The socio-economic and environmental services provided by the protection, development and exploitation of natural heritage in urban areas are collectively known across Europe as ‘green infrastructure’ and the aim of the PERFECT project is to improve the implementation of regional development policies for the protection and development of natural heritage through the recognition of the multiple benefits of Green Infrastructure by Managing Authorities, partners and stakeholder groups.
In 2013 the European Commission adopted a strategy which recognised that investment in Green Infrastructure enables nature to deliver benefits to ecosystems and to people, including health and quality of life, that are key to driving jobs and growth while tackling our environmental challenges head on. In addition, EU Structural Funding programmes encourage the improved resource efficiency of natural heritage but, despite extensive proven good practices and growing evidence from across Europe, many Managing Authorities, practitioners and politicians, working in the municipalities and public bodies responsible for natural heritage, are unaware of the multi benefits of Green Infrastructure to increase competitiveness. Investment in natural heritage is often overlooked or misunderstood and the PERFECT project aims to redress the balance and raise awareness of the value of the natural heritage through the exchanges of good practice, study visits and peer-to-peer working. PERFECT partners will work with regional stakeholders and inter-disciplinary teams within their organisations to identify and integrate the multi-use of Green Infrastructure into long-term policies and practices, and crucially, investments.
PERFECT outputs will include 7 Action Plans for new and improved GI through maximising its multiple benefits; Expert Paper and Factsheets; Guidance on Green Infrastructure Partnership working, and a MAGIC (Multi-Advantages of Green Infrastructure in Cities) Matrix of good practices.The overall objective of PERFECT is the identification, analysis, dissemination and transfer of good practices and policy experiences in the multi-use of Green Infrastructure (GI) into mainstream Structural Funds programmes. PERFECT aims to demonstrate how the protection, development and exploitation of natural heritage can deliver sustainable, smart and inclusive growth through the exchange of good practice on new uses of GI to blend with, and enhance existing uses. This will be achieved through study visits, seminars, factsheets, stakeholder workshops, good practices (MAGIC Matrix), peer working and practical demonstrations of the value of GI, together with robust data and empirical evidence. The project will maximise the contribution of partners on specialist areas of expertise on GI including physical and mental health improvements, improved air quality, costs savings through climate mitigation and adaptation measures and the economic benefits of eco-systems services.
The sub-objectives are to:
- Identify and analyse good practice in multi-use of GI, such as green transport corridors in Ferrara to boost local business and create economic growth, and the Green Net in Graz to maximise health and climate change adaptation benefits of natural heritage.
- Fully engage Managing Authorities on the socio-economic benefits of GI to influence new projects and improve governance of policy instruments, such as driving social innovation and inclusivity in Amsterdam by using GI to reduce socio-economic and health divides, to the benefits gained by the European Green Capital of 2016 Ljubljana in attracting investment by preserving and developing natural heritage.
- Increase the professional capacity of key stakeholders in delivering new projects, including integration of environmental issues into the devolution of assets to a local level in Cornwall.
- Develop Actions Plans focusing on policy change to influence strategic investment in GI based on its multiple benefits. The usefulness and efficiency of interregional co-operation will be demonstrated through the outputs and results of PERFECT. The project will facilitate new projects to be funded through Structural Funds, as a result of the increased professional capacity of 80 people and improved awareness of the multi-benefits of natural heritage, and the improved potential for partnerships and collaboration to achieve a 'win-win' scenario. Through individual, organisational and stakeholder learning via the project activities 52 case studies will be identified, analysed and transferred across the partner regions for improved governance and policies as well as new projects to be implemented by overcoming silo mentalities and influencing decision-makers. Through 84 media appearances and 2,500 website hits per semester, the profile of green infrastructure and the outcomes of the project will reach a wide multidisciplinary audience across the partnership and contribute to raising awareness of Thematic Objective 6. The governance of Structural Funds programmes and other policy instruments will be improved through influencing Managing Authorities as partners and stakeholders to prioritise investment in natural heritage. Managing Authorities will have improved capacity through 92 policy learning events to enhance the governance arrangements to improve accessibility of funding to key stakeholders in the field of natural heritage. The self-defined indicators resulting from improved policies for implementation in the Action Plans and monitoring in Phase 2, demonstrate the breadth of the multi-benefits of GI in both quality and quantity with one partner seeking an increase in GI bids; two aiming for enhanced uses of GI; three aiming for an increase in GI, and one aiming for a shift in appreciation of GI from the privileged to the deprived. These are all as a result of new projects or a change in governance. Structural Funds and other funds will be influenced through increased awareness of beneficiaries and decision-makers, of how Growth and Jobs objectives can be met through effective planning and investment in natural heritage. Seven Action Plans will be developed to enable monitoring of effective implementation of the lessons of PERFECT in to the policy instruments for solutions to natural heritage, 5 on Structural Funds and 2 policy instruments on Spatial Plans creating the required policy environment for planning and investment in natural heritage. Results will begin to be achieved during the learning phase in Phase 1, to ensure maximum impact on Operational Programmes through new projects and improved governance.