Case studies

The Project “Demonstrating and promoting natural values, to support the decision-making process in Romania” (N4D) was developed based on folowing activities: A1. institutional infrastructure development; A2. Development of the ecosystem mapping and assessment framework in Romania; A3. Data analysis and management under the MAES process;  A4. Biophysical mapping and assessment of ecosystems and of their services;  A5. Project promotion; A6. Knowledge exchange with the neighbouring countries and with Norway, as the country providing the Project financing.

The aim is (i) to provide an assessment of the EcM community and functional group composition of urban trees, and of its environmental drivers, using next generation sequencing techniques; (ii) to relate specific EcM, or functional groups of EcM, to tree health, and tree ecosystem service delivery and resilience, using advanced noninvasive spectral and physiological sensing technology, diameter growth measurements, and urban biophysical modeling; and (iii) to develop and test (in situ & ex situ) a dedicated EcM-inoculum to improve urban tree health, and ecosystem service delivery and...

Nature-In is an artistic, technical and historical research, that will gain knowledge from our architectural heritage to inform us of a Contemporary Design, through Landscape, Architectural Interior and Biophilic Design approaches, as a resource to mitigate an urgent problem. The overall aim is to improve Nature’s connection with the interior spaces of buildings, to enhance the health and wellbeing in dwellings and urban areas in the EU and beyond. Thus, Nature-In may transform the reality towards a better life.

One of the activities foreseen by the Uforest project is researching innovative Urban Forestry initiatives across Europe. For this reason, the Uforest team has selected and analysed some of the most interesting urban forestry projects in the continent, with the aim to illustrate real practices and eventually inspire others to start greening their cities. Among them, we selected the Barcelona Nature Plan. 

The Pla Natura Barcelona (Barcelona Nature Plan) is a public initiative led by the Barcelona City Council with the aim to improve and increase...

The Connecting Nature project in Malaga  is part of developing a new perspective for  urban  planning and in the Lagunillas neighborhood. The implementation of this new perspective can cover the three types of interventions:

The renovation of three public squares  in Lagunillas

• The renovation of public squares.
• The development of a green corridor between Lagunillas and the mount Gibralfaro
•  

Finally, the Connecting Nature project in Lagunillas aims for urban revitalization of this dense neighborhood located in the city center.

Our...

Meeting these multifaceted demands on Glasgow’s open spaces is going to be important in ensuring that Glasgow is well-equipped to deal with the challenges of the 21st century and to enhance the attractiveness of the city as a place in which to live and invest.

As part of the Connecting Nature project, the City of Glasgow’s ambition was to develop, and begin to deliver, an Open Space Strategy for the city to help address this changing context and the changing demands on open space. The aim was for the Strategy to be used to establish an approach for considering the different ways in...

Context

Located in a central area of São Paulo city, the Jaguaré creek is canalised along its full 25 km length. Some parts are buried underground and others are contained in concrete canals between traffic lanes. The watershed has been deeply modified through the urbanisation process and receives a significant load of domestic and industrial sewage and diffuse pollution. The Jaguaré watershed has a diverse set of landscapes and urban contexts, from its springs to the heavily urbanised area where it flows to the Pinheiros river. The watershed corresponds to 1/10 of the total 270...

The  central Uzbek government needed to be convinced that investments in the Amu Darya delta would make social, ecological and economic sense. Ecosystem services of the delta were valued for three situations: the situation before degradation, the present degraded and the potential restored situation.

The main objective of our BIOVEINS proposal is to use functional diversity (FD) to highlight the mechanisms underpinning the link between GBI, taxonomic diversity (TD) and ecosystem services (ESs) provisioning, and to provide, together with local stakeholders, the ecological and interdisciplinary knowledge to identify the critical features of GBI, to guide the establishment, management and restoration of GBI, and to mitigate the effects of major urban global challenges, like habitat fragmentation, air pollution, and urban heat island.

This main objective will be accomplished by...

Xochimilco is an important tourist attraction for Mexico City and because of thi,s public policies have been focused in conservation, tourism infrastructure and ecotourism. Therefore there is now a priority to address social and environmental challenges including: the dredging and cleaning of the canals, garbage collection and reforestation of channels, exotic species control, improving the hydraulic infrastructure, Axolotl conservation, Chinampas rehabilitation, and productive projects.

Natural systems or nature based solution have been suggested and implemented in order to reduce...

This case study from the SINCERE project had the goal to:

• Create a new legal framework for forest and forestry that incorporates the concept of ecosystem services (ES) into regional forest legislation, to improve the provision, valuation and monitoring of ES and to provide the resources to pay for ES provision.
• Focus on two Forest ES: water quality and quantity, and landscape as social and recreational service. Also research to establish correlation between
...

The aim of this research was to understand how private sector natural capital investments could be increased and diversified in the Spey catchment. The focus of the study was on businesses that do not primarily manage land, but nevertheless rely on the Spey landscape, e.g. for their supply chain or to attract customers. Specifically, the study tried to answer four questions:
1. How do businesses currently invest in natural capital?
2. What motivates and hinders businesses to invest in natural capital?
3. Is there potential for coordinated business investment in natural...

The main purpose of the arctic green wall is to manage water flows (storage) and water quality, with particular focus on understanding its performance during cold seasons. Arctic green wall will also produce new knowledge related to suitable plant species for sub-arctic climate with variable freeze-thaw cycle and snow load.

 The floodplains of the River Thames are characterised by high land prices and intense urbanisation, with few options for creating extra flood storage.  A number of tributaries of the fluvial Thames suffer localised flooding in urban reaches, affecting local inhabitants, businesses, property and infrastructure. 

Recently there has been UK government investment in natural flood management (NFM) and there is growing interest in how land management such as Conservation Agriculture can provide water management for storing flood water as well as biological benefits....

A climate proof city that is economically strong and attractive.

Through climate change adaptation the city of Rotterdam can improve its social and ecological value.

• Develop a concept and implement numerous pilot projects on the riverbank

The main purpose of the project is to design a promande among the Danube quays in Budapest, planting plants, building installations, and awareness rising. The goal is the sharing of the sensation of the Danube in the city, recommending the daily utilization of the river side to citizens.

The project is a good example for the implementation of strategic NBSs, with putting great emphasis on the corporate development and implementation, by creating networks. 

The...

Extensive community engagement sessions were conducted from 2015-2016 by Scottish Canals and Glasgow City Council, including a charrette at Port Dundas which recognised the role green and blue infrastructure could play in regenerating the area. As a result of this, plans to develop the area included extending the path network, re-designing entrances, installing boardwalks, creating picnic areas and building a bridge across the canal to improve access.

The second part of the project is the ‘Smart Canal’ and this forms part of the North Glasgow Integrated Water Management System and...

The Greater London Authority (GLA) participants in the BRIDGE FP7  project identified the primary planning goals for the Central Activities Zone (CAZ)[1] as to: (a) increase green space; (b) improve air quality; (c) reduce the UHI effect (heat island) and (d) prevent flash floods, with climate change adaptation and mitigation seen as a cross cutting issue.

London has a number of plans aimed at addressing these challenges, including:

• The Mayor’s London Plan in which two goals relate to urban green space and aim
...

To build a school that would blend into the surrounding hillside and to ensure that all water would remain on site to prevent flooding of the local drainage system.

A Green Infrastructure Plan of Llanquihue, which includes the Baquedano Wetland Park, was developed through the joint working of the Landscape Architecture Master Program Universidad de Chile and the NGO Legado Chile Fundatio. It is a response to several socio-ecological pressures created by urban living that were affecting ecosystems within the city boundaries. In 2016 both institutions called on an open dialogue with 300 members of the community, including residences, local authorities, the school community, regional services, representative of productive industries, scientists and...

The project promotes urban butterflies conservation, thanks to the involvement of fragile people as citizen scientists. It aims to create and connect Butterfly oasis, to allow butterflies to cross the city; and to involve people with mental or physical disabilities, to fight the social stigma

Supporting the design of policies and planning instruments to ensure the sustainable management of natural capital stocks and the delivery of critical ecosystem services in the Natural Park. Engaging local stakeholders and decision makers throughout the process to promote awareness raising and social learning.

Minimising the impacts of dredging and flood bank extension: In 2018/2019, in the Ria de Aveiro two management interventions will have negative unintended impacts on biodiversity: 1) a dredging programme to manage water flow and navigability in Ria de Aveiro coastal lagoon, and 2) the extension of a flood bank to stop surface saltwater intruding onto local farmland. The goal of this study is to apply adaptive management and minimise foreseen but unintended management challenges in a Natura 2000 protected area, which crosses fresh and marine waters, in the context of EU...

After a decade of restoration measures along the Tzipori stream in Israel, this case study will monitor their success and aims at upscaling measures to the watershed scale in order to create a model for management of stream basin rehabilitation.

This case study is one of 17 that are part of the EU Horizon2020 project MERLIN - Mainstreaming Ecological Restoration of freshwater-related ecosystems in a Landscape context: INnovation, upscaling and transformation.

• Provision of recreation and educational facilities for local residents and visitors;
• Health and wellbeing benefits gained through the use of the recreation facilities;
• Landscape benefit of creating a functional green boundary between built-up areas which acts as a wooded regional park

The community at Nutsbedrijven Regio Eindhoven aimed at rehabilitating the old industrial area to a livable urban space. This initiative served as a participatory planning and governance, and social capacity building action as citizens were driving the development of the area and NBS implementation.

The Finnish River Management Association Virho (Virtavesien hoitohidstys Virho ry), was nominated for the Nordic Council Environment Prize 2022 with the theme of nature-based solutions. The Finnish River Management Association has the goal to revive and secure the living conditions of the entire water ecosystem in Finland. This includes fostering biodiversity and fish stocks in areas of flowing water. Virho has operated for more than 30 years restoring hundreds of kilometers of streams through building fish roads, rehabilitating streams and rapids, and deconstructing dams. 

One such...

The overall objective is the long-term conservation of Natura 2000 habitats and species of a delta coastal lagoon, by means of an integrated management that exploits, instead to contrast, the dynamism of the lagoon and its constant sedimentary deposit.

The main objective of the project is to increase the biodiversity of a peri-urban area, re-naturalizing it through the creation of an urban edible forest.

Az Ökoház Farm 2015-ben fogott bele látványos eredményeket hozó agrárerdészeti projektjébe, amelynek keretében az ipari és energetikai célú császárfa ültetvényt fás sávos köztesműveléssel társították, és fokhagymát termesztettek a fák árnyékában. 

A gazdálkodók az interneten történő kutatással, majd az AGFOSY projektbe történő bekapcsolódásuk során szereztek információt az agrárerdészetben rejlő lehetőségekről. Később alapító tagjai voltak az Agroerdészeti Civil Társaságnak, amelyen keresztül kapcsolatba kerültek az Európai Agroerdészeti Szövetséggel (EURAF) és a H2020 AFINET...

By 2100, under a high greenhouse emissions scenario, the temperature is projected to increase by about 4.5 ºC in comparison to the 1990s. This means that every second summer will be as hot or even hotter than the temperatures reached during the 2003 heat wave which caused severe loss of life across Europe. Extreme precipitation events are likely to increase in frequency and severity. Green roofs were found to offer opportunities to combine energy saving, climate change mitigation and adaptation, and biodiversity objectives. In densely built-up areas where providing extensive parks and...

Founding an association that has the goal to procure suitable land and spaces and to convert them into flower meadows and insect habitats.  Focus of this association is the concrete action of procuring the spaces, surveying them with experts, making individual concepts, securing financing for the conversion and making sure it actually happens. The assiciation is taking Naturfelder Issum e.V. as a template.

• To demonstrate the potential of nature-based solutions to reduce heat stress, manage water and improve wellbeing and social cohesion
• To engage local people in designing nature-based solutions that meet their needs
• To develop an effective strategy for nature-based solutions across the city 

Provision of innovative energy efficient homes within resilient communities.

Our vision for Nottingham is to provide high-quality affordable homes within communities that promote the health, happiness and wellbeing of their occupants and encourage the efficient use of resources as a means of stimulating long term social, physical and economic renewal of urban neighbourhoods in the city.

Innovative multifunctional green urban space on heavily sealed surfaces of an inner city location.

One eye on the future, the other on the past.

The commons managed by the Università Agraria will be permanently conserved for future generations because they generate sustainable socio-economic opportunities today.

AteNas is built around  3 demonstration sites, covering urban and periurban zones of Łódź, Lyon and Vantaa/Helsinki and sharing the challenge of enabling water to citizens and nature, both in terms of quality and quantity.

Utilize of cities water resources to secure regulating ecosystem services, enable Nature-Based Solutions, and enhance adaptive capacity to global changes.

This case study from the SINCERE project had the goal to:

• Develop mechanisms for multi-purpose forest management, introducing the concept of ecosystem services (ES) and multi-purpose forest use into the current forest renting system which currently only provides leases for a single ES.
• Change management priorities from wood harvesting to multi-purpose forest management.
• Increase the economic efficiency of forest use while maintaining a balance between all ES by introducing a
...

To create a green, quick, frequent and reliable bus service and improve walking and cycling opportunities which will ultimately help to reduce traffic congestion, noise and air pollution.

Informing policy makers at national and EU level about the short and long term consequences of forest bioenergy production and its trade-offs for other ecosystem services.

With the aim to create huge forest patches, develop urban forest park clusters and optimise the large-scale forest patterns, BPAP has proposed green strategies with nine green wedges, multiple greenbelts, and green corridors around the old city centre in Beijing. 

Objectives further include:

• Improving the forest coverage and urban greenspace connectivity in urbanised areas by planting more than 54 million trees, enhancing biodiversity;

• Providing health and wellbeing benefits through the use of the recreation facilities
...

Rehabilitation of an existing building by adding, among other rehabilitation measures, a semi-public green space on the roof with a positive influence on the health of users, positive effects on urban climate against the heat island effect and positive effect on water by it storages in the deck space. It also improves the energy efficiency of the building by the insulation provided by the layers of green cover.

The above-mentioned challenges are addressed in Oradea’s plan for a green area within a 5 minute walking distance from anywhere in the city, evaluated in its Urban Development Plan 2030. Oradea’s main objective is to improve quality of life for its citizens, including by prioritising the increase of leisure opportunities.

To deliver an exceptionally sustainable healthcare facility, delivering long term environmental, social and financial benefits for patients, visitors, staff and the local community.

Context

The climate in São Paulo has changed from light rain and cool year-round, to mostly dry and hot. The city is vulnerable to urban heat-island effect and recurrent severe floods with the strong storms caused by land-cover change. The waters are contaminated by sewage discharge and diffuse pollution caused by storm-water run-off.

Objectives

• Recover ecological functions.
• Introduce native biodiversity.
• Manage storm water to avoid floods.
• Provide urban public spaces.

To provide an open forum for people in Thamesmead to discuss nature and the natural environment.  

To act as a first step towards creating a more bottom up governance and decision making model. 

To regenerate a brown site to develop 150 new homes, an improved park area and a BREEAM outstanding green business park. To deliver high quality jobs, family housing and a better green space.

Building a sustainable and cohesive community based on environmental principals.

In 20 year’s time, Barking Riverside is an ecologically sustainable neighbourhood that provides a range of tenures from social to owner-occupied housing. Community-managed assets are bound up with informal cultural activities and public spaces, the most prominent of which is the community tended network of unique and ecologically valuable green spaces that include the regenerated riverside.

Promoting the improved management of the "montado" multifunctional ecosystem, reconciling resources use with conservation interests. This will be achieved by bringing the ecosystem services and natural capital concepts into practice.

• To demonstrate the potential for nature-based solutions to reduce heat stress and flooding and provide other co-benefits
• To engage citizens in designing nature-based solutions that meet their needs.
• To develop an effective strategy for nature-based solutions to contribute to climate change adaptation across the city.

Installation of sport and exercise devices in the Eastern part of an open public park (Gustav-Heinemann-Park) in Dortmund’s district Huckarde which will be mainly useable for Huckarde citizens and pupils from an adjacent school. Devices will be publicly accessible and shall invite every person who would like to use them. Target groups are teenagers and adults, difficulty levels will range will from easy to sportive. 

By installing the devices it is as well intended to increase attractiveness of the park and to create a location to spend more time; currently it is mainly a passing-by...

The outline of a study area was developed by the Local Taskforce of Porto, according to the previously established commitment by the municipality of Porto to develop the project URBiNAT in this area. The first criteria were to ensure the inclusion of Cerco, Falcão, Lagarteiro, and other social housing neighbourhoods nearby.

Given the intention of implementing new healthy corridors, the study area includes the most relevant strategic green spaces (Oriental Park, Corujeira Plaza, Quinta da Bonjóia, municipal nursery), services (schools, industry, health centres, local associations)...

After around 21ha of floodplain area were passively and actively restored under the LIFE FLUVIAL project, an enlarging of the intervention area is now being implemented. The floodplain forest restoration intends to develop/demonstrate an ecological restoration approach for fluvial floodplains transferable to lowlands at the biogeographic region (NW of Iberian Peninsula). The case study also aims at taking local stakeholders on board and reconcile the protection of priority habitats with traditional cattle production. The case study will also integrate an educational dimension and aims at...

Co-Finding competition to support municipalities in the design, implementation, and funding of green infrastructure projects.

The D4RUNOFF project’s goal is to create a novel framework for preventing and managing diffuse pollution from urban water runoff. This will be achieved by designing hybrid nature-based solutions (NBS) and a data-driven AI-platform to support policy and decision making.

The case studies have been identified for the implementation and validation of this approach in varying environments. The replicability of these results will then be assessed at five replication sites. The Las Llamas Park in Santander has been chosen as one of three case study sites as part of the D4RUNOFF project.

Addressing the steps needed to overhaul the economic development strategy of Málaga.

The land was in a vacant and derelict state and safety concerns were raised due to vandalisation, fly tipping, vehicle abandonment and fires. The conversion of the site into a new urban park presented an opportunity to address the anti-social behaviour and make the site a desirable area for positive activities and community development. South Lanarkshire Council provided the match funding for the project and applied for funding from the Green Infrastructure Strategic Intervention (GISI), which was granted in 2017. A ‘friends of’...

Activating community based projects in a deprived neighbourhood, Mountjoy Square.

LEAFSKIN® is an ultralight green roof set up over pedestrian streets or squares, in order to create shadow areas in urban spaces.  

The tecnhology can also provide interesting implimentation like carring lighting system or  advertising on the bottum. 

Description of the NBS

The NBS is composed by three main elements:

1. The facilities room. It is an unused newspaper kiosk, where there will be installed the irrigation system machines. An irrigation pipe is coming from this kiosk to the structures and a duct with the excess water returns back
...

Starting with a single focus on afforestation, the project aimed at integrating Nature-Based Solutions for limiting flooding, enhancing biodiversity and reducing traffic noise pollution.

Following an integrated approach, further objectives included:

• Safeguarding agriculture in the long term, by setting aside dedicated areas for agriculture for local farmers;
• Increasing road safety for pedestrians and cyclists (restructuring crossings, developing links for recreational traffic);
• Providing opportunities for recreation and play;
• Safeguarding
...

The main objective of our BIOVEINS proposal is to use functional diversity (FD) to highlight the mechanisms underpinning the link between GBI, taxonomic diversity (TD) and ecosystem services (ESs) provisioning, and to provide, together with local stakeholders, the ecological and interdisciplinary knowledge to identify the critical features of GBI, to guide the establishment, management and restoration of GBI, and to mitigate the effects of major urban global challenges, like habitat fragmentation, air pollution, and urban heat island.

This main objective will be accomplished by...

Quantifying how well Nature-based Solutions can offset anthropogenic climate change impacts is important for adaptation planning but has rarely been done. This report aims to show that a widely-applied Nature-based Solution in South Africa – invasive alien tree clearing – reduces the impact of anthropogenic climate change on drought streamflow. Using a multi-model joint-attribution of climate and landscape-vegetation states during the 2015–2017 Cape Town “Day Zero” drought.

The Forest Landscape Restauration (FLR) measures will be implemented on the selected site in Gledić, due to the high risks of flood and soil erosion, decrease or complete loss of biodiversity, weak forest resilience, and negative effects on the community livelihood, especially for women and vulnerable groups.

Resilient growth of peripheral settlements.

 SUPPORT FOR CONCENTRATED DECONCENTRATION. Sofia General Master plan with timescale 2030 has as one of its major goals to alleviate the investors’ development pressure to the capital City. It creates spatial preconditions for transition to a polycentric municipal urban structure by allocating considerable terrains for extension of the settlements around Novi Iskar.

A Food Forest is an artificial human designed forest that predominantly consists of edible plants and fruit-bearing bushes and trees.

To improve an over wide and heavily silted reach of the river Somer running through Midsomer Norton high street, providing a diverse habitat for native fish, particularly wild brown trout, plants and invertebrates.

Mapping green and grey structures of Leipzig to understand in which urban structure types land-use pressures on urban green are higher / lower and analysing how political and governance strategies and instruments support the protection of green infrastructure and its ecosystem services.

Encouraging public participation in the planning and implementation processes of urban projects in Sofia.

The aim of the project Orti Generali is to regenerate Cascina Piemonte area,  which is mostly reduced to ruins because of occupations and acts of vandalism, creating new community gardens that will pursuit different goals: education, social inclusion, technological innovation, job training. 

The overall goal is to test aquaponics systems in an urban context in the post-industrial district Mirafiori Sud. In synergy with diverse stakeholders including professional farmers, social and nonprofit organization and citizens in participatory, scalable, technologically advanced and sustainable processes.
Grow up test aquaponic horticultural cultivation through the planning, building and management of three demonstration plants:
(1) a micro plant,
(2) a mini plant installing together with residents of the Comunità Giulia;
(3) a semi-commercial plant. Carried out...

This exemplar aims to: Map and describe existing and potential use and non-use community-held values of the estuary; Elicit community-held preferences and willingness to pay for coastal land use and management on landscape-scale; Test impacts of deliberation on preferences for estuarine land in a workshop setting; Contextualise study findings through institutional analysis; Identify ecosystem values held by land-owners and their attitudes towards coastal realignment; Understand future visions for the estuaries from diverse stakeholders; Test operational potential and impact of valuation...

RENATURALIZE THE LAGOON AND DEVELOP A NEW MODE OF SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT.

• Implementation of vegetated rafts as habitats for local species on a city center river
• Using Bio-sourced materials

It aims to implement artificial shelters for fauna (nesting box, insect hotels, artificial spawning areas…) and vegetation supports were installed. Wooden terraces were also installed to allow citizens to enjoy and observe biodiversity. This project is both thought for biodiversity and for citizens and finaly allow cohabitation between them.

This NBS aims at improving the usability of the area:

• to recover an abandoned and underutilized former industrial lot and to return it for public use;
• to favor the transition of pollinating insects, following the directions of the ecological corridors identified by proGIreg;
• to activate local inhabitants in taking care of the new green installations, by stimulating them through citizens-science activities;
• to favor a collaborative setting of different stakeholders, in order to guarantee the sustainability of the intervention in the future

Genk’s multi-annual strategic plan for 2014-19 is a response to the closure of the Ford car manufacturing company. The main objective of the plan has been to use Genk’s natural and human capital for sustainable value creation. Nature-based solutions are an integral part of the plan, used to create blue-green connections (top-down approach) and promote social inclusion (bottom-up approach).

Dongpo Wetland Park aims to allow for the provision of connected multifunctional green spaces and to ensure the sustainable development of the city while retaining the original wetland environment.

It further aims to provide a new green and open leisure space for urban residents. The original wetland has been preserved with the aim to maintain regional biodiversity and to improve the water quality of the area.

Exploring which policy strategies can balance the supply of and demand for mountain ecosystem services in the future? Mountains provide many ecosystem services to both, people living in and outside the mountains. In the Swiss Alps study area, the number of farms abandoned is increasing and traditional farming systems are in decline. Therefore, as in many European mountain regions, the provision of essential services is at risk. At the same time, touristic activities and settlement development enhance local demand for ecosystem services. New and integrated strategies in agricultural,...

Maintaining a CSA initiative with 80 members with a special discount for low income households and social initiatives.

To create a sustainable service station which has minimal impact on its surroundings and is sensitive to surrounding environment of the Cotswolds (AONB).

The main purpose of the roof is to offer an unique green environment to the residents in the house. In the project every surface, also on the ground below, is maximized with greenery. The greenery offers a range of ecosystem services which also benefits the neighbors and the city. The main purpose of the roof is to offer an unique green environment to the residents in the house. In the project every surface, also on the ground below, is maximized with greenery. The greenery offers a range of ecosystem services which also benefits the neighbors and the city.    

Izmir is a Turkish city with roughly 4 000 000 inhabitants. Located in the west coast of Anatolia, it is the country’s third most populous city. The local climate is Mediterranean, with long and hot summers and relatively mild winters.

Izmir is one of the oldest cities on the Mediterranean sea, with 8500 years of history. It is deeply cultured and offers a variety of historical sites. Izmir is also a modern and dynamic economical centre of its region. The local economy benefits from flourishing service industry followed by manufacturing and agriculture.

With its large...

Context

Curitiba is the largest city in the southern region. It is an important regional economic and cultural centre. The meaning of Curitiba in the indigenous language of Tupi-Guarani is ‘land of Araucárias’ (the native pine tree), though these are no longer present in the urban landscape.

Curitiba is a point of reference in biodiversity conservation and enhancement. Since 1972 the city has implemented parks to improve the urban environment. In 1992, after the Rio ECO92, the city started mapping the Barigui watershed with aero-photogrammetry. Curitiba hosted the 8th...

We analyzed relationships between biodiversity and ecosystem services. We surveyed vegetation and monitored soil loss in various land uses to assess, model and map tree diversity, soil erosion control, and climate change mitigation.

Identification of the Green Infrastructure at high resolution, i.e. not using land use cover, with GIS and assessment of the Ecosystem Services through the MAES (Mapping Ecosystem Services) methodology in urban area.

The study analysed also human-environment interactions, according to the resident population and with particular attention to the weaker groups, infants (0-5 years) and elderly (> 65 years). Ecosystem Services (ES) were selected in consideration of the population accordingly the CICES (Common International Classification of Ecosystem Services) classification. Among...

Incorporating social learning in collaborative decision making processes within which the development of multifunctional, multi-services delivering Green Infrastructure is included in local level planning.

After degradation of the river due to straightening, bank enforcements, navigational use and intensive agricultural land use along its banks, the Zwalm river basin is now to be restored at several sites. The case study aims at restoring the river to a healthy and functioning ecosystem while still allowing navigational use. A focus is on habitat restoration (spawning beds, buffer strips) and passability for fish.

This case study is one of 17 that are part of the EU Horizon2020 project MERLIN - Mainstreaming Ecological Restoration of freshwater-related ecosystems in a Landscape...

The city of Nova Gorica has been shaping its municipal strategy around the 3 main axes of the Regional Development Strategy of Northern Primorska, namely:

• Development priority 1: Increasing competitiveness, innovation and employment opportunities in the region;
• Development priority 2: Improving the quality of life
• Development priority 3: Sustainable environmental, spatial and infrastructural development of the region

Priority 3 in particular, given the centrality of Nova Gorica and its surrounding settlements in the region, states “a. rational and...

Exploring the vision for a former sulphur mine in the context of common land ownership and management in Manziana Region.

The Kaunertal concept case is an innovative research project with the aim of revegetating barren slopes in high alpine areas, such as those left by road construction or ski slope development, devoted to reducing erosion from these slopes.

Through the H2020 project PHUSICOS the stabilizing effect of vegetation and the growth-promoting effects of bacteria to enhance plant traits that most strongly contribute to slope stability, exclusively applying autochthonous species without introducing external species and microbes into the area, are demonstrated.

The objectives and goals of the educational activities can be summarized as follows:

• promote the active role of the local educational system during the proGIreg project by consolidating active co-planning processes of school communities to provide continuity of the learning experience
• schools serving as a point of reference on environmental, cultural and socio-economic issues related to the concept of Green Cities.
• support the development of co-design processes
• define management models of NBS foreseen in the project by evaluating the possible
...

To convert an energy intensive system of heating, cooling and ventilation, which was poorly maintained and controlled into a modern, green, sustainable development while adhering to stringent rail standards.

The objective of the project is to reduce the areas of impermeable surfacing and develop a connected green network across the campus. 

Key aims:

• Createa series of destination greenspaces 
• Develop a connected green network across campus
• Develop an integrated water management system across campus

A Crop Wild Relative (CWR) is a wild species that is closely related to a cultivated crop. It can for example include wild relatives of food crops such as of cereals, vegetables and fruits, or relatives of fodder and forage crops. NordGen has been working with CWRs in two different projects. A possible continuation of the works is currently being investigated. At this project site you can read more about CWRs, why they’re important and how NordGen is addressing the issue.

CWRs are one of the tools that can be used to address future challenges on food security, adaptation to climate...

The area is characterized by by the presence of two separate lakes connected by a tree-lined pathway. The first lake is used for the fishing while the second one is characterized by a more spontaneous development of wild flora and is the home of different bird species.
It aims to include : 
• morphological arrangement of the slopes of embankments produced by the extractive area for the future public use
• putting containment elements of the soil in particularly steep points;
• realization of green ramparts and rows of trees to masking/hiding noise and dust deriving...

The Norwegian Institute for Bioeconomy will prevent erosion by strengthening slopes and edges with nature-based solutions (NbS). The aim is to improve local environmental conditions and increase water quality and biodiversity in streams and rivers.

In many creeks and streams, both large and small, erosion is a major problem. The problem arises as a result of various types of interventions in nature and is typically solved with stone and concrete - so-called grey solutions. But the grey solutions often have negative consequences on the local environmental conditions, water quality...

To regenerate a brownfield site into a vibrant public space and reconnect the city with its waterfront, integrating art and ecology.

Encouraging collaboration by bringing together diverse perspectives on Dublin and its desired future.

34 case studies were planned by the H2020 PEGASUS project in different farming and forest systems and along the supply chain in 10 EU countries, to: 

• examine the issues faced in ensuring effective provision of public goods/ecosystem services from farming & forest activities; and 
• find solutions to enable the economic social and environmental sustainability of the EU’s farmed & forest areas.

Freshwater ecosystems in the Swiss plateau are threatened by multiple stressors that deteriorate water quality and hydromorphology. This is the result of channelization, dams, wastewater, and agriculture, among other causes. To restore these ecosystems and stop the biodiversity decline, multiple management measures will be implemented over the next decades. We propose methods for prioritising the location and timing of restoration measures to maximise their effectiveness, considering many sectors and multiple societal objectives.

With the aim to enhance the management and utilisation of Urban Forests as Natural Heritage in Danube Cities, the URBforDAN Interreg Danube project fosters innovative and participatory approaches to build recreational infrastructure that also serves an educational value.

The management of the Urban Forest area also aims at providing regulating ecosystem services.

The Park 500 Natural Treatment System (NTS) was constructed as a voluntary effort to provide a low-energy, low-maintenance alternative to reducing nitrogen and phosphorus in the process’s wastewater, which is high in nitrate-nitrogen, organic nitrogen and total phosphorus.

The project was initiated to reduce the environmental footprint of the tobacco production facility and help Philip Morris USA meet its environmental sustainability goals. The NTS reduces mass loading to the James River and creates a performance buffer for the existing plant discharge to ensure long-term...

To address these challenges, Budapest has drafted several strategic documents, in which NBS are promoted as a way to improve the environment, sustainability, and quality of life. These documents include:

• The Budapest 2030 Long-Term Urban Development Concept. This strategic document aims to protect and increase green areas, so as to ensure ecological connectivity and develop walking and cycling corridors. It also promotes greater investment in brownfield sites, the prevention of urban sprawl, and 'smart' city development.
• The Integrated Urban Development Strategy 2020.
...

One of the eight pilot projects that have received funding from Nordic Council of Ministers programme on nature-based solutions is the Danish project “More Nature - Less Waste” lead by Renosyd. They have set out to build 21 fences in Denmark in collaboration with local schools in two municipalities.

A brush fence is a fence where you knock poles into the ground in two rows and in between fill up with branches from the garden. It creates living conditions for insects and small animals, and it reduces the amount of garden waste that would otherwise have to be transported and processed...

The hydro-geomorphology of the Deba River basin in the Basque country will be restored, mainly through dam demolition, restoring river morphology, connectivity and faunal permeability. Stakeholder interaction is being promoted, connecting local communities, institutions and governments. A main objective is to promote environmental education and the conceptualisation of nature-based solutions oriented restoration policies.

This case study is one of 17 that are part of the EU Horizon2020 project MERLIN - Mainstreaming Ecological Restoration of freshwater-related ecosystems in a...

• Regenerate abandoned, unused and/or under-used spaces in densely urbanized areas
• Promote innovative agricultural practices
• Involvement of citizens and marginalized social classes (Social benefits)

“Let’s Crop the Diversity” (LCD) aims to redevelop urban spaces through the coproduction of solutions based on nature (NBS) to promote resilience and environmental quality of the geographical areas of intervention.

The goal of this project is developing an Urban Agricultural System that, thanks to the...

Operatie Steenbreek  is a foundation that organizes awareness raising campaigns and offers assistance with regards to greening private gardens. Many gardens and streets in the Netherlands are covered with tiles that cannot absorp the rainwater from heavy rainfall.

The idea behind the initiative is to encourage citizens to remove the tiles and stones from their gardens/backyards and replace it with grass, plants and trees for better drainage and to increase the biodiversity.

Thanks to an app., citizens can be adviced and exchange plants with neighbours. Citizens can...

Objective of these prototype moss installations was to find out the possible challenges of using moss in different locations and structures. We need to know what type of moss can be used and what are the actual costs of building moss green roofs and walls.

Enhancing conservation of biodiversity, sustainable management and the utilisation of forest resources by addressing ecosystem services that are central to local livelihoods.

Quantifying the links between the ecological status and the provision of ecosystem services for a freshwater lake. Focus is on understanding environmental quality needed to deliver recreation and fishing services provided by the lake, and the value of these two services.

The city of Genoa experiences acute densification and lack of public green spaces, making urban heat stress a pronounced challenge. Air pollution and biodiversity loss are among the other challenges Genova targeted to address through NBS implementation.

The wetlands in Kampinos National Park, Poland, are restored in order to slow water runoff and protect Natura2000 habitats as well as species.

This case study is one of 17 that are part of the EU Horizon2020 project MERLIN - Mainstreaming Ecological Restoration of freshwater-related ecosystems in a Landscape context: INnovation, upscaling and transformation.

The city of Genoa experiences acute densification and lack of public green spaces, making urban heat stress a pronounced challenge. Air pollution and biodiversity loss are among the other challenges Genova targeted to address through NBS implementation.

Berlin has approximately 40 % of green (parks, forests etc.) and blue (rivers, channels, lakes, ponds, etc.) areas within its borders. It aims to create connectivity across the city and a ‘green belt’ as a border boundary for urban growth and a protection against urban sprawl.

Berlin has a specific multi-level administrative structure which determines how different layers of government interact and how competences are distributed. The city of Berlin (Stadt Berlin) fulfils both functions of the municipal and the state level (Land) in the German federal system. It is...

The Stiemervallei provides great potential to re-imagine the natural quality of a stream valley in an urban context and to balance the ecological, environmental, social and economic benefits of such an approach. The City of Genk has been working to integrate the hidden, fragmented, and constricted water and greenery and transform it into a tangible and perceptible valley on the scale of the entire city. A blue-green lifeline that enhances the quality of life of Genk and the resilience of the city. The development of this valley adapts the city for climate change by utilising the natural...

The noise barrier wall-system being used in Sachsenheim guarantees an instant green noise barrier wall, from the very first day on: The green noise barrier consists of a scaffold with galvanised steel lattice mats on both sides, filled with a core of plant substrates and then planted with pre-cultivated plant mats. Already at the time of assembly, the walls are at least fifty percent covered and they are completely green after six months.

Eindhoven is facing rapid population growth. Critical issues for the city, which are exacerbated by climate change, include flooding, urban heat stress, air pollution, and lower quality of life. The rapid urbanisation in recent years has also led to the disappearance of significant blue zones, which has had detrimental consequences to the urban environment and quality of life. The renewed City Hall area features a green roof and a green terrace.

Demonstrating the benefits of incorporating a network of green spaces in the urban planning. This multifunctional "green infrastructure" network supplies ecosystem services and benefits to the city.

Célkitűzés

Bátya vízhiányos területen fekszik, a talajvízszint alakulását a Duna vízállása és a beszivárgás/párolgás határozza meg. A települést hőhullámok, aszályos időszakok, ezenkívül extrém csapadékesemények veszélyeztetik. A cél a fentiekhez való alkalmazkodás a csapadékgazdálkodás átalakításával.

Høje-Taastrup Municipality is a follower city in the URBiNAT project. The municipality is  sharing its urban regeneration experiences with other cities as well as learning best practices that will reinforce the implementation of the ongoing plans. Within URBiNAT Høje-Taastrup wish to explore the likely facilities to be developed and sustained on the ground where a new Community House is to be built, a passage between the Gregersens Quarter and the station and the linkages to a park which will be developed in the coming years during the refurbishments of the area (see photo). The...

The main objective of URBiNAT in the Municipality of Siena is to identify a Healthy Corridor for the Ravacciano neighbourhood, as a way to develop the neighbourhood as well, and to make the green spaces present more viable and accessible. 

The local diagnostic has allowed the identification of the population's greatest needs, both in terms of mobility and connection with the city's historic centre, and of access to green areas, considered as places of sociality and wellbeing.

To this aim, within the actions foreseen by URBiNAT, the Municipality of Siena has planned to develop...

Several training and scoping workshops with stakeholders guided an assessment of the Taï Park’s multiple ecosystem services, and helped align it to the purpose of drumming-up support for conservation. This case illustrates the importance of intensive initial scoping prior to examining ecosystem services in more depth. Study results are now being used by park authorities to motivate increased government budget allocations, and to interest the international cocoa industry in co-financing the Taï Park – in their own best interest.

A network of attractive open spaces as a counterpoint to the region's grey infrastructure.

The vision is to create a network of attractive, accessible, welcoming and diverse open spaces that functions as a counterpoint to the region’s grey infrastructure.

The aim of the project “Green City of the Future” is to develop integrated solutions to meet the challenges of climate change and subsequent densification in Munich and to test how these can be implemented in urban planning.

The overall objectives of the Bari city authorities are to improve urban quality, reduce the urban heat island effect and manage storm water.

Improving green areas and their functions is a crucial part of achieving this goal and is addressed by several plans within Bari’s multi-level planning system. This multi-level planning consists of:

• the city itself, which is responsible for statutory land-use planning;
• the metropolitan area of Bari, which has powers only for strategic planning;
• the Apulia Region, which is responsible for overarching plans in areas
...

Improving the wetland and forest coverage and urban greenspace connectivity and therefore securing important biodiversity;

Providing recreation and educational facilities for local residents and visitors; Enhancing the health and wellbeing benefits gained through the use of the accessible trail built for well-being and recreation facilities.

River restoration for flood protection and ecological habitat creation, Tiantangzhai, Anhui, China

The Anchor Project of Reunion Island region is the Biological corridor of Mare Longue Nature Reserve of the municipality of Saint-Philippe located in the southern area of the island. The MAES process has been undertaken to map Ecosystem Services, especially cultural benefits and services supplied by the ecosystems in the area, not only the Biological corridor of Mare Longue Nature Reserve at municipal scale but also at the scale of Reunion island itself, to inform regional economic development.

Naturfelder Dortmund e.V. was founded in order to convert urban spaces into pollinator friendly habitats. The structure of the association allows long-term existence beyond proGIreg. Main goals of the NBS implementations include:

• Activating interested citizens from the Huckarde and Deusen district for pollinating insects and biodiversity topics
• Sowing flower meadows or planting insect friendly plants that increase biodiversity on public or private land in cooperation with owners 
• Participating in events to inform about pollinator friendly measures
...

34 case studies were planned by the H2020 PEGASUS project in different farming and forest systems and along the supply chain in 10 EU countries, to: 

• examine the issues faced in ensuring effective provision of public goods/ecosystem services from farming & forest activities; and 
• find solutions to enable the economic social and environmental sustainability of the EU’s farmed & forest areas.

• The experimental features of this NBS are intended as replicable examples in enhancing urban environments and improving living conditions of inhabitants.
• Working with schools to spread the knowledge about NBS to users of the buildings and raising awareness about the importance of plants in everyday life.
• Promoting the collaboration with school teachers and staff of the homeless shelter to schedule activities that supported learning “science” disciplines, as well as Italian language skills, civic education and social studies.
• Consulting a nursery to achieve
...

Assessing how the ecosystem service approach can be used to demonstrate problems in protected areas such as rural abandonment, land-use intensification and social conflicts emerging from strict conservation practices.

Biotope City is an integral concept of the Biotope City Foundation Amsterdam based on the integrative combination of Flora + Fauna + Humans to realise the dense city as nature.

World's first official climate-resilient district and world's first constructed Biotope City in Vienna with 2/3 affordable social housing and climate adaptation by the support of GREENPASS - the world's first Software-as-a-Service for climate...

The primary goal of the city strategy (Development Strategy for the City of Poznań 2030) is to improve quality of life for all inhabitants, in such a way that everyone feels that they have a stake in co-creating the city. One of the five strategic objectives of the city strategy –  'A green, mobile city' – sets out NBS objectives, while the other strategic objectives, including 'Friendly housing estates' and 'The spirit of community and social dialogue' contain elements of NBS. NBS objectives are also incorporated in the documents on strategy and additional spatial planning (Development...

The Project ‚Baumstarke Stadt‘ Leipzig aims to generate financial resources to allow tree planting and further to establish a long-term engagement of citizens with the urban green areas they live in. The project, therefore, aims to provide multiple ecosystem services, including regulating, supporting and cultural functions.

This case study aims at a comprehensive restoration of a river and its adajcents land, including developing sustainable businesses, tourism and transport whilst not increasing carbon emissions or negatively impacting on biodiversity of the area.  River connectivity and water quality are to be improved for migratory fish (eel and Atlantic salmon) and to reduce flood risk in downstream urban areas  Additionally, upland raised bog habitats (peatlands) shall be restored.

This case study is one of 17 that are part of the EU Horizon2020 project MERLIN - Mainstreaming Ecological...

The objective of the LIFE-EnviFriendly project was to demonstrate low cost, nature based solutions that if used by all farmers within a watershed it will improve the water quality of the waters significantly.  The NBS used in this case was a riparian forest restoration coupled with a river bank erosion protection.

In the scope of the REGREEN project, the Aarhus Municipality aims to promote urban liveability, by systematically enhancing and restoring ecosystem services and biodiversity as the basis for Nature-based solutions (NBS):

In this regard, Aarhus aims to improve water quality, water flow management and carbon sequestration. 

Further objectives include heat mitigation as well as reforestation and renaturing activities of agricultural land to create urban forests, increase biodiversity sites and allow for open...

The Lez river (29 km long) is a small coastal Mediterranean river with a watershed of 746km2. Its spring is the outlet of a large karst aquifer. It then crosses natural and agricultural areas before reaching the plain of Montpellier (with 290 000 inhabitants) and the Mediterranean Sea. The Montpellier plain is characterized by a rapid urbanization with massive land artificialisation and soil-sealing (2920ha decrease of agricultural and natural areas from 1990 to 2012).

The watershed is exposed to a typical Mediterranean weather marked by repeated...

The project aims at investigating whether and how a scientific knowledge on soil quality can be integrated into urban planning so as to allow soil quality to be taken into account in all its dimensions, which has not been the case so far in France.

Its objectives are:

1. The assessment of a legal concept of soil that would lead to integrate soils in preliminary studies and preserve economic and ecosystemic functions of soils, by choosing the best adapted uses in land use planning;
2. The production of a scientifically-sound SQI (soil quality index)
...

The Nature-based solutions in the Nordic region programme has allocated 650,000 DKK to a pilot project in Iceland that aims to increase biodiversity in Reykjavík.
 
Grasagarður Reykjavíkur is the name of the outdoor collection of living plants located in the capital of Iceland. The park conserves some 3000 plant species in eight plant collections. The collections give an idea of the enormous diversity of vegetation in the northern temperate zone.

Among the staff are Hjörtur Þorbjörnsson and...