• Enriching the urban jungle with bees

    Poland
    Bydgoszcz

    Connecting sites for bees freedom

    Natalia Majewska
    Department of Integrated Development and Environment
    Share on FacebookShare on TwitterShare on LinkedIn
    350 000
    • Adapted by

    Summary

    Bees are rich in terms of biodiversity protection, education development and touristic attraction. Transferring the practice of Lubljana, Bydgoszcz develop its own approach of connecting sites in the city that are bee-friendly and where apiaries can be visited. This is also included in a wider campaign for bee awareness and protection.

    Solutions offered by the good practice

    Bydgoszcz is the eighth largest city in Poland, part of the Bydgoszcz–Toruń metropolitan area, set on the on the Brda and Vistula rivers in northern Poland. It is an increasingly important economic centre, but the city is well known for its water, Art Nouveau buildings, and urban greenery – including the largest city park in Poland (830 ha).

    The city has a dynamic approach to sustainable development as part of its efforts to improve the quality of life of the city’s inhabitants. Against this background, Bydgoszcz wanted to link its agricultural land and green spaces with ecological education and took a particular interest in Ljubljana’s approach to connecting sites in the city that are bee-friendly and where apiaries can be visited.

    The City started to test and promote the quality of Bydgoszcz honey and used World Bee Day to implement a campaign on the ‘Urban reality of bees and people - let’s create a more bee-friendly world’, including photos at bus and tram stops, and messages on billboards. A local biologist produced a brochure on proper human behaviour towards bees and an exhibition.

    But for ULG Coordinator, Justyna Olszewska, a highlight was local teachers getting enthusiastic about teaching children about bees. They developed a new educational programme called “With Bees Throughout the Year”, which gives children the opportunity to get to know about bees, beekeeping and related topics around health, plants and nature.

    Sustainable and integrated urban approach

    The approach undertaken by Bydgoszcz is fully aligned with the integrated approach of the Practice of Ljubljana that it transferred. Ecological practices related to beekeeping have been developed. The new EU project “Bez Lipy” introduces participatory approach to greenery development and a member of URBACT local group participates in the works.

    The practice is also focusing on children and their education and attitude towards bees. This has also meant the development of professional skills and capacity to raise their awareness and develop bee-related activities as well as the enlargement of the network of urban beekeepers in the city. The city also promotes new (touristic) products and services related to beekeeping such as educational workshops run by Dawid Kilon, a biologist, guide and draftsman and bee-keeping workshops run at WSG University of Economy in Bydgoszcz.

    Participatory approach

    Bydgoszcz municipality formed an URBACT Local Group (ULG) mixing around 30 members - beekeepers, teachers, entrepreneurs, researchers, local tour guides and interested individuals. The group identified 16 places in the city with apiaries and melliferous potential to appear on their own Bee Path map of 16 stops – from a roof on the university, through Shopping Mall with beehives, pollinator houses in city parks, sensory garden at school, Bydgoszcz Soap Works to the botanical garden.

    What difference has it made

    In 2018 the City of Bydgoszcz lifted the ban on beekeeping in the city centre. Within the project we have managed to get to know beekeepers and educators who are ready to share their knowledge – in the very 2021 there are new beehives in the city centre: in May an apiary was installed by Mateusz Andryszak in Ostromecko Park and Palace Ensemble, and in June another one was installed in the Biziel University Hospital (Mateusz guided the endeavour). There are more and more bees initiatives application within the city grants and Bydgoszcz Citizens’ Participatory Budget, e.g. in 2022 there will be a municipal beehive installed and a bee-themed playground. Bydgoszcz is also starting the promotion of the Bee Education Programme in schools and we celebrate World Bee Day by installing the exhibition on bees that is accessible and offered to download and use as an open source and to be installed in any other city that wishes to educate about bees.

    Transferring the practice

    Visiting Ljubljana in April 2019 - together with stakeholders of BeePathNet’s other partner cities - members of Bydgoszcz’s ULG were truly inspired by how they too could create their own story around bees, linking to history, architecture and natural values.

    The city hopes to install the popular bee educational programme across the whole education sector, from kindergarten up. There are also plans that Ania Izdebska with the local Tourist Office will create a ‘Bee Quest Game’ that will complement the town’s existing game for visitors.

    Finally, the city also plans to explore further business opportunities and promotion, to take advantage of the growing interest in the project - including in other towns in the region.

    Main Theme
    Is a transfer practice
    1
  • The 10 Good Habits for education innovation

    Sweden
    Halmstad

    Enriching the education system with local partnerships

    Jonas Åberg
    The Swedish city of Halmstad has adopted the “The 10 Good Habits”, a novel approach to education to enhance participation across institutions, families and private partners concerned in the pilot project.[1] This experience is inspired by the URBACT ON BOARD Transfer Network for the creation of an Education Innovation Network (EIN). Following the Lead Partner Viladecans (Spain), Halmstad has engaged in forming its own version of a Education Innovation Network (EIN) in a pilot area, the School Area North in the Oskarström neighbourhood.

    [1] The 10 Good Habits approach has been developed by a local consultancy, Hjärnberikad, in cooperation with neuroscience researchers. The concept focuses on effective brain health and provides knowledge and tools for a sharpened everyday life. The Good Habits focus on: Food, Physical training, Positive thinking, Handling stress, Learning new things, Repetition, Variety, Decision-making, Friends, Sleep.

    https://hjarnberikad.se/10-goda-vanor/
    Project Manager
    Share on FacebookShare on TwitterShare on LinkedIn
    100 000

    Solutions offered by the good practice

    Halmstad is a fast-growing town on Sweden’s west coast: a port, but also a university, industrial and recreational city. The local education system rarely cooperated actively with local companies, organisations, or even parents. Rather, it was strongly managed by municipal departments guided by national rules. Typically for Sweden, local families were involved in children’s sports clubs, but much less so in schools. The opportunity offered by ONBOARD network was to adopt the Education Innovation Network (EIN) approach to modernise education curricula through digital technologies at different ages and stages of learning, to provide pupils with the necessary skills to enter the job market.

     

    The city of Halmstad, which has already been working together with Viladecans since 2014 on a project called IMAILE, in 2018 engaged in transferring the Spanish city’s good practice involving multidisciplinary and multi-sector stakeholders for  the EIN  creation. The EIN is a cooperative structure that brings together public administration, education centers, professionals, families, and enterprises.

     

    With the EIN, Halmstad hoped to deliver short-term improvements such as calmer classrooms, but also longer-term benefits in terms of preparing future professionals and citizens.   The success of the extensive cooperation among partners led to modifying the educational curricula and creating a new teaching approach by adding technologies and involving the parents.

     

    Among the activities developed we can find:

    • “Happy Braincells”: the objective of the project was to give fifth graders an educational package consisting in games, readings and group presentation to give them more knowledge about health factors and the 10 Good Habits.
    • “Stroller Walks”: based on the “Movement” good habit, the students were given a topic which they discussed during walks. When they came back, teachers collected their thoughts in the classrooms. The project entailed the participation of parents.
    • “Increased Learning”: collaboration between training schools, teacher training students, Halmstad University, and the school librarian to increased learning and promoting good reading habits; 
    • Young people influence in local society: collaboration between the municipality and the Oskarström neighbourhood community to get students to be more active and politically mobilized.

     

    The project was also  to implement good practices in everyday’s lessons, e.g. beginning classes by looking back at the previous class (repetition), or mindfully understanding the positive thoughts that reaching a goal brings.

    Sustainable and integrated urban approach

    To enhance the work and results of ON BOARD, Halmstad’s city council created across its departments four clusters, meant to share interests and work on topics of Care and Support, Education and Learning, Growth and Attractiveness, Infrastructure. The aim of the clusters is to enhance an integrated approach in which communication within the municipality is improved.

     

    Halmstad is committed to continuing the work to enhance education innovation in collaboration with community stakeholders. The city recognizes that in order to continue and expand the work, the municipality will need to organize and delegate, but also continue to transform the municipality’s different departmental boundaries.

     

    The city has also identified further necessary improvements to build on the progress made so far, concerning communication within the municipality, within departments and schools units and the community.

    Participatory approach

    Learning from Viladecans’ Good Practice, EIN in Halmstad ment involving parents, public administration, local businesses, sports clubs in a brand-new participatory approach.[1]

     

    The city started by taking an inventory of local stakeholders and identifying a first pilot area to trial the EIN approach, the School Area North – one of the five different areas in the city’s educational map.

     

    After creating a Coordination Team and an Urban Local Group (ULG) coordinator at the municipal level, the town then formed five Focus Groups based on the 10 Good Habits to improve students’ brain power and overall well-being.

     

    Each Focus Group involved a mix of relevant stakeholders and started making projects with the School Area North to add different activities in the schools’ curricula based on the 10 Good Habits. The purpose was to further the students’ knowledge on the good habits for mental health so that they would continue practising them in the longer term, eventually in their working lives.

     


    [1] 13 schools, 389 teachers and principals, 996 students, 100 families, 10 companies, 2 universities, 10 local entities, 1 mayor, 1 councilor, 20 people from the municipal staff.

    What difference has it made

    By transferring and adapting Viladecan’s good practice, Halmstad has successfully achieved many objectives. It has reinforced the city’s social sustainability goals (schools working together with other schools, authorities and civil society), improved cooperation between the two municipal Education Departments (Primary and Secondary Level), increased resources from one of its educational departments (allocated to a new person for the Educational Innovation Network projects in School Area North), nurtured a forum that enables to plan, implement and evaluate joint work, created new collaborations to develop an health-aware perspective in Oskarström (the “Happy Brain cell” project and the “Stroller Walks” to engage with parents from a very early stage).

     

    After the ONBOARD Transfer Network project, Halmstad detected four main outcomes:

    • The Educational Innovation Network will continue, and new human resources and municipal budget will be allocated;
    • Communication between the schools and the local stakeholders has significantly improved;
    • The environment in the classrooms detected to be much calmer than at the start of the project;
    • Plans for expanding the Good Practice to other parts of the city will be developed.

    Transferring the practice

    The ONBOARD Transfer Network was led by the city of Viladecans and involved, apart from Halmstad, Tallinn (Estonia), Poznań (Poland), Albergaria-a-Velha (Portugal) and Nantes (France).

     

    After the transnational meetings of ONBOARD in 2019 all the Project Partners signed a Policy Declaration in which they outlined their cities’ stance on education and educational innovation and the role that local governments could play.

     

    The progress of Halmstad transfer project has been affected by the disruption of Covid-19 in 2020, but it managed to adapt to the pace of current circumstances and engage in “digital mode” activities, improving its digital skills for organising and teaching over the Internet.

    Main Theme
    Is a transfer practice
    0
  • Stay Tuned

    LEAD PARTNER : Ghent - Belgium
    • Ampelokipi - Menemeni - Greece
    • Aveiro - Portugal
    • Barcelona - Spain
    • Berlin - Germany
    • Gothenburg - Sweden
    • Nantes - France
    • Sofia - Bulgaria
    • Tallinn - Estonia

    Operational Implementation Framework

    European cities face higher levels of Early Leaving from Education and Training (ELET) than their national averages, meaning that some urban areas have more ELET rates, than the countryside areas - contrary to the national trends of these cities' countires. This represents a serious challenge, as ELET has significant societal and individual consequences, such as a higher risk of unemployment, poverty, marginalization and social exclusion. Tackling this issue means breaking the cycle of deprivation and the intergenerational transmission of poverty and inequality.

    Boosting the Frequency of Qualification
    Ref nid
    8874
  • TechTown

    LEAD PARTNER Barnsley
    • Limerick - Ireland
    • San Sebastián - Spain
    • Clermond Ferrand
    • Siracusa - Italy
    • Dubrovnik - Croatia
    • Nyíregyháza - Hungary
    • Cesis - Latvia
    • Gävle - Sweden
    • Loop city - Denmark
    • Basingstoke and Deane

     

    For any enquires, email: DMC@Barnsley.gov.uk

    Timeline

    Kick-off meeting in June (Basingstoke). Transnational meetings in September (Limerick) and November (Cesis)

    Transnational meetings in March (Barnsley), June (Gavle), September (Dubrovnik) and November (Loop City).

    Final event in April (Brussels).

    By exploring how small and medium sized cities can maximise the job creation potential of the digital economy, this Action Planning network examined whether there is potential for spillover from stronger city level digital economies; how clusters can work at city level and look collaboratively at what cities can do to support businesses to access the digital skills and innovations they need in order to start, grow and compete. The city partners further explored the role and viability of digital, content creation and technology clusters and how benefit may be gained from major city or national initiatives to benefit job creation and growth in small and medium sized cities. The project was 'of the digital economy' as well as 'for the digital economy' in that it used digital technologies as much as possible throughout management and delivery.

    TechPlace APN logo
    TechTown logo
    A digital city future, adapt or die
    Ref nid
    7454
  • RU:RBAN

    LEAD PARTNER : Rome - Italy
    • Caen - France
    • Coruna - Spain
    • Krakow - Poland
    • Loures - Portugal
    • Thessaloniki - Greece
    • Vilnius - Lithuania

    Summary

    Timeline

    • Kick-off meeting

     

    • Transnational Meetings in Rome, Caen, Vilnius and Loures
    • Thessaloniki Transnational Meeting and Mid Term Reflection
       
    • Krakow Online Transnational Meeting
    • Bi-lateral online meetings between Rome and all Project Partners

     

     

     


     

     

    This Transfer network builds upon the "Management model of Urban gardens in Rome" Good Practice, in order to transfer to EU cities geographically distant from each other to ensure sharing of experiences to enhance the capacities of local governance. Transfer efforts will be given to 3 distinct, interlinked, thematic components/elements that the Good Practice is divided into: Capacity building in organizing urban gardens, Inspiring and training people to manage urban gardens (Gardeners) and urban gardens governance & regulations.

    RU:RBAN Transfer Network logo
    Urban agriculture for resilient cities
    Ref nid
    12133
  • Brněnské programy sociální inkluze pomocí skupinové výuky hudby se staly vzorem pro česká a slovenská města

    Share on FacebookShare on TwitterShare on LinkedIn
    15/11/2022

    Město Brno se v letech 2018 – 2021 zapojilo do sítě přenosu OP URBACT III s názvem OnStage – Music Schools for Social Change (Hudební školy jako nástroj sociální změny). Vedoucím městem této sítě a nositelem dobré praxe bylo španělské město L´Hospitalet de Llobregat, které spadá do aglomerace Barcelony. Dalšími zapojenými městy bylo Aarhus (Dánsko), Katovice (Polsko), Adelfia (Itálie), Valongo (Portugalsko) a Grigny (Francie). 

    Articles

    Brno bylo při implementaci dobré praxe z města L´Hospitalet de Llobregat natolik úspěšné, že bylo osloveno Národním kontaktním místem OP URBACT pro Českou republiku, aby se stalo nositelem dobré praxe a o své zkušenosti se podělilo v rámci Česko-slovenské iniciativy přenosu dobré praxe OnStage, která je určena českým a slovenským městům. 

    Brno má cca 380 000 obyvatel (2018) a jedná se o druhé největší město v České republice. Romská komunita ve městě čítá 15 – 17 000 obyvatel a roste rovněž počet mezinárodních občanů. Bylo identifikováno 16 oblastí, které čítají cca 12 – 15 000 obyvatel a jsou ohroženy stoupající mírou chudoby. Tyto oblasti se mohou v budoucnosti stát sociálně vyloučenými lokalitami. Statistiky potvrzují, že cca 78 % Romů opouští vzdělávací systém předčasně. Vzhledem k tomu, že romská komunita patří mezi sociálně ohrožené skupiny a jejich měsíční příjmy jsou nízké, je tradiční výuka na základních uměleckých školách pro děti z této cílové skupiny finančně nedostupná. Právě z tohoto důvodu se Brno rozhodlo implementovat dobrou praxi ze španělského města L´Hospitalet de Llobregat a zpřístupnit hudební vzdělání také dětem ze sociálně znevýhodněných skupin. 

    Dobrá praxe města Brna částečně využívá metodu El Sistema, což je hudebně-vzdělávací program, který se po úspěšné aplikaci ve Venezuele rozšířil do zemí po celém světě. Zakladatel programu, venezuelský ekonom a hudebník José Antonio Abreu, byl za svůj přínos a úsilí v boji proti kriminalitě a v ochraně dětí prostřednictvím výuky hudby v roce 1995 jmenován speciálním ambasadorem pro rozvoj celosvětových hnutí mládežnických a dětských orchestrů a sborů při organizaci UNESCO. 

     

    V Brně se rozhodli zavést odpolední program výuky na hudební nástroje ve dvou základních školách, které se nachází v lokalitách, kterým hrozí sociální vyloučení. Jedna ze škol je z 80 % navštěvována romskou komunitou, druhá škola z 50 %. Hlavní cílovou skupinou jsou sice děti z 5. – 9. třídy (11 – 15 let), ale do programu byla zapojena také MŠ Sýpka, kde probíhá skupinová výuka na zobcovou flétnu a do běžných denních aktivit jsou zařazeny také Orffovy nástroje. Na ZŠ Merhautova probíhá pravidelná skupinová výuka hry na kytaru a na ZŠ nám. 28. října skupinová výuka houslí a violoncella. Velký úspěch slaví také rozšířená hudební výuka v rámci dopolední výuky zaměřená na perkusní nástroje.

    Zároveň Brno v rámci přenášení dobré praxe využilo koncept práce s komunitou. Proto se spojilo s neziskovou organizací IQ ROMA servis, z. s., která sídlí nedaleko základní umělecké školy, a založili komunitní sbor, kde si může kdokoliv přijít zazpívat romské písně, gospely apod.

    Díky úspěšnosti brněnských výukových programů bylo v r. 2021 město Brno vybráno jako nositel dobré praxe v rámci tzv. pilotních národních iniciativ OP URBACT a došlo ke vzniku Česko-slovenské iniciativy pro přenos dobré praxe OnStage, do níž jsou zapojena města Banská Bystrica, Broumov, Lučenec, Neratovice, Nitra, Plzeň a Trenčín. Cílové skupiny jednotlivých měst se liší. Města se zaměřují na inkluzi sociálně znevýhodněných dětí a jejich rodičů z řad majority, romské komunity, hendikepovaných občanů a mezinárodních občanů.

    Česká a Slovenská republika disponuje rozsáhlou sítí Základních uměleckých škol (ZUŠ), jejichž přístupnost široké veřejnosti je v Evropě unikátní. Zásadní rozdíl mezi ZUŠ a metodou El Sistema, z níž dobrá práce OnStage vychází, však spočívá v systému výuky a v poslání obou konceptů. ZUŠ jsou zaměřeny na excelentnost a žáci většinou dostávají individuální hodiny od profesionálních učitelů hudby. Žáci navíc musí platit školné, které je sice dotováno státem, ale i přesto je pro děti ze sociálně znevýhodněných skupin většinou nedostupné. Dobrá praxe OnStage je naopak založená na skupinové výuce, jejímž primárním cílem není dosažení excelence. Výuka není postavena na teorii, ale na praxi. Děti se učí pomocí nápodoby a dochází k poměrně rychlým výsledkům, což podporuje motivaci. Hlavním cílem je radost ze hry a budování sociálních vazeb mezi učitelem a zapojenými dětmi navzájem. Finanční náročnost výukových programů je navíc nastavena tak, aby bylo možné zapojení široké veřejnosti i ze sociálně znevýhodněných skupin. Díky tomuto konceptu dochází za pomocí hudby a jiných performativních umění jako je např. tanec k odbourávání sociálních i jazykových bariér a k vytváření nových sociálních vazeb. Skupinová výuka performativních umění není prospěšná pouze pro zlepšování sociálních kompetencí, ale má také pozitivní dopad na pozdější uplatnitelnost na trhu práce, jelikož napomáhá k budování sebedisciplíny, trpělivosti, kritického myšlení, schopnosti řešit problémy, schopnosti týmové spolupráce a je rovněž prokázáno zlepšení školní docházky a studijních výsledků. Dochází např. k výraznému zlepšení prospěchu v matematice. Skupinová výuka napříč sociálními skupinami také napomáhá inkluzi a odstraňování předsudků a kulturních bariér. 

    V rámci Česko-slovenské iniciativy pro přenos dobré praxe OnStage byla vypracována tzv. Studie přenositelnosti, která je jedním z klíčových dokumentů, který poslouží jako základ pro přenos výukové metody použité ve městě Brně. Hlavním cílem této studie je poskytnout zapojeným městům detailní popis přenášené dobré praxe a vyhodnotit potenciál přenosu dobré praxe do jejich místních podmínek. Na základě Studie přenositelnosti si všechna zapojená města z České republiky i Slovenska vypracovala své vlastní Plány přenosu, v nichž si stanovila své vize, cíle a plánované aktivity. 

     

    OP URBACT je především o ukázkách dobré praxe, inovativních řešeních, participativních metodách a spolupráci měst, a proto jsou v rámci iniciativy OnStage pořádány i mezinárodní setkání, kde mají zapojená města možnost sdílet výzvy, kterým čelí, inspirovat se vzájemně v jejich řešení a učit se z případných chyb. V letošním roce proběhla již dvě setkání. Budoucí lektoři výukových programů OnStage navštívili město Brno, kde se od tamějších učitelů dozvěděli, jak správně nastavit výuku, které přístupy fungují, které nefungují, a že role učitele programu OnStage nespočívá pouze ve výuce hudby. Učitel je pro děti mnohdy i psychologem, přítelem nebo rodičem.

    V dubnu proběhlo také setkání zástupců zapojených měst v Trenčíně, kde města představila své dosavadní úspěchy a plány do budoucna. Města se rovněž zamýšlela nad překážkami, které by v rámci realizace navrhovaných aktivit mohly nastat, a navrhovala možná řešení. Zároveň byla na setkání blíže představena dobrá praxe OnStage jak v České Republice, tak také v zahraničí a účastníci měli možnost se hlouběji ponořit do tématu inkluze. 

    Česko-slovenská iniciativa pro přenos dobré praxe OnStage potrvá do konce tohoto roku, ale je předpokládáno, že navržené výukové programy potrvají i v letech následujících.

    Autor: Mgr. Kamila Gamalová, MBA, vedoucí expertka OP URBACT

    Network
    From urbact
    Off
    Ref nid
    17600
  • PLAYFUL PARADIGM II

    Playful Paradigm II map of partners

    Timeline

    • 1-TNM-Kick-off meeting - Virtual
    • 2-TNM-Grosuplie (Slovenia) - Virtual
    • World Play Day 2022
    • 3-TNM-Jelgava (Latvia) - Virtual
    • 4-TNM-Igualada (Spain) - Face-to-face
    • 5-TNM-Lousã (Portugal) - Presence
    • 6-TNM-Udine (Italy) - Final Meeting - Presence

    Playful Paradigm increases the capabilities of cities to answer global challenges including those emerged during covid19. It promotes inclusion, intergenerational solidarity, SDGs, resilience, healthy lifestyles. Play is a serious matter and can make the difference for a better urban future of cities. The Playful paradigm helps to re-think the community welfare and it is replicable adaptable to other urban contexts, since play is a universal principle, naturally practiced by every human being.

    PLAYFUL PARADIGM Second Wave
    Games for inclusive, healthy and sustainable cities
    Ref nid
    16391
  • BioCanteens#2

    Summary

    Partners

    LEAD PARTNER : Mouans-Sartoux - France
    • Liège - Belgium
    • Gava - Spain
    • Wroclaw - Poland

    Timeline

    • Kick-off meeting
    • A Table ! Mouans-Sartoux Food Forum

    BioCanteens#2 Transfer Network is about ensuring the distribution of sustainable school meals in participating cities as a key lever towards the development of an integrated local agri-food approach, protecting both citizens’ health and the environment. The project aims to transfer Mouans- Sartoux’s Good Practice in the field of collective school catering, to other highly committed cities across Europe.

    Education - Food - Environment - Local Economy - Governance
    Ref nid
    16388
  • BeePathNet Reloaded

    LEAD PARTNER : Ljubljana - Slovenia
    • Bergamo - Italy
    • Osijek - Croatia
    • Sosnowiec - Poland
    • Bansko - Bulgaria

     

    City of Ljubljana - Mestni trg 1 - 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia

    CONTACT US

    Timeline

    • Kick-off meeting
    • Boot Camp in Ljubljana (SI)
    • Thematic Transfer meeting in Osijek (HR)

       
    • Thematic Transfer meeting in Bansko (BG)
    • Thematic Transfer meeting in Bergamo (IT)
    • Thematic Transfer meeting in Sosnowiec (PL)
    • Final Conference in Ljubljana (SI)

    Newsletter

    • Check the newsletter library here.

    BEE PATH good practice logic is very simple - bees are the best indicator of healthy environment! BeePathNet-Expanded project will widen the network of “bee-friendly cities” based on BeePathNet project transfer success. It will address urban environmental, biodiversity and food self-sufficiency challenges linked to urban beekeeping through integrated and participative approaches, build key stakeholders’ capacities to influence relevant policies, develop and implement efficient solutions.

    Enriching the Urban Jungle with Bees
    Ref nid
    16355
  • A municipal farm to supply local canteens

    Bulgaria
    Troyan

    Paving the way for city leadership in local food production

    Ivanka Dzhabrailova
    Project Coordinator
    Share on FacebookShare on TwitterShare on LinkedIn
    33 500

    Summary

    Troyan developed the first municipal farm of Bulgaria, with the aim to producing food for its school canteens. During 2.5 years, it got inspired by the Good Practice of Mouans-Sartoux which enabled empowering an already on-going transformation at city local level.  In the long-run, 15 ha of publicly owned land, including 200 m2 of greenhouse tunnel will produce food for the 500 children in the town’s kindergartens.

    Solutions offered by the good practice

    Troyan is a town in the hills of central Bulgaria known for its strong plum brandy and with strong ambitions for its agri-food sector. Its 2014-2020 Municipal Development Plan already prioritised organic farming, support for young farmers, and conservation.

    Troyan aimed at delivering fresh organic products to its school canteens and started working with a research institute to plan the development of organic fruit and vegetable production – including locally-adapted plum and apple varieties. To support this, in 2018, the town announced that 15 ha of publicly owned land would be dedicated to a municipal farm, with areas for vegetables, fruit trees and cattle grazing. Troyan joined the BIOCANTEENS network to help develop an operational process to carry this out.

    Troyan’s municipal farm is the first of its kind in Bulgaria. To achieve this, the town took a step-by-step approach - initially aiming to provide half of the vegetables required in local canteens, then expand production later.

    In March 2019, a meeting with Rozalina Rusenova, Deputy Mayor, confirmed the new farm’s overall infrastructure: three 200 m2 greenhouse tunnels, with an irrigation system and space for a fourth tunnel; and farm building facilities including a hall, storage space, refrigeration chambers and a preparation room for end products.

    Whilst the pandemic and the cold 2019 winter slowed the municipal farm’s development, good progress has been made. Local farmer Maya Genkova was recruited to run the farm – including both production and educational visits.

    Organic fruit orchards and first vegetables were planted in greenhouses at the end of 2020. These are expected to supply fresh organic fruit and vegetables to all 500 children in the town’s kindergartens during the course of 2021. Activities will also be organised for children on site.

    The organic certification process was also launched with the National Food Agency - an essential step before serving the food in school canteens.

    Sustainable and integrated urban approach

    Troyan’s approach followed the main integrating axes of the good practice it was transferring, Mouans-Sartoux:

    • Horizontal integration: by supporting smart land use, organic production and local agri-food systems development, the project has a strong environmental dimension. It also has an economic dimension through the creation of 1 farmer job. From a social aspect, the activities organised on the farm will enable raising awareness of children on local organic production and healthy eating. Production is 100% organic.
    • Territorial integration: the project is totally integrated in the overall strategy of the city as owned by the municipality and directly linked with school canteens provisioning.

    Troyan’s transfer process benefited from a particularly positive situation: the strong political involvement of Mayor Donka Mihaylova to improve the quality of city school canteens; no major financial barriers to set the farm, the city owning a provision of suitable land in a region with good assets for agriculture; a city canteens system relying on “traditional” independent kitchens organized to prepare fresh vegetables and fruits; a good mobilization from start of stakeholders in the ULG involving Heads of all city schools and kindergartens, civil servants and representatives of parents association; last but not least, a BioCanteens’ project that raised the enthusiasm in the local stakeholders ecosystem.

    Participatory approach

    This process was supported by an URBACT Local Group involving heads of all city schools and kindergartens, civil servants, parents’ association, local producers and representatives of children associations.  During the course of the project, 10 ULG meetings with stakeholders’ involvement were held in Troyan. The main subjects discussed during the meetings were the Municipal Farm Platform, the Kitchen Micro-good practices and the organic demand and supply.

    What difference has it made

    • The Municipal Farm has been made with minimum resources;
    • Children are provided with fresh organic vegetables and fruits’;
    • The amount of money parents pay per month for daily kids food at the kindergarten was made cheaper;

    With that difference of that payment, we invest in more quality products.

    Transferring the practice

    Troyan has been part of the BIOCANTEENS Transfer network led by Mouans-Sartoux (France) together with other 5 European cities LAG Pays des Condruses (Belgium), Vaslui (Romania), Trikala (Greece), Rosignano Marittimo (Italy), and Torres Vedras (Portugal).

    The success of Troyan is in part due to a transfer process in the framework of an URBACT network arriving at the right time to boost and implement an ongoing policy orientation toward healthy and sustainable food in the city: this is certainly a lesson learned for URBACT transfer process who best apply when empowering an already on-going transformation at city local level. 

    Beyond the inspiration and guidance provided by Mouans-Sartoux, one of the most valuable network activities was a network workshop on public procurement. This helped Troyan understand what it is possible to achieve with the right plans, procedures and award criteria.

    The transnational meeting hosted in the city itself in July 2019 also had an important local benefit in reinforcing support for the municipality’s agri-food strategy. The involvement of the Mayor Donka Mihaylova in this meeting was key.

    While work with school kitchens and on the municipal farm continues to develop, Troyan is starting to apply new ideas and perspectives on Public Procurement to improve supply to school canteens. Further next steps include an initiative to support the preparation of meals inside school canteens, and expanding the supply of local, healthy organic food to the municipality’s elderly residents.

    Main Theme
    Is a transfer practice
    0
    Ref nid
    16282