"Grey into Green" programme to make schools greener - Wrocław

The Grey into Green (Szare na Zielone) funding programme aims to convert grey, sealed areas surrounding schools and kindergartens into green, unsealed areas that promote healthy recreation and environmental education. Public schools and kindergartens in Wrocław, Poland can apply for financing to redesign their courtyards and gardens and implement nature-based solutions. The programme was launched in 2009 and is managed and funded by the Municipality of Wrocław. Successful schools receive funding, training and guidance to support implementation of nature-based solutions. The program promotes local stormwater retention and management, aims to increase biodiversity and protect children from noise. It represents part of the city's efforts to adapt to climate change. Until 202, 130 schools and kindergartens have taken part in the programme and have redesigned their surrounding areas and courtyards to be more green and blue.

Overview

Type of instrument:

Economic and fiscal instruments›Payments as rewards/for ecosystem services, subsidies, incentives

Challenges addressed

Water management (e.g. reuse)
Green space management (e.g. accessibility)
Flood risk: pluvial and fluvial / soil permeability
Air quality
Noise
Reconnection to the biosphere / environmental education
Human health, comfort and well-being
Other, please specify

Enhancing biodiversity

Consideration of nature-based solutions:

As part of the programme, the schools and kindergartens are unsealing concrete courtyards and installing small-scale nature-based solutions such as rain gardens, pollinator meadows, green walls and vegetable gardens. The nature-based solutions are used for environmental education, for example the vegetable gardens are used to teach children about healthy nutrition and rain gardens are used to teach about the impacts of and adapting to climate change. Other green infrastructure elements of opportunities for learning through play.

Targeted (peri-)urban areas:

External building greens

Urban green space connected to grey infrastructure

Other

Good practice characteristics:

Support multifunctional NBS

Sustainable in the long-term

Locally appropriate

Potential to be replicated / upscaled

Innovative

Governance

Government body/bodies

Initiating body:

City Council of Wrocław

Instrument design:

Details about how the instrument was designed:

The programme was originally launched in 2009 by the municipality of Wroclaw and was first run by the Department of Education. At that time the main goal of the program was to green the backyards of public schools and kindergartens. In 2017, the programme was handed over to the Department for Sustainable Development and the program was expanded to include educational components and add focus on introducing nature-based solutions.

Instrument implementation:

Type of involvement:

The funding programme is aimed at public schools and kindergartens. To receive funding the schools need to submit a grant application that includes an initial project of suggested changes. The schools are provided with guidance and trainings on how to include nature-based solutions in the projects. The training is provided by the municipal Department of Sustainable Development.

Type of non-governmental actors involved:

Implementation of NBS (e.g. with government funds)

Targeted actors:

Public sector institution (e.g. school or hospital)

Financing

Sources of funding:

Public local authority’s budget

Budget:

500 000 € - 1 000 000€

Details about instrument financing:

In 2017-2020, the budget of the initiative was equal to ca. €640,000 (3,000,000PLN). The schools were receiving grants of ca. €1,000 - €27,000 (5,000PLN - 130,000PLN). The programme is financed from the municipality's budget. The schools need to match the funding provided with 15% own contribution.

Monitoring, evaluation and impacts

Is a monitoring framework in place?:

Did an evaluation take place?:

Achieved outcomes and impacts:

Until 2020, 130 schools and kindergartens have taken part in the programme and redesigned their surrounding areas and courtyards in a complex manner to bring a variety of blue and green infrastructure elements, focusing on creating green areas that are children friendly, enhance biodiversity, allow local rain water retention and improve air quality. Since 2017, when the programme was handed over to the Department for Sustainable Development, the programme has focused on incorporating educational elements, so that children have an opportunity to grow vegetables, observe pollinators and learn about nature-based solutions and their role in climate change adaptation.

Success factors and lessons learned:

The vegetation chosen for the school gardens are plants that are not only adapted to the local climate, able to thrive in the urban environment and pollinator friendly, but are also plants whose look, colour and smell changes throughout the year to support the educational components and engage children with the seasonally changing nature of the gardens. The designers were encouraged to use natural, environmentally friendly materials and use innovative solutions, e.g. to support the local water retention. In some cases innovative solutions needed to be designed for example to ensure a sustainable irrigation of the area. This supported the development of skills necessary to implement nature-based solutions among the landscape architects in the city. An important element of the programme was environmental education and raising awareness among the students on topics such as adaptation to climate change, improving water quality and nature protection. The green elements introduced are appropriate for the end-users (children), offering multiple opportunities for learning through play.

Sources and further information

References

List of references:

Zielony Wrocław (n.d.), Szare na Zielone, Available at: https://www.wroclaw.pl/zielony-wroclaw/szare-na-zielone

Baroni et. al. (2019), Approaches to financing nature-based solutions in cities. Available at: http://growgreenproject.eu/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/Working-Document_Financing-NBS-in-cities.pdf

Jacek Sutryk (2020), Projekt "Szare na Zielone" - Wrocław, Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HPBrV4l3l2A

Kuczera, Ł. (2021), Dzień Ziemi. Zielone projekty Wrocławia. O tym jak łapać deszcz i nie marnować rzeczy. Available at: https://wroclaw.wp.pl/dzien-ziemi-zielone-projekty-wroclawia-o-tym-jak-lapac-deszcz-i-nie-marnowac-rzeczy-6631833922808320a

Departament Zrównoważonego Rozwoju m. Wrocławia (2018), Odpowiedź na interpelację, 18.05.2018. Available at:

Doba.pl (2016), „Szare na Zielone” – radni przyjęli uchwałę o dofinansowaniu programu. Available at: https://doba.pl/wroclaw/artykul/-szare-na-zielone-radni-przyjeli-uchwale-o-dofinansowaniu-programu/15032/17

Swojczyce.pl (2018), Szare na zielone – czyli zmienia się otoczenie SP 53 na Strachocinie. Available at: https://swojczyce.pl/szare-na-zielone-czyli-zmienia-sie-otoczenie-sp-53-na-strachocinie/

Further documents

Weblinks:

https://www.wroclaw.pl/zielony-wroclaw/szare-na-zielone

Photos

@wroclaw.pl