October 11, 2023
Successful participation of the population to promote green infrastructure in Vietnam
On On September 19 and 20, 2023, the GreenCityLabHuế project held public events in two districts of the city of Hue. Participants contributed their individual perspectives on ecosystem-based climate adaptation in their neighborhoods. Regarding the main challenges and threats in terms of heat stress and air quality, they stated that hot days are becoming more frequent due to climate change, plants and animals need more water and they need to install more air conditioners. They also emphasized that heat stress was occurring more frequently than before because there were few trees in inner-city areas. The increasing density of traffic and buildings is also having a major impact on air quality and causing more and more dust and exhaust fumes. When asked about the most important problems in connection with public and urban green spaces, the participants were divided. In the outer districts, they were satisfied with the green spaces of the existing orchards, but criticized the fact that although there was access to natural areas, there was a complete lack of urban green spaces within the district. In contrast, participants in the city center reported that the quality of public green spaces was not guaranteed, there was a lack of shade, the variety of trees was low, park construction projects took too long and there were only a few brownfield sites that could be converted into green spaces. The participants in the two workshops also gave very different responses to the question of the use of public green spaces. In the outer districts, participants were of the opinion that people lacked public spaces for relaxation, sport, cycling, children’s playgrounds and for walking pets. Participants in the inner city mentioned that public green spaces in their area were used in a variety of ways and needed to meet these different needs, e.g. for events, dancing, sporting activities, as a playground for children, as a place for people to meet and socialize, and as a place for street vendors and food outlets. The last part of the public events was an introduction to the“green shop windows” that were developed as part of the GreenCityLabHuế project. These are exemplary implemented nature-based solutions for climate adaptation. The participants expressed their support and looked forward to visiting these new green spaces as soon as possible.
Second round table on the development of green-blue infrastructure in Hue
On 21 September 2023, the GreenCityLabHue project also organized the second roundtable on the development of green-blue infrastructure in the city of Huế and the province of Thừa Thiên Huế. The aim of the event was to exchange expertise with representatives of authorities and agencies involved in green-blue infrastructure. The roundtable was an opportunity for the GreenCityLabHuế project to share and discuss its latest research findings on green-blue infrastructure development with local practitioners and policy makers. The roundtable participants agreed on the top five challenges for green-blue infrastructure development in Hue, including policy guidance, selection of climate-adapted tree species, available budget for green space management, digitalization, and research on historical factors of green space development. In particular, participants agreed that policies need to promote the development of green-blue infrastructure and create a favorable framework to meet the demands of urban adaptation to climate change and drive green growth in the province.
