The Evolution of Urban Greening – A Brief Timeline

Evolution of urban greening
Having looked at the history of living walls and vertical gardens here ourselves previously (see https://tugc.co.uk/2023/03/living-walls-may-be-older-than-you-think/), we were excited to see a discussion of the origin’s of Urban Greening and its concepts at the start of Kumar P, Sahani J & Corada Perez K et al’s recent paper:
Published by Frontiersin.org

Whilst mostly concerned with the main challenges in implementing urban greening initiatives drawn from an expert panel convened by the RECLAIM Network Plus, a UKRI-funded project focused on providing leadership and support for urban greening globally, the summary of the historical background inspired us to create a very abridged timeline which is below for your interest.  However this is no substitute to reading the very excellent article itself which we have linked to above.
Kumar et al Urban greening challenges research paper

A brief timeline of urban greening principles

  • Ancient Era

     

    Early Integration of Nature in Cities

    Ancient civilizations like Rome, Indus Valley, Mesopotamia, and Persia blended nature with urban life. Features included Roman “rus in urbe,” water harvesting in the Indus Valley, Persian gardens circa 6th century BC, and early sanitation at Mohenjodaro. Purposes ranged from aesthetics and climate to spiritual and water management.

  • 14th–17th Centuries

    Green Spaces in Pre-Industrial Europe.

    Aristocratic estates and religious institutions shaped European greenspaces. Notable examples: Schönbrunn Palace gardens (14th c.), Hyde Park (16th c.), Luxembourg Gardens (17th c.). Many private lands later opened to the public.

     

    14th–17th Centuries

  • 18th–19th Centuries

     

    Industrial Revolution and Public Parks

    Urbanisation replaced landscapes with ‘grey infrastructure,’ leading to pollution and urban heat effects. Public parks such as New York’s Central Park and Liverpool’s Sefton Park were attempts to improve city living by addressing overcrowding and growing health issues associated with cities

  • Early 20th Century

    Garden City Movement & Urban Sprawl.

    The early 1900s saw the Garden City movement emphasising green belts and planned nature integration led by Howard *. However, explosive car use fueled growing urban sprawl and the issues associated with it.

    *EBENEZER HOWARD’s “Garden Cities of Tomorrow”

     

    Early 20th Century

  • 1960s–1970s

     

    Environmental Legislation & Renewed Greening.

    Environmental concerns see the rise of the U.S. EPA (1970), Clean Air Act, and Clean Water Act.  McHarg, “Design with Nature”: 1969, a seminal work that promoted the idea of scientists and planners working together to create urban designs led by environmental considerations.

  • Present Day

    Cities start science-led turn to green.

    Over three-quarters of global cities have adopted urban greening policies, integrating sustainability with urban growth. Studies confirm health benefits (lower mortality, improved mental health, sleep quality) associated with green space. The “3-30-300 rule” etc…

     

    Present Day

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