Copenhagen. Even though the word ‘biodiversity’ still sounds cumbersome, most of us now get the idea: the more different habitats and living conditions, the more species of plants and animals. This in turn provides greater benefits and more things to see and do.
Room for difference
‘Biodiversity requires that green urban spaces are arranged differently, in a more varied manner. Lawns may be green, but they don’t provide habitats for very many species. By contrast, an urban space with different plants and conditions allows for much greater biodiversity and many more things to see and do,’ says Tina Saaby.
‘You might say that we plan on three levels. There is the overall, long-term strategic planning that applies to the whole of the city. This is a big part of the explanation for Copenhagen’s success as a green city. Even though people’s political views differ, there is broad consensus that green is important, so it has been a priority for many years, and elections don’t change that, which is an important point to bear in mind,’ says Tina Saaby.
A number of studies have shown that there is actually greater biodiversity (i.e. a larger number of species) in and around Copenhagen than in rural areas, where farming cultivates the land intensively. This is because the green parks, gardens and natural areas in Copenhagen and its suburbs are far more inviting to plants and animals than areas that are mostly given over to cornfields. A recent example is that bees have found it easier to find food in Copenhagen than in rural areas. Consequently, Copenhagen has lots of hives – with more to come.
Tina Saaby stresses that it is important to ensure that things don’t get too nice and uniform. It’s not just plants and animals that need different opportunities - this is very much the case for the people of Copenhagen, too.
The overall green strategy has been part of the capital’s planning since the Finger Plan. The 1947 Finger Plan compares the capital with a hand. The palm is the city of Copenhagen, the fingers are the S-train lines running to the main towns in the hinterland, and between the fingers are green wedges.
– rather, the green has been preserved and prioritised for over half a century. ‘This is the overall strategic level. The second level consists of area-based plans: local plans, area ceilings, and so on. These ensure that the political and strategic visions and objectives become a part of the actual plans for specific sites in the city. The last part of the planning, which is equally important, is the individual’s quality of life. We have to ensure that there’s room for local initiatives and recognise the amount of voluntary work that the people of Copenhagen put in,’ says Tina Saaby. She adds that it has to be easy for individuals to bring new ideas to fruition. ‘There has to be room for the unusual, the different. We need to do even more to create good urban spaces for everyone, and they shouldn’t all be too similar. That drives the life out of them.’
This remains the general model, and it has helped to make the Greater Copenhagen area unique in the world. Its urban development hasn’t just followed any old path
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