Eighty new tree and shrub specimens planted at the Plaça del Coneixement
On Thursday 21 November, the UAB and CREAF organised a tree planting session at the Plaça del Coneixement as part of the European project Erasmus+ Uforest. The initiative aims to modify the physionomy of an urban, cement-filled area to consolidate it as a space in which the effects of climate change can be mitigated and in which campus biodiversity can flourish.
The UAB, in collaboration with CREAF, has expanded the climate refuge of the Plaça del Coneixement with a tree planting this Thursday 21 November. Eighty native Mediterranean tree and shrub species typical of Catalan forest ecosystems were planted: ten Quercus pubescens, six Quercus ilex, six Arbutus unedo, eight Celtis australis, twelve Pistacia lentiscus, thirteen Rhamnus alaternus, thirteen Cistos albidus and twelve Rosmarinus officinalis.
These trees and shrubs have been added to those already planted in the same area before the severe episode of drought declared in our region. The aim is to make the campus of the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona more resistant to the effects of the climate crisis, such as heat waves and loss of biodiversity, and at the same time to create a climatic refuge with species with low water needs and that produce fruits that can also be useful for local animals. In fact, the species selected for the campus attract pollinators and small birds. This initiative also aims to educate and raise community awareness about the importance of green spaces in urban environments.
The urban afforestation initiative is part of the European project Erasmus+ Uforest, launched in 2021, and is funded with the support of the European Commission and promoted by the University of Padua spin-off Etifor and the Regional Agency for Agricultural and Forestry Services (ERSAF) of Lombardy, Italy. The Uforest project aims to promote Europe's innovation capacity among universities, cities and companies to offer a new approach to urban forestry.
More information:
https://www.uab.cat/web/newsroom/news-detail/expansion-of-the-climate-refuge-of-the-placa-del-coneixement-1345830290613.html?detid=1345922913217
https://www.creaf.cat/ca/articles/quins-arbres-hem-de-plantar-les-ciutats