Habitat and biodiversity conservation

The project is the reforestation of the peri-urban parks of the city of Malaga in order to make the city greener while adhering to the dry and hot climactic condition of the region. It consists of phases, where native trees to the region were planted totaling over 50 000 new trees in the city. (ref 1-10)

In 2012 Marks & Spencers funded a volunteering initiative, the Big Beach Clean-up, through which their staff were able to volunteer to clean local beaches and waterways to make local environmental improvements. This initiative is part of M&S’ Forever Fish campaign which is funded by the profits from the 5p carrier bag charge in M&S foodhalls. The 4th annual Big Beach Clean Up (which took place in 2015) aimed to clean 135 beaches and canals up and down the country with over 8,000 people (3,000 M&S employees and 5,000 M&S customers) (ref. 5). As part of this initiative, around 30 members of staff from Nottingham’s local high street store went down to the canal, between Castle Meadow retail park and Meadow Lane Lock, and spent the day removing masses of litter from the water (ref. 3).

Allotment gardens have a long tradition in Hannover, with approximately 20.000 gardens stretching around the city as a green belt. In the last decades, some gardens were threatened by disappearance due to investment interests (Reference 1). With the goal to protect these gardens, the city employed a so-called "Kleingartenkonzept" (allotment concept) in 2016 with the help of the association of allotment gardens (Bezirksverband Hannover der Kleingärtner e.V.). The concept aims to keep the number of existing gardens for social and ecological considerations while allowing for new residential investments which is vital for the growing city. (Reference 2).
As part of the concept, extensive inventory examinations were conducted on areas affected by conversion and restructuring, along with the start of implementation of smaller development projects for housing and the creation of replacement gardens in some areas. Because the need for residential spaces has been covered for until the end of 2019, the conversion of allotments for the said land use has been stopped; it will be revisited in 2024. (Reference 2)
To address the problem of future allotment garden losses, gradual elimination of permanent vacancies has started by creating new smaller and more attractive gardens from oversized ones, by improving accessibility and optimizing spaces, and by modernizing allotments (Reference 2).

It is one of the most famous parks in the city. A re-design is offering the opportunity to make use of the full potential of the place and to put it back into the public’s focus – as a place for recreation, a park, a promenade and Zurich’s very own, most central urban park. An urban square was formed, representing generosity and offering space for multiple functions. A gateway from park to courtyard during the daytime, the mirroring water surfaces of the illuminated pools, and the annex’s reflecting façade create the atmosphere of a grotto at night (Ref 1).

The public awareness campaign 'flowers for bees' was initiated by the French Apidology Observatory (OFA) and has taken place each year since 2017 (Ref. 7). In 2017, 100 000 bags of honey-seed - whose flowers produce pollen and nectar - were distributed throughout the national territory of France on Tuesday 20 June as "one of the biggest mobilizations undertaken in a day in favor of a species threatened with extinction" (Ref. 5). The city of Marseille wished to associate itself with the event by organizing a plantation and a distribution of seeds". A total of 5,000 bags were distributed in the city from 20 to 23 June 2017 (Ref. 1).

An ongoing extensive expansion of park Lauta in Plovdiv has been carried out. The primary nature-based means used in the project is tree planting. However, animals were also introduced to the habitat. The project aims at creating a suitable place for recreation, purifying the air of Plovdiv, and enriching the park's fauna (Ref. 2; Ref. 3; Ref. 7).

The Institute of Landschaft and Freiraum together with Grün Stadt Zürich and ETH Zürich is developing a project on how plant biodiversity in the city of Zurich can be maintained through urban ecological design. In collaboration with the University of Lausanne, they will assess fragmentation effects on the species, functional and genetic diversity of wildflower patches, and, more specifically, on the population viability, evolutionary potential and connectivity of selected model species. These results will feed directly into the biodiversity programme at Zurich’s office of parks and open spaces (Grün Stadt Zürich). (Ref 1)

The initiative created the first in the city anti-smog garden around a local school. The garden serves multiple purposes as it will include: a greenhouse and a composter, the air-pollution absorbing plants that will attract birds and insects and protect the school from urban dust and noise, a vegetable garden, houses for hedgehogs, birds and butterflies, a 'sensory' path for medicinal gymnastics, a roofed gazebo, a meteorological station and a book exchange booth. It is open to other schools and kindergartens and the general public during the school working hours - for educational purposes and recreation [1,2].

Numerous developments have been carried out at the National Veterinary School of Toulouse's (ENVT) green campus to make the site more conducive to the maintenance and development of biodiversity as result of the school's "VERT VET" (GREEN VET) club (Ref. 2). The green changes began as a result of the school's 2008 sustainable development policy (Ref. 1). Among its many functions and activities, the policy helped raise awareness, clean ponds, and a well, construct a vegetable garden and make beehives and bird nest boxes in the campus's two classified forests (Ref. 3).

Liège Trilogiport is a trimodal logistic area of ​​100 ha located along the Albert Canal, which includes a 15 ha container terminal and a ​​40 ha logistic area. From early stages of development, particular attention was paid to well-being and quality of life. A considerable effort was made to preserve about ¼ of the total area of ​​Liège Trilogiport as nature area, with more than 25 hectares dedicated to a green welcome zone (Ref. 1).