Background

With the loss of biodiversity, important ecosystem services are lost. One potential way to counteract this is the ecological upgrading of private gardens, industrial and commercial zones. People and nature benefit from this in equal measure: Nature-oriented design in urban areas increases the quality of stay, contributes to a good microclimate and increases overall resilience to the consequences of climate change. Landscape gardeners have an important role to play here: they implement designs and are responsible for the professional maintenance of the areas, which are the decisive factor in ensuring that biodiversity persists and develops on site. They are not only creators of “utility greenery” but experts in the creation of ecosystems and the provision of the associated ecosystem services.

In order to support teachers in giving more space to biodiversity in education and training in gardening, landscaping and sports ground construction, the Lake Constance Foundation in cooperation with “natur art – integrative green concepts” is developing materials for teaching together with committed teachers at vocational schools and inter-company training centres. The teachers are willing to share their previous experience to create teaching content that can be more widely disseminated and used as guidance for other teachers. The project is supported by the Ausbildungsförderwerk Garten-, Landschafts- und Sportplatzbau e. V. and the associations for garden, landscape and sports ground construction in Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg.

Implementation

Modules are developed that convey the importance of biodiversity, explain which species can be supported with various biodiversity elements and how the structures created are maintained. For this purpose, we provide the arguments to leave dead wood or foliage permanently, for example, even if it is still often considered unkempt. With the help of practical exercises, trainees learn to recognise and maintain existing biodiversity and to create new areas.

Part of the project is the development of a proposal to revise the plant curriculum to better combine biodiversity and horticultural aspects: Attractive plantings and biodiversity are of course not contradictory! Education and training in horticulture is a natural starting point through which greater consideration of biodiversity can be promoted in the medium and long term.

Contact

Contact person: Sven Schulz

E-mail: sven.schulz@bodensee-stiftung.org

Phone: +49 (0) 7732-9995-441

Project Funding

• Ausbildungsförderwerk Garten-, Landschafts- und Sportplatzbau e. V.
• Verband für Garten-, Landschafts- und Sportplatzbau Bayern e. V.
• Verband für Garten-, Landschafts- und Sportplatzbau Baden-Württemberg e. V.