The UPSURGE Partners Instytut Ekologii Terenów Uprzemysłowionych and Katowice from Poland, presented the project during Katowice’s Climate Week.

The event, held at IETU, was attended by a large number of people, most of whom were high school students, representatives of different public institutions, councillors and citizens interested in urban problems resulting from climate change. Experts from IETU presented their experience in planning adaptation measures using nature-based solutions (NBS). They stressed that in order to fully utilize the potential of green spaces and water to provide ecosystem services that increase a city’s resilience to negative weather events, the state of the urban environment must be well recognized, and this will allow to program appropriate adaptation measures.

Participants of the meeting were able to learn about the process of introducing new green investments in Katowice, implemented within the UPSURGE project, including at bus stops, i.e. in the area of the surface urban heat island (SUHI) phenomenon. The role and participation of residents in shaping the urban space were emphasized and activity of Katowice Place Lab in the project. It was also shown how many different problems accompanied the implementation of NBS in the city center, how to solve them and what we can learn from participating in such an international project. The meeting was very fruitful and generated a lively discussion.