Strasbourg, France
City population: 468195
Duration: 2009 – ongoing
Implementation status: Ongoing
Scale: Micro-scale: District/neighbourhood level, Sub-microscale: Street scale (including buildings)
Project area: unknown
Type of area: Cultural Heritage Area, Public Greenspace Area, Other
Last updated: October 2021

The medieval style Shared Garden Of Sainte-Madeleine Place development - situated in between two nearby schools - in 2009 was quickly claimed by the Association des Habitants Bourse Austerlitz Krutenau (Association of Inhabitants Bourse-Austerlitz-Krutenau) (AHBAK) neighborhood association because of its historic environment. The project turned the space into a shared garden, involving a collective composting area for organic waste, installing a rainwater recuperator, and planting local plant and vegetable species and new trees (Ref. 1, 2, 3).

Plants growing in a garden bed with a sign reading 'basilic'
https://www.rue89strasbourg.com/theorie-pratique-jardins-partages-strasbourg-91178#gallery-8

Overview

Nature-based solution

  • Community gardens and allotments
  • Allotments
  • Community gardens
  • Green areas for water management
  • Other

Key challenges

  • Water management (SDG 6)
  • Stormwater and rainfall management and storage
  • Green space, habitats and biodiversity (SDG 15)
  • Green space creation and/or management
  • Environmental quality
  • Waste management
  • Social justice, cohesion and equity (SDG 10)
  • Environmental education
  • Social justice and equity
  • Social cohesion
  • Social interaction
  • Health and well-being (SDG 3)
  • Enabling opportunities for physical activity
  • Creation of opportunities for recreation
  • Cultural heritage and cultural diversity
  • Protection of historic and cultural landscape/infrastructure
  • Promotion of cultural diversity
  • Sustainable consumption and production (SDG 12)
  • Sustainable consumption
  • Sustainable production

Focus

Creation of new green areas, Maintenance and management of urban nature

Project objectives

The project is aimed at providing a shared garden downtown, that provides the means for promoting biodiversity and ecology, allowing for sustainable consumption, reducing waste, (Ref. 2, 3) and reducing social inequality by encouraging social interactions between diverse groups of people (Ref. 10, 12). The project will provide educational opportunities to the neighbouring 2 schools as an educational site. It was also desired that the project would serve as a "garden" network and a compost network (Ref. 3).

Implementation activities

The first plan was a collective reappropriation of the public space 2007 that did not transpire (Ref. 3). Consultations about the possibility of creating a shared garden near the "silo" at grains place Ste-Madeleine began in December 2008. After a series of delays relating to the City of Strasbourg's concern about the site, the president of the association of traders Ste-Madeleine approved AHBAK plantations on March 19th 2009. 2 working groups were created: seating animation and vegetation (Ref. 2). The first plantations began on March 25th 2009 (Ref. 3). A third composter was installed in 2015, (Ref. 15) after the original 2 in 2009 (Ref. 3). Maintenance and developments at the site are ongoing (Ref. 2). The medieval style garden Shared Garden Of Ste-Madeleine Place development in 2009 was quickly claimed by AHBAK neighborhood association because of its historic environment. Although not fenced, the garden is well respected, and media encounters and neighborhood celebrations are hosted during harvest (Ref. 1). The project turned the space into a shared garden, involving a collective composting area for organic waste, installing a rainwater recuperator, and planting local plant and vegetable species and new trees (Ref. 1, 2, 3).

Main beneficiaries

  • Citizens or community groups

Governance

Management set-up

  • Co-governance with government and non-government actors

Type of initiating organisation

  • Non-government organisation/civil society
  • Citizens or community group
  • District/neighbourhood association

Participatory approaches/ community involvement

  • Co-planning (e.g. stakeholder workshops, focus groups, participatory mapping)
  • Dissemination of information and education
  • Consultation (e.g. workshop, surveys, community meetings, town halls)
  • Joint implementation (e.g. tree planting)
  • Co-management/Joint management
  • Citizen monitoring and review

Details on the roles of the organisations involved in the project

The project Shared Garden Of Sainte-Madeleine Place was initiated by Association des Habitants Bourse Austerlitz Krutenau (Association of Inhabitants Bourse-Austerlitz-Krutenau) after gaining approval from the president of the association of traders Ste-Madeleine under the jurisdiction of Strasbourg Eurometropole (Ref. 2). Efforts at the garden were assisted by students from the University of Karlsruhe on vegetation at Krutenau, led by their professor Philip Denkinger (Ref. 3).

Project implemented in response to ...

... an EU policy or strategy? Unknown
... a national policy or strategy? Unknown
... a local policy or strategy? Yes (Urban collective gardens are developed as part of the Potagers Urbains Collectifs (Urban Collective Gardens) initiative since 2007. (8, 14))

Financing

Total cost

€10,000 - €50,000

Source(s) of funding

  • Unknown

Type of funding

  • Unknown

Non-financial contribution

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

Impacts and Monitoring

Environmental impacts

  • Environmental quality
  • Improved waste management
  • Water management and blue areas
  • Improved stormwater management
  • Green space and habitat
  • Increased green space area
  • Increased spread of native/heirloom/open-pollinated seed

Economic impacts

  • Increase in agricultural production (for profit or not)

Socio-cultural impacts

  • Social justice and cohesion
  • Improved social cohesion
  • Improved access to urban green space
  • Increased opportunities for social interaction
  • Increased involvement of locals in the management of green spaces
  • Increased access to healthy/affordable food
  • Increased sustainability of agriculture practices
  • Cultural heritage and sense of place
  • Promotion of cultural diversity
  • Improvement in people’s connection to nature
  • Protection of natural heritage
  • Protection of historic and cultural landscape / infrastructure
  • Education
  • Increased support for education and scientific research
  • Increased knowledge of locals about local nature

Type of reported impacts

Achieved impacts

Presence of formal monitoring system

Yes

Presence of indicators used in reporting

No evidence in public records

Presence of monitoring/ evaluation reports

Yes

Availability of a web-based monitoring tool

No evidence in public records

References

(1) [no author]. (2012). Visite n° 1 : MICRO-JARDINS ET FLEURISSEMENT CITOYEN Visites au centre-ville de jardins et d’espaces verts dans lesquels les habitants s’impliquent. (Document attached).
(2) JOSEPHINE. (2009). UN JARDIN PARTAGÉ PLACE STE-MADELEINE. AHBAK. Available at: Source link (Accessed: September 30, 2020).
(3) JOSEPHINE. (2010). UN JARDIN PARTAGÉ PLACE STE-MADELEINE. AHBAK. D’OÙ VIENT LA CRÉATION DU JARDIN PARTAGÉ STE-MADELEINE ? Available at: Source link (Accessed: September 30, 2020).
(4) Eco-Quartier Strasbourg. (2013). Jardin partagé Sainte-Madeleine. Available at: Source link (Accessed: September 30, 2020).
(5) Strasbourg Source link. Jardin partagé Sainte-Madeleine. Available at: Source link (Accessed: September 30, 2020).
(6) Strasbourg Curieux. (2011). LETTRE JARDIN PARTAGÉ STE-MADELEINE (KRUTENAU) :: INFO SUR LES JARDINS À STRASBOURG. Available at: Source link (Accessed: September 30, 2020).
(7) Simon, Clémence. (2015). De la théorie à la pratique, les hauts et bas des jardins partagés. Available at: Source link (Accessed: September 30, 2020).
(8) Agricultures Urbaines Strasbourg [no date]. Potagers Urbains Collectifs (PUC). Available at: Source link (Accessed: September 30, 2020).
(9) AHBAK ADMIN. (2011). SEMIS LIBERTÉ 2011. Available at: Source link (Accessed: September 30, 2020).
(10) Dupy, Chloë. (2016). Des graines pour apprendre. (Document attached).
(11) [no author]. (2013). Responding Together: Visite d'initiatives qui contribuent à la lutte contre les inégalités Strasbourg, mercredi 6 novembre. (Document attached).
(12) [no author]. (2012). Jeudi 11 octobre 2012. (Document attached).
(13) Goetz, Christiane. (2009). Jardin Place Strass: Strasbourg (Place Sainte Madeleine). (Document attached).
(14) ECO-Conseil. [no date]. Les Potagers Urbains Collectifs. Available at: Source link (Accessed: September 30, 2020).
(15) JOSEPHINE. (2011). BONNE NOUVELLE : UN TROISIÈME COMPOSTEUR. Available at: Source link (Accessed: September 30, 2020).