UB Garden biodiversity: Innovation & sustainable management

To enhance biodiversity held by UB Garden through increasing visibility, scientific dissemination and sustainable management, by integrative actions

UB Garden Ferran Soldevila is integrated within the Network of University Botanical Gardens of the Coimbra Group. In the last 5 years, it wants to preserve and enhance the historical botanical collection through innovative and participative initiatives. The project addresses a) designing a plan to better communicate the values of biodiversity services (health, material, food, culture)and its conservation needs; b) implementing a signaling system to help attractive and interactive learning experiences during visits and walks; c) building an hybrid team of students/dissemination agency (Divulga UB) to prepare guided visits combined with university scientists forums open to university community and citizens; d) designing a plan to create new plantation areas with students participation and introduction of sustainable management (mainly water & energy use and consumption, gardening practices, waste management); e)reinforcing the role of the garden as healthy space; f) producing a final document with guidelines to be exported to other gardens owned and managed by the UB. The project is conceived as a program i) to integrate students in sustainibility actions (through ApS techniques); ii) to integrate university services at all levels in common working groups (administrative, maintenance, surveillance, safety and health, dissemination, academic staff, etc.); iii) to create new teaching spaces in the open air in learning innovation frameworks and iv)to bring to the public the richness of this botanical heritage located in the heart of the historic building of the University of Barcelona (UB).

Actions centered on the Garden of the historical Building of the UB (Campus Central) involving 2 faculties (Mathematics and Philology) and central services (presidency, Honour Hall, Library). Results are planned to be exported to the total 40.000 m2 of UB gardens, a relevant surface at city level

Total Eur 10.000. Includes: A: financing web system, students work facilities, design of new plantation areas, production of printed leaflets, formation of guided tours leaders, plant and garden photography (overall 4.000 Eur) and B: design, information capture, botanical review, construction and planting of botanical signs equipped with a QR code plate (60 Eur each X 100 signs = 6.000 Eur)

1 – Strictly following national and university authorities recommendations of space conditions (distances, ventilation, masks, hands) combined with online meetings and work through UB institutional platforms. 2 – Garden operations in the open air will mantain the standards of safety regulations issued from national and university authorities. 3 – Introduction of biodiversity concepts in facing Health deals (“One Health” view) to produce specific scientific dissemination materials showing the relevance of biodiversity interactions as key processes to both Health and disease generation; using COVID awareness as potential driver.