On the 14th December 2023 Belfast City Council supported by Queen’s University Belfast held a kick-off meeting for the UPSURGE Competency Group in Belfast, UK. The meeting enabled competency group members from citizen and environment groups and academic background to explore the purpose of competency groups for the UPSURGE project and the city of Belfast more broadly. The group discussed the five themes shared by all cities: Eco-sensitisation, Social Benefits of NBS, Gender-Based NBS, Economic Opportunities with NBS and NBS-supporting Political Capital. Through these discussions, specific challenges and opportunities for the site in Lower Botanic and across Belfast were teased out.
Following an engaging discussion a half-day workshop was held on the 18th of December to devise an action plan for co-creation for the UPSURGE project. Reflecting on the five UPSURGE criteria, the group explored lots of challenges and ideas; from the compromise between perceptions of safety and re-wilding schemes in greenspace, how to promote changing perspectives on the aesthetics of nature, and ways in which food production might support vulnerable communities and economic sustainability. Wrapping up for the holidays, the competency group and UPSURGE team in Belfast is excited to start an ambitious program of engagement in 2024.
