P2 Sustainable use of common resources
2.3. Better urban planning in the Central Baltic region
Central Baltic
01.02.2020 - 31.12.2022
€1 302 619
€1 048 226
To address the climate change related challenges that cities increasingly face, B.Green aims at improving urban planning by developing a new green infrastructure (GI) planning concept into the pre-planning process of cities.
B.Green addresses two urban planning challenges: how to combine green and grey infrastructure in the context of urban mobility development and how to ensure that multifunctional GI is taken into account throughout the pre-planning phase. The project utilises recent research and combines it with local knowledge produced by residents and other local stakeholders during the project.
The project will focus on the twin cities of Helsinki and Tallinn, in which the co-created B.Green concept and GI solutions will be demonstrated. In the local pilots, both agile approaches as well as active citizen participation with the aid of digital tools, which are all important elements of the B.Green concept, are implemented. The implementation is done with wide stakeholder engagement, utilization of applied digital tools and encouraging capacity building in the BSR area. In building and testing the B.Green concept, advanced technologies such as simulation, VR, AR, geotracking and wifi-sniffers, are utilised, while also creating new business potential. These solutions improve the mutual learning and communication process between different stakeholders.
The project will have long term effects on both local level through pilots that are linked to large scale infrastructural development, as well as wide scale-up potential through the associated partner networks. B.Green is tightly connected to local and larger strategies, such as the cities carbon neutral objectives and the EUBSR strategy.
Forum Virium Helsinki Oy
Country: FI
Partner budget: 590.000 EUR
Amount of ERDF funding: 442.500 EUR ERDF
Tallinna Linnaplaneerimise Amet
Country: EE
Partner budget: 522.619 EUR
Amount of ERDF funding: 444.226 EUR ERDF
Stockholmi Keskkonnainstituudi Tallinna Keskus
Country: EE
Partner budget: 190.000 EUR
Amount of ERDF funding: 161.500 EUR ERDF
City of Helsinki, City Executive Office, Urban Development, housing and investments
Country: FI
City of Helsinki, Urban Environment Division, Malmi Team
Country: FI
City of Helsinki, Urban Environment Division, Kalasatama-Länsisatama Team
Country: FI
Helsingin kaupunki, Ympäristöpalvelut, Kaupunkiympäristön toimiala
Country: FI
Expected results
Working with B.Green model, the positive effects, opportunities and design approaches of green infrastructure will be more clear and understandable to the city planners, residents and real estate developers alike; and the different options and their effect on the cities can be seen and selected from. The model also encourages the participation of citizens, visitors and developers to development of green infrastructure.
The main results of the project are:
In the long-term:
Increase in the green infrastructure (GI) share (in sqm) in the cities through application of the B.Green model and to support the already scientifically proven positive impacts of GI in the cities.
During the project:
-Local implementation of the B.Green model to at least 6 new city districts
-Integration of the participatory model into B.Green, to ensure the close fit to local needs, and involvement of wide stakeholder groups.
-Implement innovative and advanced way to utilise digital tools, simulations, scenario making etc (e.g. the scenario tools, green area factor tool, 3D-models and “Digital Twin”, AI utilization etc.) to support data-driven approach.
-Demonstrations of new, innovative, and integrative green infrastructure solutions and concepts, prototyped in pilot locations. Tight fit with grey infrastructure solutions, such as transportation/mobility systems.
-Effective and early dissemination (including the publication, roadshow) and capacity building, to ensure the knowledge transfer and scale up from agile pilot implementations into standard pre-planning activities.
Internet presence
B.Green & Augmented Urbans webpage
Other media visibility
City of Tallinn planning to build 13.5-km green corridor for EUR 1.3 mln (The Baltic Times, 2020)