Biodiversity in the city: Discover the green treasures of Giessen!

Biodiversity in the city: Discover the green treasures of Giessen!

On Thursday, June 5, 2025, the Justus Liebig University of Giessen (JLU) is hosting a guided tour that deals with biodiversity in urban habitats. The event starts at 2 p.m. and lasts until around 4 p.m. The walk is organized by the JLU Office for Sustainability in collaboration with the Professorship of Landscape Ecology and Landscape Planning and the JLU Campus Garden project.

The focus of the event is on the living spaces around the university's Interdisciplinary Research Center (iFZ). Participants can discover flowering meadows, green strips and communally maintained garden areas. The tour offers valuable insights into the complex ecological relationships and the effects on biodiversity as well as the interactions between people, climate and environment. After the tour, snacks and drinks will be provided in the campus garden to promote exchange and inspiration.

City and nature: A new way of thinking

The importance of urban nature is a relatively new phenomenon in German urban planning, which has increasingly come into focus since the 1970s. Historically, the relationship between humans and nature in urban spaces has often been viewed as a dichotomy, resulting in a blind spot for urban nature. This distinction between the human sphere, which includes the city, and the natural sphere, which is considered landscape or wilderness, led to the removal of nature from urban areas.

In the 19th century, bourgeois elites saw the need to demand urban green spaces as a counterbalance to urbanization. This idea was inspired by literature and landscape painting. While in the USA urban parks were designed as functional spaces for all citizens, feudal parks dominated in Europe. With the development of the biotope network system in the 1970s and 1980s, a concept emerged that integrated parks and biotopes into an interconnected network to promote biodiversity.

The role of green infrastructure

The concept of green infrastructure deals with the creation and networking of living spaces in urban areas. The aim is to fulfill both human and ecological functions. The use of such measures is crucial because urban biodiversity is often higher than in rural areas. At the same time, however, structural densification and energy-saving renovations are often the cause of the displacement of species and the loss of valuable habitats.

There is an urgent need for legal protection for wild animals and plants, as this is often not enough to prevent habitat loss due to urban development. The compact city model advocates internal development before external development in order to curb outward growth in area. Urban ecological research also shows that the built structure of the city offers numerous habitats that are essential for biodiversity.

Adaptations in urban planning are necessary in order to recognize and actively promote biodiversity as an integral part of urban spaces. This requires innovative approaches such as the Animal-Aided Design (AAD) method, which states that species-specific needs should be integrated into the planning of urban open spaces.

These topics are also covered in the brochure from the Federal Agency for Nature Conservation. The publication discusses the basics and planning-relevant aspects of urban green infrastructure, which is essential for the security, planning and development of urban living spaces. The brochure presents supporting strategies for the operation, maintenance and management of such infrastructures and is supported by various associations, including the German Garden Office Managers' Conference.

To take part in the JLU tour, prior registration is required as the number of participants is limited. Those interested can register using the following link: Registration link.