 2 https://pavlosmelas.gr/epalstavroupolis_ergo_fitemenodoma_2022/ Image Green roof 3 https://pavlosmelas.gr/epalstavroupolis_ergo_fitemenodoma_2022/ Image Green roof 4 https://pavlosmelas.gr/epalstavroupolis_ergo_fitemenodoma_2022/
Image green wall https://m.popaganda.gr/citylife/northwind/aftos-ine-o-protos-kathetos-kipos-se-dimosio-ktirio/
