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Bayangol Park

Bayangol park is located in the Bayangol district of Ulaanbaatar along the Tuul riverside. The "Bayangol Agropark" was originally established in 2014 under the administration of the Assembly of Citizens' Representatives of Bayangol District. Later, in 2021, it was renamed "Bayangol Park", and the park activities were expanded. The 50-hectare area along the Tuul river basin is expected to develop into an eco-park where people can enjoy their free time in a safe and welcoming atmosphere. Since its opening, over 16000 trees have been planted in this park as part of the nationwide "One billion trees" movement, which aims to lessen the impact of climate change, decrease desertification, protect forests and water resources, and increase employment. As the second-largest park in the capital city, the park also provides opportunities for sports and culture. (Ref. 1, 2, 4)

Farming in Kindergarten

Food safety has come a long way and today it is one of the biggest challenges globally, especially in the developing world. According to the World Bank, Viet Nam is one of the countries prone to food-borne illnesses and food safety is a major concern for the public there (1). Increased droughts, floods and salinization have further enhanced and endangered food supplies. Access to healthy food is not optimal. To solve this issue, some Vietnamese private companies came up with a solution. In 2013, a shoe factory in the city of Dongnai (located around 30 km away from Ho Chi Minh City) established a welfare facility for the factory's employees, called Farming Kindergarten. The building was designed with the idea of serving 700 children of the workers by providing healthy food, as well as environmental education. The design includes a green roof where vegetables are cultivated alongside playgrounds for the children. The roof is designed in such a way that it is the perfect environment where children learn about the importance of agriculture and strengthen their connection with nature (2, 4, 6). The harvests from the garden are distributed to the children's families, contributing to a rather small family budget of Vietnamese workers (the average income of Vietnamese workers is just 180 USD per month) (7).

Justice Shahabuddin Ahmed Park Renovation

Rapid urbanization and a steep increase in population determined a loss of open spaces in Dhaka, the capital and the largest city of Bangladesh. To counteract these issues, Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC) (one of the two municipal corporations in Dhaka, a governmental unit responsible for administering and providing basic infrastructure to the city) has implemented the Green Dhaka Campaign. One of the initiatives under the Green Dhaka Campaign is the renovation of Justice Shahabuddin Park, located in a dense area of Dhaka. (1, 6)
The intervention was initiated in 2017 and consisted of revamping the park by revitalizing the existing pond, planting new trees, and providing amenities for the people living in the neighbourhood where the park is located. The design decisions were taken by prioritising the opinions of different user groups and in consultation with naturalists. The idea of the 9-acre park was to create a safe, "inclusive and accessible public space for all inhabitants, free of crime and violence". (2)
The renovation also consisted in retaining the majority of trees present in the park, as they offered a variety of species such as medicinal trees, fruit trees, and floral trees. This helped with preserving the biodiversity of the space as well as a healthy environment, lauded by the majority of visitors, making the park a favourite of the locals. Three distinct lanes are also made available in the park for jogging, walking, and cycling. (1,2,3,4)

Community Garden supporting Internally Displaced People

The International Institute of Rural Reconstruction (IIRR) Myanmar and its local collaborative organizations developed a community garden at Inn Dein village to ensure access to diverse and safe food amidst the current internal crisis in Myanmar. The community garden is a part of the wider research project “Climate-smart villages as platforms for resilience building, women empowerment, equity, and sustainable food systems”, funded by the International Development Research Centre (IDRC). The expected outcomes are to benefit over 4,200 internally displaced persons (IDP) (due to COVID-19 and internal conflict) in Inn Dein and the Yangon Monastery Camp in Nyaungshwe. The community garden was established in the close vicinity of the Internally Displaced People (IDP) camp. The garden area is about 1.5 acres and rented for three seasons from the owner. Saplings were supplied for agroforestry purposes and a community support fund has also been provided for income generation and livelihood activities. Sprinkler irrigation has been installed to cover the whole land area, and 20 types of crops, including several legumes crops and vegetables such as mustard, radish, carrot, coriander, okras, eggplant and pumpkin are being cultivated. This project is particularly important in the current situation "[because of the lack of opportunities to direct support to IDP camps and the risky situation in food supplies, access to food and nutrition for IDPs is critically important." This project benefits both addressing food insecurity and increasing green space in the neighbourhood of the IDP camps. (Ref 1).

"Misheel" botanical garden

The Misheel Botanical Garden is a large park located in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, established in 2021 along the Tuul River. The project was carried out by "Misheel Group" LLC in cooperation with public actors and more than 100 customer organisations, within the framework of social and environmental responsibility. The project cost 2.1 billion MNT and covers 110,000 square meters of green space, which was beautified without disturbing the native vegetation. The center aims to maintain and restore the ecological balance of flora and fauna, increase the flow of the Tuul river basin by planting trees each year, and provide citizens with more leisure and recreation opportunities. The botanical garden includes a combination of green-blue infrastructure and offers the opportunity for people to relax and expand their knowledge about a healthy environment. The center features a laboratory for students of natural sciences, a basketball court, a sand volleyball court, leisure areas for the elderly and infants, a dedicated sand area, and access for strollers and people with disabilities. The center also includes a terrace with a view of the Tuul River, where visitors can relax, and host events and activities throughout the year, including the winter.
[Source: Information provided by the management team of this project, Ref. 1, 5]

Eden in Iraq: The Wastewater Garden Project

The marshes in southern Iraq, formed by the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers, are home to one of humanity’s oldest cultures, once the third-largest wetlands in the world. The Eden In Iraq wastewater garden project started as a humanitarian project that has developed as a necessity for the people of Al Chibaish and the localities surrounding the town. This water remediation project holistically looks at wastewater, trying to include this type of water and its nutrients in a sustainable form by using it to create green spaces. The Eden project in Iraq regards human waste as a valuable source of nutrients and freshwater, which can add to local greenery and landscape beauty if properly treated close to its source. From a climate change point of view, the project focuses on the creation of a wetland with wastewater that can support a garden within the marshes of Iraq. Marsh restoration is a powerful tool against warming temperatures and loss of vegetation, especially in arid areas such as Iraq. From a biodiversity point of view, the project bares a great deal of significance as marshes support a myriad of rare wildlife and rich biodiversity. (1,2,3)

Nyandungu Wetland Eco-park

The creation of Nyandungu Wetland Eco-Tourism Park is part of Rwanda’s efforts to restore and conserve ecosystems while promoting social-economic development. The Rwandese capital, Kigali, experiences regular flooding during rainstorms, due to the runoff from the surrounding urbanized hills, with the stormwater concentrating at the valley bottom in former wetlands. These floods cause disruption to traffic, preventing all travel between hillside communities. In order to address stringent issues, the focus turned on the wetlands surrounding the capital of the country. One of these wetlands is the Nyandungu wetland, which has suffered a lot of land use changes over the years, including agricultural activities, pasturing, cattle farms, sand mining, and wetland reclamation. From a climate change point of view, the project aims to address problems related with flooding and sustained base-flows in rivers. From a biodiversity point of view, the project aims to enhance biodiversity conservation. The main goal is the reconstruction of the Nyandungu Wetland Eco-Park with green infrastructure and services strategies for green energy, saving and recycling water, use of local and natural materials as well as architectural designs that maximize natural lighting and ventilation. (1,4)

Armenia's Tree Project

The Armenia Tree Project is a national initiative founded in 1994. The project engages in involving different community members in an urban planting program, environmental education and outreach. ATP has targeted the most vulnerable communities with the most need for greenery. The focus and attention that is given to these areas help trees to grow and flourish but also creates a stronger bond between the inhabitants and the land they live on. Major greening sites are typically public parks, schools, kindergartens, cultural centers, military bases, churches, historical monuments and other significant landmarks. ATP also focused on Yerevan, the capital of Armenia which has become the "theatre" of many planting campaigns. From a climate change perspective, the project addresses issues of clean air and temperature regulation, as Armenia confronts a frequency of extreme weather events, worsening desertification and land degradation. From a biodiversity perspective, the project aims to conserve the country's rich biodiversity and to restore its ecosystems. (1,2,3)

The first green wall in Bolivia

A green wall of 73 square metres was constructed on the building of the Federación de Entidades Empresariales Privadas de Cochabamba (FEPC, the Federation of Private Business Entities of Cochabamba) (Ref. 1). The vertical ecosystem comprises over 3000 plants of 35 species and is considered the first vertical garden to have been created in Bolivia (Ref. 1). The green wall is considered to have 'beautified' the city of Cochabamba, but is also considered to "contribute... effectively to the preservation of the environment" (Ref. 2).

Greening in Laval

A greening project in Laval aimed to replace impermeable surfaces such as asphalt with vegetation. This process would allow water to infiltrate the soil on a surface area of 3000 square meters and plant 7200 plants on land located near or inside urban heat island zones of the city (Ref. 1,2,3,7). The project takes an integrated approach to mitigate the impact of urban heat islands, which make up 12-13% of the territory in Laval (Ref. 1,7). Particular focus of this project is placed on planting on sites of vulnerable communities (Ref. 1,3).