Nature-inclusive area development

Project description

Problem

Urbanisation makes a major contribution to the decline in biodiversity, greenhouse gas emissions and the impact of climate change. It requires innovation in the use of building materials, the application of greenery and new forms of urban cooperation. Nature-inclusive area development offers opportunities to tackle various current urban challenges in an integrated manner, such as biodiversity loss, climate mitigation via CO2 reduction, climate adaptation and mobility transition. However, there is a serious lack of knowledge about ecological and biobased construction and how to organise and finance this at building, plot, area and ecosystem level. Of the many recent innovations in nature-inclusive construction and area development, little is known about the different values for the user and underlying ecosystem.

Approach

This project investigates the bottlenecks and opportunities for a transition to nature inclusiveness in area development in management and implementation, and which tools can be developed to accelerate the transition. Based on the discussions with practical partners, we focus on three aspects of nature inclusive area development: biobased building materials, natural greening and the governance aspects. These components are investigated in various case studies in which various nature inclusive area tasks lie. Through comparative research, success and failure factors are mapped out and tools for nature inclusive area development are identified.

Expected result

The project will lead to, among other things, principles for nature-inclusive area development, a translation into a programme of requirements and an associated points system for tenders.

Partners

Publications and impressions of acceleration sessions

Within this project, several acceleration sessions are organized. The third one took place recently. Governance aspects of nature inclusiveness were central. Together with the practical partners, international examples of nature inclusive point systems such as Malmö, Stockholm, London and Berlin were analyzed for lessons learned, bottlenecks and possible solutions in Dutch policy.

Key takeaways:
► Point systems translate values or ecosystem services into surface area and type of greenery, but it is not always clear how exactly.

► The benefits of greening deserve broad consideration in advance because there is more than just biodiversity or climate, it can also be a powerful (old-fashioned) socio-cultural carrier.

► The number of points based on the design is sometimes higher than after realization. Especially when the years pass. So learn from the elaboration in practice, close loopholes and long-term quality assurance.

►Research shows that monitoring the quality of greening is essential to maintain the desired level from the design phase and even realization for a longer period of time. Management requires knowledge, time and coordination. But where the fragmented responsibility lies is often complicated.

► Point systems are frequently used at block level, but the coherence with public (green) outdoor spaces and the approach to tasks is not sufficiently taken into account.