Achieved impacts

The Development of the Garden of the Schloessel project is part of the Natural Urban Park project undertaken by the City Council in consultation with the Strasbourg Urban Community (Ref. 3). The project aims to reduce the carbon footprint of the area by installing and redeveloping green spaces in the garden as well as providing the site with stormwater management infiltration (Ref. 1).

The project of the Park of Malaga was to rehabilitate the lateral spaces of the Paseo del Parque, the organization of the environment, the recovery of the flora and structure of the Park, as well to construct a solution for problems of mobility. (Ref. 1). Recovery of Vegetation of the park, its original layout, and its scientific character of garden Botanical and species acclimatization were central aims of the project (Ref 1).

The San Rafael Park is an urban park and commemoration site built over former communal graves containing more than 2000 bodies of victims of the Spanish Civil War and the Franquista regime. The large project has had 4 phases, three of which have been completed, including the building of a Historical Memory Pantheon to commemorate the victims in the communal graves exhumed from the grounds where the park now stands. (ref 1) In these phases are numerous reforestation and water preservation plans (ref 1-7) including the gardening of more than 4,000m² of green area with 104 shade trees, 8 palm trees and more than 400 units of shrubs, in addition to covering the rest of the surface with perennials and meadows (ref 3).

Under the “Bahn 2000” project while restructuring the main railway station of Zurich, a green roof has been implemented on one of the platforms. The whole area was mapped as a sensitive area, a living space for different endangered insects and reptiles whose natural environment consisted of desert-like spaces. Swiss law prohibits the destruction of such biotopes without replacement. In their protection, the idea of using the rooftop as a replacement was suggested and accepted by the administration. The roof was planned with a special focus on the living space demands of the different species. (Ref 1)

The rehabilitation of the main road Alameda Principal seeks to invert the previous distribution of use of space that saw 70% of it devoted to car usage and 30% to pedestrian use, after the intervention the situation should be 75% civilian and pedestrian space and 25% for cars. (Ref. 4,5) More public spaces, green areas, walks, bike lanes and leisure facilities will characterize this action, which also prioritizes highlighting the identity of this area of the city and value its architectural elements, patrimonial, wooded vault and cultural links. (Ref. 4)

Wildlife in the City is a project led by Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust, with Nottingham City Council, to promote, protect and celebrate the nature reserves, wildlife sites and green spaces across Nottingham City (ref. 2). Wildlife in the City is a project run by Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust was originally designed to raise awareness of the value of urban wildlife and to inspire people to get involved with caring for wildlife sites on their doorstep. The project aimed to engage people in their local green spaces and wildlife. Wildlife in the City ran lots of activities and events, volunteering opportunities, training opportunities and more (ref. 1). It began as a three-year project funded by Natural England through Access to Nature, as part of the Big Lottery Fund's Changing Spaces programme. The project worked with local people to undertake vital habitat creation and management works throughout the city. It particularly worked in areas of Nottingham with previously little wildlife activity from the partners. These areas were Bestwood, Bulwell, Aspley/Broxtowe estate, Clifton, The Meadows, and Sneinton (ref. 6). After the funding for the project has ended, its objectives and the partnership between the City Council and Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust remained and the Trust continues managing many of the Council's wildlife sites and using local volunteers to help out with essential tasks such as scrub management, gardening, litter picks and floral surveys (ref 2).

The community garden is located in the midst of a housing quarter and in the city district of Grünau, a former Plattenbau-area and forms part of a wider area redevelopment project which turns former brownfield (from the DDR era) into generationally mixed housing units with higher living standards. The idea for the garden arose among its residents, who determined its design and elements. It consists of multi-use zones for young and old residents: a central square, a pond with special flora, plant beds for gardening and harvesting, a wild meadow for recreation and picnics (2,3).

On November 5, 2019, the Committee for Urban Development and Technology passed the building decision for the riverside park Austraße - Neckarterrassen. To the north of Münster, the Neckar has cut deeply into the shell limestone and describes a wide arc on the Prallufer. There is little space between the cliff and the river - that is what makes this place so special. This is where the Austraße riverside park is being built with the elements Freienstein water playground (element 1), Neckarterrassen and Tapach-Link (element 2) as well as Austraße, Neckarufer and Neckarstrand (element 3). The first component has already been implemented: children will find their favorite spot on the Freienstein water playground south of the Max-Eyth-Steg. Students from the Elise von König School in Münster contributed their ideas as part of a child participation program. With the second component and its sub-projects “Tapach-Link” and “Neckarterrassen”, there are beautiful prospects for Münster: Those who have overcome the relay to the Neckarterrassen can rest in the shade and let their eyes wander up and down the Neckar. The third component of the Austraße riverside park - in addition to the Freienstein water playground, Neckarterrassen and Tapach-Link - focuses on the banks: podiums and platforms are planned on the river to linger while the freighters transport their goods on the water. Insects, small crabs and small fish find optimal living conditions on the renatured bank zones with stones and diverse flora. (1, 7).

The project called “The Apiary of Kraków” includes several interrelated initiatives to establish beehives on the rooftops of various institutions in Cracow. The aim is to provide habitat for bees, and protect biodiversity, support urban pollination, increase social awareness on the topic. Urban honey is of better quality than honey produced in rural areas where pesticides are more common. The local administration-led initiative aims to promote Cracow as a pro-ecological city which soon will be selling its honey [1,2,3,4].

Landscape Park Neckar is a multi-place NBS intervention that is being realized along the banks of the river Neckar in 27 cities, including Stuttgart. Along the river axis, the free spaces between the dwelling buildings, industrial areas, and transport terminals are identified to be transformed into green areas, parks, and new recreational facilities. With this step-by-step approach, it succeeds in regenerating green areas for natural and social functions and helps drawing attention to the diverse benefits of Green Infrastructure. There are now eight master plans for the different landscape areas, which fit together like pieces of a puzzle to form the Stuttgart Region Landscape Park. Each sub-concept is tailored to the characteristic conditions. Since 2005 the Verband Region Stuttgart has been calling on cities and municipalities to submit project ideas. From this, the projects are selected in a competition in which the region pays up to 50 per cent of the costs. In this way, total investments in the Stuttgart Region Landscape Park of around 45 million euros have been triggered in recent years and around 200 projects have been co-financed by the region. The redevelopment of the landscape is in the ongoing phase. (ref. 1, 2, 7).