CITIES SUMMIT I & II


CITIES SUMMIT (I) 

16/05/2018 – 10:00-11:30

Nature-based solutions at different scales

Anna Levonmaa, City of Tampere, Finland

Maria Rosario “Cherry” Chan, Lafarge Holcim, Switzerland

Christian Artelt, European Construction, built environment and energy efficient building Technology Platform, Belgium

Tom Armour, Arup Landscape Architecture, United Kingdom

Note taker: Katerina Lili

Description of the session. The scope of this session to collect information about the NBS infrastructure focusing on buildings at district and city level. Specifically, the case studies should be highlighted, emphasizing in the advantages and barriers resulting from the development of NBS. It should also be made clear how the NBS affected the human health and wellbeing and the global working potential. The subtopics that will be discussed are the following: Green walls, Green roofs, Rain gardens (focusing on buildings and individual infrastructure); Meadows, Urban trees and woodlands (district level); Re-use of abandoned green and grey areas (district level); New materials for NBS: which are they and their benefits linked to the region of utilization, sustainability of materials as well as biotic materials (Plants and abiotic materials and their sustainability, especially GWP (Global Warming Potential)

Audience targeted: Researchers / City Planners / Market Actors & Businesses / Architects

The role of Cultural Heritage in renaturing cities: Learning from the past, designing for the future

Matthias Ripp, Brandenburg University of Technology Cottbus-Senftenberg, Germany

Aitziber Egusquiza Ortega,Tecnalia, Spain

Giovanni Fini, City of Bologna, Italy

Discussant: Sara Van Rompaey. E2ARC, Belgium

Note taker:Eleni Goni

Description of the session: Cultural Heritage is a key component of European cities. The scope of this Session is to highlight the importance of introducing Cultural Heritage in an integrated approach for renaturing cities. Nature Based Solutions taking into account and inspired by Cultural Heritage will be presented through different Case Studies. The co-benefits of using cultural heritage as a driving force in renaturing cities will be analysed whereas best practices as well as failure factors will be explored. Innovative approaches and recommendations towards the upscaling of NBS with respect to Cultural Heritage will be identified. All the above will be achieved through three brainstorming exercises which will allow the valuable exchange of knowledge and experiences between the participants and the invited speakers/ moderators. The anticipated outcomes of the sessions include feedback regarding: Identification of the co-benefits of using cultural heritage as a driving force in renaturing cities; Examples of NBS case studies using Cultural Heritage in renaturing cities; Analysis of barriers (eg financial, technical, technological, legislative); Presentation of best practices; Recommendations regarding EC policy and R&I priorities

Audience targeted: Researchers, City planners, Architects, Landscape Architects, Representatives of local authorities, Heritage experts, Policy makers


Actions on the regional and local levels. What can ThinkNature do – the Platform, the regional Think&Do Tanks and the Local Representatives?

Mihai Razvan Nita, University of Bucharest, Romania

Zuzana Hudekova, Bratislava Municipality, Karlova Ves, Slovakia

Alice Reil,ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability Europe, Germany

Gillian Dick, City of Glasgow, Scotland

Discussant:Juraj Jurik, Global Infrastructure Basel Foundation (GIB), Switzerland

Note taker:Marleen Lodder

Description of the session. The scope of this session is to collect information about how Nature-Based Solutions (NBS) could successfully proliferate at the regional and local level. More specifically, the session aims to set the stage for a systematic mainstreaming and institutionalisation of NBS, by assisting local authorities (and others stakeholders) to integrate these new approaches into their development plans, policies and strategies. The session also aims to explore the drivers and barriers to a further integration of NBS. One of the key questions is how ThinkNature Platform and the members of the platform can assist and make mainstreaming easier.

Audience targeted: Researchers, City planners, Architects, Market Actors & Businesses 

CITIES SUMMIT (II) 

16/05/2018 – 12:00- 13:30

The role of ecosystem restoration in increasing resilience and contributing to human wellbeing

Peter de Ruiter, University of Amsterdam, Netherlands

Marco Fritz, European Commission, Belgium

Frederic Lemaitre, Biodiversa, France

Discussant: Nikolaos Nikolaidis, Technical University of Crete, Greece

Note taker:Maria Lili

Description of the session. The scope of this session is to exchange and collect knowledge on the role of ecosystem restoration in increasing resilience and contributing to human wellbeing. In this session, 6 prepared posters will be provided with each poster representing specific groups of environmental goods and service (e.g. water regulation to mitigate flood and drought risks, climate regulation with carbon and nitrogen storage in biomass and soil, soil fertility for biomass production; water quality improvement, landscape cultural value, improve terrestrial biodiversity). The posters will have been completed with the appropriate information about NBS techniques, corresponding ecosystem services and the role of biodiversity. 2 exercises will be conducted among the participants. Actions needed for NBS to enhance ecosystem services and biodiversity and to increase resilience and wellbeing will be discussed. Moreover, the approaches and governance systems that can reinforce the capacity to innovate with NBS to develop and deploy them and to overcome trade-offs will be discussed.

Audience targeted: Researchers, City planners, Architects, Market Actors & Businesses, Policy-makers

Benefits of ecosystem restoration

Fernando Magdaleno, Centre for Studies and Experimentation on Public Works (CEDEX), Spain

Victor Beumer, Deltares, Netherlands

Veronica Ruiz, IUCN-International Union for Conservation of Nature, Switzerland

Discussant: Stavros Stagakis, Foundation for Research and Technology, Greece

Note taker: Nektarios Chrysoulakis

Description of the session. The session will include introductory talks by ecosystem restoration experts, panel discussion and brainstorming by the participants. The scope is to exchange knowledge on the benefits of NBS activities on ecosystem restoration. The state-of-the-art on the types and methods of ecosystem restoration will be presented and discussed, focussing on innovative NBS practices and specific NBS case studies. Some of the topics covered by the session will be: Best practices and exemplary NBS case studies of ecosystem restoration; Multiple benefits per NBS action and ecosystem type; Prioritization of NBS activities per region, targeting to maximum benefit; Technology readiness level and technical solutions for NBS deployment in ecosystem level; Upscaling/replication methods; Barrier identification.

Audience targeted: Researchers, City planners, Architects, Market Actors & Businesses, Engineers, Ecosystem management actors, Policy makers, End-users & Authorities

Innovative techniques for restoring and reclaiming rural land

Paula Novo, Scotland Rural College, UK

Heather Elgar, West England Nature Partnership, UK

Polona Pengal, Revivo Institute for Ichthyological and Ecological Research, Slovenia

Discussant: Steve Banwart, University of Leeds, UK

Note taker: Benjamin Rabb

Description of the session. Participants will be introduced to a few case study examples of where innovative NBS techniques have been used for restoring and reclaiming rural land. These example restoration and reclamation techniques will be practical and policy related, each with the purpose of providing co-benefits to the urban environment and inhabitants. Following this brief introduction, the session will guide participants through a structured process of: Identifying their own examples of innovative NBS techniques for restoring and reclaiming rural ecosystems; Assessing the potential of innovative NBS techniques to make an impact (e.g. through multiple co-benefits in urban areas); Exploring how demonstration projects and research & innovation can accelerate uptake; understanding policy barriers to mainstreaming.

Audience targeted: Researchers, City planners, Architects, Market Actors & Businesses, Policy-makers


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