Luxembourg is looking for urban farmers
A new pilot project in the capital will try out multi-faceted farming in a built-up setting as a source of food and environmental awareness
Climate Councillor Jürgen Czernohorszky looks back on 4,500 trees planted in 2021 and expects a massive expansion of green spaces in the coming years
At the end of 2021, Viennese Climate Councilor Jürgen Czernohorszky made a recap of the year's greening initiatives and the nearly 4,500 planted trees. Furthermore, he directed the attention towards the Austrian capital’s future initiatives with the Sponge City Project, the planned 400,000 square metres of green spaces and 25,000 trees in the next three years.
According to the current city data, 53% of the territory in Vienna is occupied by green spaces, making it one of the greenest cities in the world. This includes smaller urban parks, as well as the Vienna Woods, also known as the city’s lungs.
The amount of green spaces translates to approximately 500,000 trees living in Viennese parks at the moment. The trees have multiple benefits for the city, including trapping CO2 and fine dust particles while also cooling the surrounding area.
Czernohorszky explained that cities are threatened by climate change, as the concrete urban environment has an augmenting effect on extreme weather. Spaces flood easily while preventing the water to drain and during the summer heatwaves can be particularly deadly. Trees, in their own right, are an amazing solution to these problems.
Trees, however, can also suffer the effects of extreme weather, with prolonged droughts, followed by intense rainfall can cause major damage. This is why local authorities have begun a gradual implementation of the Sponge City principle.
Essentially, Sponge City means a city that makes room for nature and instead of sealing the earth, it opens it up. It is a collection of small improvements, such as making more room for roots and allowing water to flow underground. These improvements add up over time and contribute to a holistic concept for urban greenery.
In the Seestadt Aspern district, which is currently under development, the Sponge City concept will see its widest adoption. Whole streets in an area of 30,000 square metres around Elinor-Ostrom-Park will be redesigned with the new concept in mind. According to current timetables, they will be open to the public in October next year.
Officials from the archipelago paid a visit to Lower Saxony (Germany) to get acquainted with the power of hydrogen trains
After the Berlin Constitutional Court declared the September 2021 local election invalid, the city is getting ready for a re-do
The digital transformation has reached the geographical dimension
The digital transformation has reached the geographical dimension
Search for health, search for well-being - in any sense and category of these terms
The Agri-Tech centre in Osnabrück has a lab, workshop and test field all rolled into one
Officials from the archipelago paid a visit to Lower Saxony (Germany) to get acquainted with the power of hydrogen trains
Eleven museums have united their efforts to do concrete analyses on emissions and share know-how on how to bring down emissions
It is meant as a response and companion piece to the annual San Remo festival - Italy’s premier pop music event
Eleven museums have united their efforts to do concrete analyses on emissions and share know-how on how to bring down emissions
The city will kick off its stint as the European Capital of Culture for 2023 on 17 February
It is meant as a response and companion piece to the annual San Remo festival - Italy’s premier pop music event
The new itineraries are part of the DiscoverEU programme, which lets 18-year-olds travel by train between important European sites
The European Commission has published its first progress report charting the achievements of the socio-cultural movement that combines beauty, inclusion and sustainability
The 2023 edition of the creative initiative promises to be bigger, bolder and more inclusive
Veni Markovski’s take on dealing with disinformation in the European Union's poorest country – Bulgaria
A conversation with the mayor of Utrecht on the occasion of her mission to COP27
A conversation with the President of the European Committee of the Regions, about energy, climate change and the underrated importance of cohesion policy