- More than 150 entities participate in NatUrbana Conecta, a new Community of Practice that promotes the exchange of experiences and nature-based solutions to transform Spanish cities
- The new community will consolidate the experience of 84 projects that are already being carried out with this objective within the framework of the calls for aid coordinated by the Biodiversity Foundation
The Biodiversity Foundation of the Ministry for Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge (MITECO) today presented NatUrbana Conecta, a new Community of Practice on the renaturation of cities and support in the monitoring of indicators. This initiative arises with the aim of offering a space for meeting and learning about urban renaturation and river restoration that contributes to consolidating urban green infrastructure in the territory and advancing in the ecological transition of Spanish cities.
The presentation ceremony, which was inaugurated by the general director of Biodiversity, Forests and Desertification of MITECO, María Jesús Rodríguez de Sancho, was attended by a large part of the projects that are currently being carried out within the framework of the calls for aid coordinated by the Biodiversity Foundation to promote urban renaturation and river restoration
A COLLABORATIVE SPACE FOR URBAN TRANSFORMATION
The main objective of NatUrbana Conecta is to generate capacities, share experiences and contribute to the measurement and monitoring of the scope and impact of the results of the 72 beneficiary projects of the three calls promoted by the Biodiversity Foundation within the framework of the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan (PRTR), financed by the European Union-NextGenerationEU, and in which 134 entities participate. Two of these calls are aimed at promoting the renaturation of cities (published in 2021 and 2022) and the other is focused on the restoration of urban river ecosystems (published in 2021).
This community will also integrate the 17 entities that have just launched 12 new projects thanks to the co-financing of the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF). In addition, public administrations, universities, civil society organizations and representatives of the private sector linked to the renaturalization of urban environments will participate with the common objective of improving knowledge and advancing in the consolidation of green infrastructure in cities
Another of the objectives set out in the project is the preparation of a guide of good practices based on the projects developed and recommendations for improvement for the current manual of indicators of urban renaturation and river restoration of the Biodiversity Foundation, as well as a document analysing the results and impacts of the projects in execution.
IN LINE WITH EUROPEAN AND NATIONAL STRATEGIES
NatUrbana Conecta is part of the objectives of the European Green Deal and the EU Biodiversity Strategy 2030, which promote the restoration of degraded ecosystems and Nature-Based Solutions (NBS). At the national level, it responds to the guidelines of the National Strategy for Green Infrastructure and Ecological Connectivity and Restoration, which seeks to integrate nature into urban planning, promote social participation and improve the environmental quality of urban environments.
The exchange of experiences between the different entities will allow the consolidation of a multilevel community of practice, focused on the generation and transfer of applied knowledge. This joint work will be very useful for the design of new projects and future calls for aid in the field of urban renaturation and river restoration.
