Dublin, Dublin (FUA), Ireland
City population: 1894440
Duration: 2021 – ongoing
Implementation status: Ongoing
Scale: Micro-scale: District/neighbourhood level
Project area: unknown
Type of area: Central Business District / City Centre
Last updated: November 2024

The Digital Hub, a campus in Dublin 8 offering 49,000 sq. ft. of office, studio, and workspaces for small businesses in technology, creative industries, social enterprises, and artisans, has partnered with Pocket Forests to establish Ireland’s first urban native tree nursery. Located on The Digital Hub campus, the Pocket Forests Tree Hub will grow native Irish trees, including birch, rowan, and alder, to support the planting of over 600 trees throughout Dublin 8 and beyond. As Dublin 8 district faces a noted lack of green spaces and low tree density, as highlighted by the Mapping Green Dublin project from University College Dublin and local groups, the Tree Hub is set to address this gap. This innovative initiative aims to improve the local natural environment and bolster biodiversity in a rapidly urbanizing area. Pocket Forests, co-founded in 2020 by Ashe Conrad-Jones and Catherine Cleary, is inspired by the Tiny Forest concept, which brings diverse native plants to small urban plots. Using permaculture methods, Pocket Forests regenerates depleted soil and creates diverse micro-forests on plots as compact as six square meters. This approach, which enriches soil and encourages biodiversity, has a unique capacity to transform urban areas into lush, green spaces, contributing to improved air quality and local ecosystems. The Covid-19 pandemic has underscored the importance of access to nature for well-being, and The Digital Hub offers an ideal location for this first-of-its-kind urban initiative. The Tree Hub will serve as a valuable resource for greening Dublin 8, promoting community engagement, and fostering a greater connection to nature. Beyond the nursery, Pocket Forests will run a series of six half-day workshops at The Digital Hub to educate the community on biodiversity, pollination, compost, soil health, and the importance of urban forest ecosystems. The Digital Hub’s Tree Hub boosts well-being, biodiversity, and green space for future generations. (1-5

The Digital Hub hosts urban tree nursery
The Digital Hub hosts urban tree nursery
Ref. 2

Overview

Nature-based solution

  • Parks and urban forests
  • Pocket parks/neighbourhood green spaces

Key challenges

  • Environmental quality
  • Soil quality improvement
  • Green space, habitats and biodiversity (SDG 15)
  • Green space creation and/or management
  • Habitat and biodiversity restoration
  • Health and well-being (SDG 3)
  • Improving physical health
  • Social justice, cohesion and equity (SDG 10)
  • Social justice and equity
  • Social interaction
  • Environmental education

Principal problems in Functional Urban Area (FUA)

  • Environmental Degradation
  • Biodiversity loss
  • Land use and Socio-economic change
  • Rapid urbanization

Key priorities

Biodiversity (conservation and/or restoration), Social Justice and community

Focus

Creation of new green areas, Creation of large parks and urban and peri-urban forests, Maintenance and management of urban nature, Urban reforestation, restoration of street trees, Ecological restoration of ecosystems, Soil remediation and revegetation, Remediation activities of sites with very poor environmental quality, Protection of natural ecosystems, Habitat restoration, Knowledge creation and awareness raising, Educational and awareness raising programs

Project objectives

To enhance biodiversity and improve the natural environment in Dublin 8 by expanding and improving green spaces and increasing community access to them, supporting biodiversity in urban areas, and promoting pollination. To regenerate depleted soil and create pockets of urban forests by planting a diverse range of native trees and shrubs across available land areas. To educate and engage the community in the importance of biodiversity and sustainable urban ecosystems. To run workshops that inform and inspire residents on topics such as biodiversity, pollination, composting, soil health, and the critical role of healthy forest ecosystems in urban areas. To improve physical health among the local population (1, 2, 3)

Implementation activities

Pocket Forests was set up in Dublin in 2020 by Ashe Conrad-Jones and Catherine Cleary. The project focuses on the creation of Ireland’s first native tree nursery, the Pocket Forests Tree Hub, at The Digital Hub in Dublin 8. The nursery will grow native Irish trees, such as birch, rowan, and alder, for distribution across Dublin 8 and the wider Dublin area. These provide greater food and shelter for birds, insects and mammals and eliminate the risk of disease from imported plants. The project uses a permaculture approach encouraging microbes and earthworms to do the heavy work of digging. The project follows some of the Miyawaki technique and re-purposes waste materials to feed the soil life . (1, 2) To engage and educate the local community, six half-day workshops will be held on topics like biodiversity, pollination, composting, soil health, and the importance of forest ecosystems in urban areas. Additionally, monthly community coffee mornings will encourage discussions on sustainability and biodiversity, fostering local involvement (2).

Biodiversity conservation or restoration-focused activities

Biodiversity restoration:

  • Restore native species

Main beneficiaries

  • Local government/Municipality
  • Citizens or community groups
  • Young people and children

Governance

Management set-up

  • Led by non-government actors

Type of initiating organisation

  • Non-government organisation/civil society

Participatory approaches/ community involvement

  • Dissemination of information and education
  • Joint implementation (e.g. tree planting)
  • Co-management/Joint management

Details on the roles of the organisations involved in the project

The initiative is led by Pocket Forests a non-governmental organization responsible for the project's implementation. The Digital Hub, a corporate partner, provides the urban space for Ireland's first native tree nursery and supports community engagement activities. Local citizens and community groups, including schools, play an active role by participating in workshops, greening efforts, and environmental education initiatives (3).

Project implemented in response to ...

... an EU policy or strategy? Unknown
... a national policy or strategy? Yes (National Biodiversity Action Plan 2017–2021 (4))
... a local policy or strategy? Yes (the Mapping Green Dublin initiative (3) that responds to the Dublin City Council Development Plan 2016–2022 (4))

Type of enablers

NGOs/Community groups driving the implementation

Financing

Total cost

Unknown

Source(s) of funding

  • Funds provided by non-governmental organization (NGO)

Type of funding

  • Direct funding (grants, subsidies, or self-financed projects by private entities)

Non-financial contribution

Type of non-financial contribution
  • Provision of labour
  • Provision of expertise
Who provided the non-financial contribution?
  • Citizens (e.g. volunteering)

Impacts and Monitoring

Environmental impacts

  • Environmental quality
  • Improved soil quality
  • Expected improved soil quality
  • Green space and habitat
  • Reduced biodiversity loss
  • Expected reduced biodiversity loss
  • Increased number of species present
  • Expected increased number of species present
  • Enhanced support of pollination
  • Expected enhanced support of pollination

Economic impacts

  • Unknown

Socio-cultural impacts

  • Health and wellbeing
  • Improved physical health
  • Expected improved physical health
  • Education
  • Increased support for education and scientific research
  • Expected increased support for education and scientific research

Type of reported impacts

Presence of formal monitoring system

Unknown

Presence of indicators used in reporting

No evidence in public records

Presence of monitoring/ evaluation reports

No evidence in public records

Availability of a web-based monitoring tool

No evidence in public records

Potential risks of implementation and trade-offs

Unknown

References

1.
Irish Independent (2021). Digital Hub faces chop but its forest will grow . Irish Independent, Accessed on September 23, 2024, [Source link];
2.
Pocket Forests (2021). Pocket Forests. Accessed on September 23, 2024, [Source link];
3.
The Digital Hub (2021). The Digital Hub hosts urban tree nursery first in Pocket Forest partnership. The Digital Hub, Accessed on September 23, 2024, [Source link];
4.
: Alma Clavin, Niamh Moore-Cherry and Gerald Mills (2021). Mapping Green Dublin: Strategic Pathways to Community-led Greening. EPA Research , Accessed on September 23, 2024, [Source link];
5.
Dublin City Council (n.d.). Dublin 8 Introduction Consortium GrowD8 Social Enterprise Development Strategy 2020-2022. Dublin City Council, Accessed on September 23, 2024, [Source link];
The Digital Hub hosts urban tree nursery
The Digital Hub hosts urban tree nursery
Ref. 1
Pocket Forest
Pocket Forest
http://www.dublinsouthcentralgreenparty.com/2021/11/pocket-forests-at-the-digital-hub/
Pocket Forest
Pocket Forest
http://www.dublinsouthcentralgreenparty.com/2021/11/pocket-forests-at-the-digital-hub/
naturescapes bannerInformation about this nature-based solution was collected as part of the Naturescapes project funded by the European Union under Grant Agreement No 101084341.