Integrative Green Infrastructure Planning – GRIP
Info
Start date: 1 March, 2021 End date: 30 June, 2023 Project type: Research projects in countries with targeted development cooperation (earlier Window 2) Project code: 20-M09AU Countries: South Africa Thematic areas: Natural resource management, Transport and infrastructure, Urban development, Lead institution: Aarhus University (AU), Denmark Partner institutions: University of Pretoria (UP), South Africa Habitat Landscape Architects (Pty) Ltd., South Africa Marianne de Klerk Architects and Urban Designers, South Africa Civil Concepts (Pty) Ltd, South Africa NIRAS A/S, Denmark Project website: go to website (the site might be inactive) Project coordinator: Jens-Christian Svenning Total grant: 4,976,218 DKK Project files:
20-M09AU-End-of-popular-science-descriptionProject summary
The project ‘Integrative Green Infrastructure Planning (GRIP)’ aims to complement an existing collaboration on sustainable cities between City of Aarhus and City of Tshwane (Pretoria) in South Africa by adding a strong research component. In close connection with urban planners from both cities, GRIP aims to facilitate a strategic transformation of the social and urban landscape in City of Tshwane through guidelines inspired by City of Aarhus for improved planning and management of green infrastructure (such as public parks, green ways, community gardens, and conservation areas). In contrast to ‘grey’ (man-made) infrastructure approaches, ‘green’ infrastructure promotes multifunctionality, which means that the same area of land is able to perform several functions and thereby offer multiple benefits through infrastructural and ecosystem services at the same time. For instance, green infrastructure supports environmental and human health, including biodiversity habitat, flood and heat island control, and sense of place, which affects physical and psychological well-being and community identity. The research project will provide new in-depth knowledge on opportunities for multiple ecological and social benefits of green infrastructure, as well as integrate governance and justice perspectives, and develop concrete landscape design proposals to improve green infrastructure access, functioning, and socio-economic opportunities. Together with urban planners from Aarhus and Tshwane, private partners, and students, the main research partners in Denmark (Aarhus University) and in South Africa (University of Pretoria) will co-create this knowledge and strengthen research capacities through exchange of technological, ecological, sociopolitical, and planning expertise. It is the long-term objective that the GRIP research will facilitate an improved quality of life in urban communities in City of Tshwane by moving towards a more climate resilient, health promoting, biodiverse, and livable
city.
