The idea that we live in a more connected world is frequently insisted upon and this, among many other things, means that it is more accessible. It is an advantage when deciding where to live. Many, around 55% of the world’s population, according to data from the World Bank, opt for cities, but what ingredients make a city an ideal place to live?
The health system, the educational system, safety on the streets, culture, professional opportunities, infrastructure… are some of the factors that make a place good to live in. Increasingly, among the things that matter is the desire for the hypothetical destination city to integrate vegetation into urban spaces or carry out innovative ecological initiatives. That is, it is an environmentally responsible city. I like that.
These types of cities are also more attractive for those who already live in them or simply visit them. “When you walk through the city, seeing all the gardens, the trees, the vertical gardens is something that is appreciated. Personally, I miss it a lot in some cities in Spain”, is the first impression of Alberto Torres, CFO of Ezzing Solar, upon his arrival in the French city of Grenoble.
Here, for some time now, the city council has been developing an ambitious strategy to ensure that nature gains a presence in the city. Under the motto ‘Vegetable your city’, the opening of vertical gardens is being promoted and more than 5,500 trees have already been planted in parks. This can be both in public spaces and also in private ones, because any neighbor or community of neighbors with a patio, roof or terrace where a tree can grow can request one of the 600 native or Mediterranean trees (maples, fig trees, oaks, willows, pines…) from local nurseries provided by municipal managers completely free of charge.
The goal is to reach 10,000 trees by 2030 and for 20% of the city to have tree shade. It is just one of the many actions that have earned this town at the foot of the Alps the title of European Green Capital 2022.
Urban planning in recent decades has been based on growth at all costs and has forgotten the traditional neighborhood fabric. In the end, the inhabitants flee looking for the nearest nature to spend the day, play sports or, simply, to breathe another air.
Against this model, écoquartiers (eco-neighborhoods) emerge, an alternative neighborhood that is planned under sustainability criteria. Among them, the use of renewable, recycled or recyclable materials – such as wood or expanded polystyrene due to their insulating capacity -, the use of construction systems that maximize the energy efficiency of homes, and the incorporation of garden areas and outdoor sports spaces.
They are new districts to live, walk and have neighborhood life. They are usually located on abandoned lots or in old disused areas that in a few years take a 180 degree turn.
Grenoble has five districts with that label: De Bonne (located on a former disused military complex), Bouchayer-Viallet, Blanche-Monier, Flaubert (what was previously an industrial warehouse, has now been converted into a large space in the where all types of cultural activities are carried out) and La Villeneuve, the last to join that select group of revitalized neighborhoods.
Added to these eco-neighborhoods is La Plage, an outdoor space that includes an urban beach. The residents of Grenoble come here to practice all kinds of sports, especially those played on sand.
Jorge Nacenta was born in Spain, but has lived in Grenoble for 9 years, where he works as a researcher in nanoelectronics. He recognizes that eco-neighborhoods modify some urban habits and reconcile the citizen with his city. “In France, when people have a certain purchasing power and there is countryside nearby, they tend to go abroad to live. But if you remove cars, facilitate cycling, pedestrianize some areas and create environments with a higher quality of life, they will stay,” says Nacenta.
If, as World Bank data points out, cities are going to continue being a pole of attraction, implementing forms of sustainable development in large cities is not a whim, it is very necessary. This is what Ricky Burdett and Philipp Rode highlight in the book Shaping Cities in an Urban Age: the only way to prevent cities from collapsing under massification is to redesign urban spaces to transform them into friendly spaces where you can work, rest or enjoy leisure. with quality of life and without compromising the survival of the planet.
Grenoble inspires, but it is not alone in this. Replacing asphalt with garden areas and pedestrianization is part of the new urbanism, which seeks to make cities friendlier, but also more sustainable.
This is the Superilles (Superblocks) in Barcelona, ??a project that has already modified the physiognomy of the Sant Antoni and Sant Martí neighborhood, transforming what were previously roundabouts for road traffic into squares with vegetation, swings or walking areas. In the Madrid municipality of Rivas Vaciamadrid or in Valencia, tree pits, that small space around urban trees, are already being renaturalized, while Salamanca is proud of its new urban orchards on the banks of the Tormes and its imminent ‘green corridor’ plan to recover 13 kilometers of unused moors on the banks of the river.
For Jaime Martín Juez, Industrial Transformation and Circular Economy at Repsol, these initiatives are the path that Spanish cities must follow because “they have to become resilient to climate change. To do this, we have to start hybridizing vegetation in cities. Not only in gardens or flower beds, but also on roofs and facades to lower urban temperatures. And opt for more efficient passive buildings from an energy point of view,” he explains.
‘Close, the cat is escaping.’ This phrase was always in the mouths of our grandmothers to remind us that we had to close the door so that the heat from inside the house did not escape in winter. But even with everything closed, four out of every five buildings in Spain do not have adequate thermal insulation, according to data from Greenward Partners.
What happens is that they are buildings that are more than 40 years old where the interior heat escapes and cold air leaks in from the outside.
For this reason, Martín Juez insists that “transforming our entire real estate stock can be a great advantage from the point of view of competitiveness as a country.” To do this, an urban planning approach is necessary that allows, on the one hand, “to reform what already exists by focusing on energy efficiency, insulation, solar panels and energy communities” and, on the other, “to propose new architectural approaches with areas in which “You can walk, you can move around and you use public transportation more,” he details.
For that first part of the solution, that of preventing the heat inside the house from escaping through the walls facing the street, the most efficient option is to apply a good thermal insulation system on the exterior façade (known as SATE). . Another step is to promote self-consumption with sustainable energy generation systems, such as solar panels.
When opting for a solar installation – explains Alberto Torres, CFO of Ezzing Solar – there are three alternatives: “Firstly, we can choose total self-sufficiency with solar panels and the possibility of storing the surplus in batteries. Secondly, we have the option of self-sufficiency and, at the same time, being connected to the network for moments of specific need. These are the common solutions in single-family homes. Finally, there is the possibility of installing solar panels on buildings and sharing that energy among nearby neighbors, this is what is called solar communities.” By combining both levers you can achieve between 50% and 80% savings on your bill. Martín Juez already says it: “to fight against climate change, the more ambitious, the better.”
