Table Of ContentGreen Cities
of Europe
Edited by
Timothy Beatley
Green Cities
of Europe
Global Lessons on Green Urbanism
Edited by
Timothy Beatley
washington | covelo | london
© 2012 Island Press
All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. No
part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means without permission
in writing from the publisher: Island Press, Suite 300, 1718 Connecticut Ave., NW,
Washington, DC 20009
ISLAND PRESS is a trademark of the Center for Resource Economics.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Beatley, Timothy, 1957-
Green cities of Europe : global lessons on green urbanism / edited by Timothy Beatley.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-1-59726-974-2 (cloth : alk. paper)
ISBN 1-59726-974-3 (cloth : alk. paper)
ISBN 978-1-59726-975-9 (pbk. : alk. paper)
ISBN 1-59726-975-1 (pbk. : alk. paper) 1. Urban ecology (Sociology)—Europe—
Case studies. 2. Urbanization—Environmental aspects—Europe—Case studies.
3. Sustainable urban development—Europe—Case studies. 4. Environmental policy—
Europe—Case studies. I. Title.
HT243.E85B43 2012
307.76094—dc23 2011041660
Text design by Paul Hotvedt
Typesetting by Blue Heron Typesetters, Inc.
Printed on recycled, acid-free paper
Manufactured in the United States of America
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Keywords: Aalborg Charter; Agenda 21; bicycle infrastructure; bike share; biodiversity;
biophilic cities; climate change; community garden; congestion pricing; Copenhagen;
eco-city; environmental policy; Freiburg, Germany; green building; green governance;
green roofs; green urbanism; greenhouse gas emissions; greenway planning; floodplain
management; Helsinki; London; Paris; pedestrian infrastructure; renewable energy;
Rieselfeld, Germany; stormwater management; sustainable mobility; transit; urban
metabolism; Vauban, Germany; Vélib’; Venice; Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain.
Contents
Chapter 1 Introduction: Why Study European Cities? 1
Timothy Beatley
Chapter 2 Paris, France: A 21st-Century Eco-City 29
Lucie Laurian
Chapter 3 Freiburg, Germany: Germany’s Eco-Capital 65
Dale Medearis and Wulf Daseking
Chapter 4 Copenhagen, Denmark: Green City amid the
Finger Metropolis 83
Michaela Brüel
Chapter 5 Helsinki, Finland: Greenness and Urban Form 109
Maria Jaakkola
Chapter 6 Venice, Italy: Balancing Antiquity and
Sustainability 129
Marta Moretti
Chapter 7 Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain: From Urban Greenbelt
to Regional Green Infrastructure 155
Luis Andrés Orive and Rebeca Dios Lema
Chapter 8 London, England: A Global and Sustainable
Capital City 181
Camilla Ween
viii Contents
Chapter 9 Conclusion: Green Cities of Europe as
Compelling Models 215
Timothy Beatley
Contributors 225
Index 227
1
Introduction: Why Study
European Cities?
Timothy Beatley
We are living on an increasingly urban planet. In 2008 we passed the half-
way mark—50% of the world’s population now live in cities, and that per-
centage is projected to increase to 70% by 2050. There is no turning back
the urban trend. Yet ironically we have as a species yet to successfully de-
sign and plan cities that will accommodate our economic and demographic
needs while uplifting and elevating us, and protect, restore, and nurture
the planet and its natural systems. That we need new models of urban-
ization—that is, sustainable urbanization—is especially clear here in the
U.S. Where to look for new models is always a question, and as this book
argues, European cities remain a powerful source of potent ideas and in-
spiring practice. The chapters to follow, chosen to highlight the practices of
some of these most innovative European urban exemplars, are written by
experts and local planners who know these cities well.
Where we look first should be determined by a combination of those
places with basic similarities—cultural, economic, political—and places
employing a rich array of innovative tools, strategies, and ideas. And of
course we should also look at cities that have already been successful at
bringing about, and maintaining over a long period of time, the urban
qualities and conditions we admire.
This is an especially promising time to think about and promote the
environmental role of cities. There has been considerable attention paid in
the last decade to how notions of sustainability begin to apply at local and
regional levels. Many communities around the U.S. (and the world) are
struggling to develop and implement a wide variety of initiatives and pro-
grams to make their communities more sustainable and livable. While the
T. Beatley (ed.), Green Cities of Europe: Global Lessons on G reen Urbanism, 1
DOI 10.5822/978-1-61091-175-7_1, © 2012 Island Press
2 GREEN CITIES OF EUROPE
global (and local) problems faced are daunting, never has there been more
attention paid to, and more faith expressed in, the ultimate sustainability
of cities. In UN meetings, such as the 2006 UN World Urban Forum in
Vancouver, which I attended (and the two subsequent world urban forums
in Nanjing and Rio, respectively), nations across the globe have embraced
the concepts of sustainable urbanization and sustainable communities as
central to any real progress toward solving world environmental and social
problems on an increasingly urban planet.1
In the face of absent federal leadership on climate change, mayors and
other local government leaders have shown significant leadership. The
Mayors Climate Change Agreement, an initiative of former Seattle mayor
Greg Nickels, has been signed by some 1,054 cities (as of July 2011), com-
mitting them to meet, and ideally exceed, the greenhouse emission targets
of the Kyoto Accord. Many cities have embraced the goals and vision of
sustainability, but are not entirely sure how to reach them and are hungry
for new ideas, tools, methods, and models.
Cities and metropolitan regions are the newest and perhaps most im-
portant venues in tackling sustainability and in advancing a green agenda.
It is at this level that many things are possible, that creative and innova-
tive practice can find expression, that committed citizens and organizations
can exert pressure and make a difference. The promise of the local is great
indeed, and its stock is on the rise.
Over the last several decades, many American cities and local gov-
ernments have developed and implemented sustainability initiatives, from
Chicago to Cleveland to Santa Monica. Many of these communities have
attempted to become fundamentally greener and have made significant
and impressive strides. Yet, despite good progress in many communities,
these initiatives are still very much in their formative stages, especially
when compared with their European counterparts. In few other parts of the
world is there as much interest in urban sustainability and urban greening
policy as in Europe, especially northern and northwestern Europe.
I have been studying green initiatives in European cities for nearly
twenty years (see Green Urbanism: Learning from European Cities).2 One
of my first observations from this work was that sustainability appeared
to be much more commonly applied and pursued at the local or municipal
level in Europe, and this is especially true for the cities included in this
book. “Sustainable cities” resonates well and has important political mean-
ing and significance in these locales, and on the European urban scene
generally.
Introduction: Why Study European Cities? 3
Europe has indeed been a pioneer in the area of sustainable cities. Fif-
teen years ago, the EU funded the start-up of a critical initiative, the Sus-
tainable Cities and Towns Campaign, which became an important network
of communities pursuing common sustainability goals. Participating cities
approved the so-called Aalborg Charter (from Aalborg, Denmark, the site
of the first campaign conference). As of 2011, more than 2,500 cities and
towns had signed the charter.3 In addition to connecting cities and provid-
ing information about sustainability initiatives, this organization gives out
a European Sustainable City Award (the first was issued in 1996), some-
thing that has become highly coveted and valued by politicians and city
officials. I had the chance to visit the mayor of Albertslund, Denmark, a
winner of this award, and will not forget the pride with which the mayor
held up the award for us to photograph; he clearly viewed this as a signifi-
cant accomplishment, and as a credit to the value (political and popular)
placed on all matters green and sustainable.
Europeans have found many similar ways to inspire, encourage, and
provide positive support for cities pursuing sustainability. Cities can now
compete for the designation of Green Capital City, for instance. This pro-
gram was created by the European Commission to recognize cities that
have a “consistent record of achieving high environmental standards,” and
are “committed to ongoing and ambitious goals for further environmen-
tal improvement and sustainable development.” Cities are also chosen to
serve as role models for other cities, and to inspire other cities in a bit of
friendly competition.4
European cities represent important sources of ideas and inspiration
about green urban development and policies. The chapters that follow at-
tempt to go well beyond the brief descriptions and anecdotal materials
currently available about these cities, to understand, document, and de-
scribe much more thoroughly these innovative local (and regional) Euro-
pean green efforts. The result will be an extremely important and valuable
resource for the hundreds of communities in the U.S. aiming to become
more sustainable.
It is important to recognize and acknowledge the special role that Eu-
rope, and European cities, have played in the development of American
cities. The most famous U.S. planners, designers, and landscape architects
have visited prized European cities, gardens, and landscapes as a way of
stoking their creative fires. This was true for luminaries and design greats
such as Frederick Law Olmsted, Daniel Burnham, and Clarence Stein,
among many others. And some of our most important planning ideas and
