Contents

Introduction: ..........................................................................................3
1. The relevance of urban green spaces ................................................4
2.The new inovative urban green space and the benefits they provide 6
3. Inovative park built of recycled materials ........................................9
4. Transforming a concrete plaza into a lively urban park .................10
5. Famouse Supertree in Singapore .....................................................12
Conclusion: ..........................................................................................15
Bibilography: .......................................................................................16

2
 Introduction:
The urban environment is the cultural relations carrier among people and between
people and the environment as well, and it is the population lifestyle reflection of each historical
era, the social ideology, helping the city residents to integrate culturally. At the same time, the
urban environment imprints the people's community activities: any change in the citizens
cultural life corresponds with the transformations in the urban environment and these changes
are compared with other projects born in the economic, managerial and social spheres of the
city life. You must understand that the urban environment can contribute to harmony, comfort,
satisfaction, person-environment feelings, and vice versa, may cause an alienation feeling
rising social anomie and the destruction of the traditional social cultural code. Constructing
human habitat (creative, comfortable, attractive, safe, harmonious, connecting the benefits of
city living and the normal wish of citizens to nature, traditions preservation and developing,
introducing new technologies) is one of the main challenges facing modern culture.

When planned coherently, urban green spaces have the potential to provide cities with
a range of unique ecosystem services that support ecosystem and human health. Thispaper
draws on existing green space planning literature to argue that the integration of community
gardens into standardised and previously under-utilised public park 5 landscapes represents an
innovative approach to providing ecosystem services.

3
 1. The relevance of urban green spaces
Green spaces exist in a great variety of shapes, structures and types within the city or
urban fabric. The successful protection, creation, and development of the spaces is one of the
key elements required to achieve sustainable urban development. The study and development
of green spaces is, though, a complex subject, due to:

• the incidence of long-term natural processes that are involved in the growth and
maturation of the living elements; and

• the fact that they represent public values and have an important role to play for the
wellbeing and health of the inhabitants.

Their public acceptance and appreciation depends on the characteristics they possess,
like appropriate provision, quality and accessibility. The current trends that have been observed
in many European cities suggest an increasing degradation in the general quality of existing
urban green spaces. Without sufficient political and financial support from national or local
authorities, other funding agencies or private investors, green space management is not likely
to be able to reverse that process.

In a time of continuing urbanization, there is an increasing focus on developing

attractive and healthy urban environments. Green spaces, ranging from woodlands and parks
to al-lotment gardens and green roofs, provide a range of ecosystem services that contribute to
the value of cities.1

Urbanization results in an increasing proportion of the population living in cities. In

Europe it is expected that around three quarters of the population will live in urban settings by
2020. Urban living limits access to nature and can increase exposure to certain environmental
hazards, such as air and noise pollution. Many urban areas face increasing pressure from
expanding populations, limited resources and growing impacts of climate change. These
challenges must be addressed in order for cities to provide healthy and sustainable living
environments. Green spaces and other nature-based solutions offer innovative approaches to
increase the quality of urban settings, enhance local resilience and promote sustainable
lifestyles, improving both the health and the well-being of urban residents. Parks, playgrounds

1
Bendt, P., Barthel, S., & Colding, J., 2013. Civic greening and environmental learning in 6 public-access
community gardens in Berlin. Landscape and Urban Planning, 109(1), 7, p. 18-30.

4
or vegetation in public and private places are a central component of these approaches and can
help to ensure that:

 urban residents have adequate opportunities for exposure to nature;

 urban biodiversity is maintained and protected;
 environmental hazards such as air pollution or noise are reduced;
 the impacts of extreme weather events (heatwaves, extreme rainfall or flooding)
are mitigated;
 the quality of urban living is enhanced;
 the health and well-being of residents is improved. Urban green space is a
component of “green infrastructure”.

It is an important part of public open spaces and common services provided by a city
and can serve as a health-promoting setting for all members of the urban community. It is
therefore necessary to ensure that public green spaces are easily accessible for all population
groups and distributed equitably within the city.

At an individual level, community gardens provide a venue for an 8 alternative and

more accessible form of physical activity – gardening – and a restorative park environment
that is a more attractive destination for neighbourhood walking. At the community level,
gardens can facilitate bridging interactions between different social groups, whilst providing
opportunities for local residents to participate actively in green space planning processes.
Perhaps most importantly, community gardens can provide unique opportunities for
environmental education that lead to enhanced local ecological outcomes.

Urban green spaces are essential components of 21st century cities 2. They represent
areas consisting primarily of unsealed and permeable surfaces such as soil and vegetation;
ranging from recreational landscapes, such as neighbourhood parks and playing fields, through
to gardens and semi-natural habitats such as wetlands and woodlands.3 When planned
coherently (i.e. as green infrastructure) these landscapes have unique and simultaneous
potential to promote ecosystem and human health.4 To better realise this potential, particularly

2
Husqvarna Group, 2012. Husqvarna Global Garden Report 2012. Retrieved March 31st, from
http://husqvarnagroup.com/afw/files/press/husqvarna/Husqvarna_Global_Garden_Report_2012.pdf
3
Swanwick, C., Dunnett, N., & Woolley, H., 2003. Nature, role and value of green space in 20 towns and cities:
An overview. Built Environment, 29(2), p. 94-106.
4
Tzoulas, K., Korpela, K., Venn, S., Yli-Pelkonen, V., Kazmierczac, A., Niemela, J., & James, 1 P., 2007.
Promoting ecosystem and human health in urban areas using green,p.45

5
in contexts of rapid population growth, recent initiatives have sought to integrate the many
perspectives of urban green spaces into a single research agenda.5

2.The new inovative urban green space and the benefits they provide
Both public parks and community gardens face unique opportunities and challenges in their
ability to provide ecosystem services to urban communities. In the United States, parks have
undergone numerous planning and design phases in the face of multiple changes in social
circumstances since their origins during the industrial revolution, and yet they have remaineda
constant form of urban green space.6 This longevity can be attributed largely to the formalisation
of park planning that occurred internationally during the middle decades of the 20th century.

In recent decades, community gardens have grown rapidly in prominence across many
Western nations, notably North America. 7Far from being simply a public space in which to
garden, they are unique public green spaces in their own right. Community gardens have been
created with a variety of underlying motives: not simply the opportunity to grow plants for
nutrition and economic benefit, but also to satisfy local needsfor contact with nature, education,
civic activism and neighbourhood renewal. 8Importantly for this paper, many community
gardens also represent a citizen-led movement against the perceived failure of decision makers
to provide appropriate open spaces.9 Thus, these gardens often incorporate a variety of non-
gardening elements including lawns, social areas and spaces for active ball games. Such
features effectively enable community gardens to function as small parks in their own right.In
this sense, they represent a type of public green space created outside of traditional formal
planning structures, initiated by the efforts of local residents, and more reflective of a
community’s specific green space needs.

Urban green space interventions are defined as actions that significantly modify the
quality, quantity and accessibility of urban green space. This can be done by establishing new

5
James, P., Tzoulas, K., Adams, M. D., Barber, A., Box, J., Breuste, J., Elmqvist, T., Frith, M., 1 Gordon, C.,
Greening, K.L., Handley, J., Haworth, S., Kazmierczak, A.E., Johnston, M., Korpela, K., Moretti, M., Niemela,
J., Pauleit, S., Roe, M.H., Sadler, J.P. and Thompson, C. W., 2009. Towards an integrated understanding of
green spaces in the 4 European built environment. Urban Forestry & Urban Greening, 8,p. 65-75.
6
Cranz, G., & Boland, M., 2004. Defining the sustainable park: A fifth model for urban parks. 4 Landscape
Journal, 23(2), p.102-120.
7
Guitart, D., Pickering, C., & Byrne, J., 2012. Past results and future directions in urban 12 community gardens
research. Urban Forestry & Urban Greening, 11(4), 364-373.
8
Lawson, L., 2005. City bountiful: A century of community gardening in America. University 3 of California
Press, Berkeley.
9
Francis, M., 1989. The urban garden as public space. Places, 6(1), 52-59.

6
urban green spaces or by changing the characteristics and functions of existing ones. A broad
spectrum of intervention types can be implemented at different scales in private or public
spaces. These include:10

Picture 1: roadside greenery and vegetation barriers along streets or rail tracks;

Picture 2: small urban green spaces (such as gardens or pocket parks) and playgrounds;

Picture 3: green roofs and facades;

Picture 4: parks and urban meadows;

Picture 5: greenways and corridors (such as green trails for walking/cycling);

Picture 6: coastal, riverside or lakeside trails, linking green with blue spaces;

Picture 7: recreational and urban gardening facilities (such as community gardens, sport
and play areas and school grounds); and

Picture 8: facilitated access to urban woodlands, forests and natural wildlife areas.

10
CABE (2004). A guide to producing park and green space management plans. London: Commission for
Architecture and the Built Environment
(http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20110118095356/http:/www.cabe.org.uk/publications/producing-
parks-and-greenspace-management-plans

7
1. Opportunities
Opportunities to involve urban green space interventions in urban planning include:
 development of new residential neighbourhoods, community facilities, business parks
or transport infrastructure projects;
 regeneration projects and urban renewal initiatives;

8
  brownfield development and rehabilitation of industrial areas;
 urban gardening/agriculture projects;
 initiatives to enhance biodiversity.

2. Benefits
Through improved air and water quality, buffering of noise pollution and mitigation of
impacts from extreme events, urban green spaces can reduce environmental health risks
associated with urban living. In addition, they support and facilitate health and well-being by
enabling stress alleviation and relaxation, physical activity, improved social interaction and
community cohesiveness. Health benefits include improved levels of mental health, physical
fitness and cognitive and immune function, as well as lower mortality rates in general (Fig. 1).
Everyone can benefit from urban green space interventions, but they can be of particular
relevance for socially disadvantaged or underserved community groups, which often have least
access to high-quality green spaces

3. Inovative park built of recycled materials

Shanghai’s hip Anfu Road recently sprouted a whimsical urban intervention that shows
how one man’s trash create a treasured public space. Aim architecture and urban matters
designed the temporary urban park, called Urban Bloom, as an experimental exercise pairing
reclaimed pallets with glowing tree-like sculptures. “Transformed into an ideal urban garden,
and constructed entirely from artificial means, it is a project for a city that emphasizes people,”
wrote the designers.

9
 Picture 9. Shanghai’s sponge districts fight flooding with green space11

Open to the public, Urban Bloom is nestled in a quiet courtyard with popular eateries
and boutiques within striking distance. Recycled timber pallets are used as modular building
blocks stacked to form seating and visual interest. The installation undulates on one side to
resemble hilly topography.

Potted plants are placed around part of the park’s perimeter to create a garden aesthetic.
Plastic spheres tied to poles are filled with foliage in a sculptural take on trees. Repurposed
materials were predominately used as part of the designers’ desire to promote sustainable
concepts. “At the same time, cities are huge producers of waste and trash,” wrote the designers.
“We wanted this new space to be low-impact, and interact with natural elements in an artificial
way – in short, proving it’s possible to make something new from nothing new at all.”

4. Transforming a concrete plaza into a lively urban park

A honeybee-inspired urban intervention has transformed a Sicilian city block into a thriving
green public space. Milia Arredamenti and Farm Cultural Park commissioned OFL Architecture to

11
http://aim-architecture.com

10
design Zighizaghi, a multi-sensory urban garden in the town of Favara. Completed last month, the new
“living room” to Favara welcomes visitors with plants, music, and art.

Picture 10. Wunderbugs Pavilion Creates Music From the Movement of Insects and
Humans

“The project springs from the need to create a welcoming place for the citizens of
Favara while simultaneously donating to the city an innovative public space shaped from the
perfect combination of wood and vegetation,” write the architects. In contrast to the site’s
original and muted concrete setting, Zighizaghi is filled with greenery and playful elements
from its honeycomb shape to the red light fixtures that double as loudspeakers. “Thanks to its
interactive character, Zighizaghi transforms its external space into a dynamic environment
where music acts as a vehicle between nature and visitors,”12

The genius of Zighizaghi lies in the use of modular timber hexagons, made from
Okoumè, which offer flexibility in design, both in the way they are configured and used. While
most hexagonal elements were used as pavers, others double as seating or planters for
Mediterranean plants with automatic irrigation systems. Six fourteen-sided red prisms, called
the Super Pods, which stand on eight skinny black legs and are used for lighting and music,
punctuate the space.

12
http://www.oflstudio.com

11
 5.Famouse Supertree in Singapore
There are 18 Supertrees at Gardens by the Bay range in height from 25 to 50 metres in
height, with 2 of the Supertrees connected by a 128 metre long aerial walkway. Designed by
Grant Associates, with engineering by Atelier One (structures) and Atelier Ten (environment),
the ‘living’ Supertrees and walkway bring scale and drama to the Gardens, whilst also acting
as an integral part of the overall site environmental system.

The “Supertrees,” are the focal point of the first and largest of the Gardens by the Bay.
They loom over 133 acres of blooms and foliage: 18 steel-and-concrete trunks between 80 and
160 feet high, draped in climbing vines and flowers and crowned with zigzagging wire
branches. Lit up at night, the Supertrees look like futuristic cocktail glasses.

Andrew Grant, the lead design director, was inspired when he visited his brother in
Australia and toured the Valley of the Giants, where an aerial walkway winds through a canopy
of towering karri and tingle trees. His creative vision also borrowed from Princess Mononoke,
an anime film about the human destruction of an enchanted forest and the hero’s quest to revive
it. “We merged the physical reference … with the magical experience,” says Keith French, the
project director. Since the gardens opened to the public in 2012, the Supertrees have drawn
millions of visitors to the intersection of realism and fantasy, nature and the built environment.

Design details:13

 18 Supertrees are home to 162,900 plants and over 200 species

 Beautiful displays of tropical flowering climbers, epiphytes and ferns by the Gardens
by the Bay horticulturalists
 The large canopies of the Supertrees provide daytime shade
 At night, Supertrees come alive with lighting and projected media
 Highest Supertree has Supertree bar with panoramic views
 The OCBC Skyway offers a unique 22m high perspective over the Gardens and
Dragonfly lake
 Some of the Supertrees feature photovoltaic cells to harvest solar energy

13
http://www.gardensbythebay.com.sg

12
  Some of the Supertrees act as air exhausts for the Energy Centre and Cooled
Conservatories

Picture 11. Inovative watering system of watering 18 trees

Picture 12. “Supertrees,”

1. Photovoltaic cells convert sunlight to electricity for lighting the Supertrees at night.

13
2. Trunks channel and release biomass exhaust from two conservatories on the edge of the bay,
helping to control the climate for 250,000 rare plants from around the world.

3. An aerial walkway transports visitors between gardens inside the trees and an international
food court—offering milkshakes, curry laksa, and a panoramic view—atop the tallest
structure.

4. Canopies provide shade for visitors on the ground below.

5. Grant Associates worked with National Parks Board horticulturists to collect more than 200
plant species for the surface of the tree trunks and the interior gardens, including orchids from
Ecuador, cacti from Costa Rica, and tropical climbers from Florida and Southeast Asia.

Picture 13. More than 200 plant species

14
 Conclusion:
While the concepts of community gardens and volunteer green space governance may
still be 1 foreign to many urban residents, this paper demonstrates the range of benefits that
could potentially be provided if this movement were to be more widely promoted and
supported. With this in mind, we conclude with a call for more research into existing practice
of integrating community garden and formal green space planning, including community
garden creation within public parkland. Ultimately, the extent of the challenges faced and the
success of the strategies aimed at overcoming them will only become clear through more
detailed case studies of community gardens created within new and existing public parkland.
Additionally, if such research is able to demonstrate that community gardens can significantly
enhance the ability of formal public green spaces to provide ecosystem services to
communities, it provides a basis for more easily overcoming the potential objections of both
local residents and planning authorities. Thus, building this evidence base represents the most
useful strategy for addressing any emergent challenges and obstacles.

15
 Bibilography:
1. Bendt, P., Barthel, S., & Colding, J., 2013. Civic greening and environmental learning
in 6 public-access community gardens in Berlin. Landscape and Urban Planning,
109(1), 7,.
2. Swanwick, C., Dunnett, N., & Woolley, H., 2003. Nature, role and value of green space
in 20 towns and cities: An overview. Built Environment, 29(2),
3. Tzoulas, K., Korpela, K., Venn, S., Yli-Pelkonen, V., Kazmierczac, A., Niemela, J., &
James, 1 P., 2007. Promoting ecosystem and human health in urban areas using green,
4. James, P., Tzoulas, K., Adams, M. D., Barber, A., Box, J., Breuste, J., Elmqvist, T.,
Frith, M., 1 Gordon, C., Greening, K.L., Handley, J., Haworth, S., Kazmierczak, A.E.,
Johnston, M., Korpela, K., Moretti, M., Niemela, J., Pauleit, S., Roe, M.H., Sadler, J.P.
and Thompson, C. W., 2009. Towards an integrated understanding of green spaces in
the 4 European built environment. Urban Forestry & Urban Greening, 8,
5. Cranz, G., & Boland, M., 2004. Defining the sustainable park: A fifth model for urban
parks. 4 Landscape Journal, 23(2),
6. Guitart, D., Pickering, C., & Byrne, J., 2012. Past results and future directions in urban
12 community gardens research. Urban Forestry & Urban Greening, 11(4),
7. Lawson, L., 2005. City bountiful: A century of community gardening in America.
University 3 of California Press, Berkeley.
8. Francis, M., 1989. The urban garden as public space. Places, 6(1),.
9. CABE (2004). A guide to producing park and green space management plans. London:
Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment
(http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20110118095356/http:/www.cabe.org.uk/
publications/producing-parks-and-greenspace-management-plans
10. Husqvarna Group, 2012. Husqvarna Global Garden Report 2012. Retrieved March
31st, from
http://husqvarnagroup.com/afw/files/press/husqvarna/Husqvarna_Global_Garden_Re
port_2012.pdf
11. http://aim-architecture.com
12. http://www.oflstudio.com
13. http://www.gardensbythebay.com.sg

16
17