Written by: Birthe Uhlhorn, BOKU

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Experiencing Nature-Based Solutions – On the Move with the ᴇNᴀBʟS Living Lab in Vienna

As part of the Austrian Living Lab, on 10-11 April 2025, students from BOKU University embarked on a two-day excursion through Vienna to not only discuss Nature-Based Solutions (NBS) in theory but to experience them directly on site. The goal was to make the potential, challenges, and social dimensions of NBS in urban spaces visible and tangible — with a particular focus on biodiversity, physical activity, recreation, and social justice in public space.

Vienna as a Learning Space: Between Planning, Use, and Nature

On the first day, the tour took participants through Vienna’s 16^th and 17^th districts, with stops at the GB* Urban Renewal Office and MA28 – Road Management and Construction. Key questions guided the discussion: Who plans? Who uses the space? And how can different demands — from mobility and climate adaptation to recreation — be harmonised?

Katharina Prielinger from 3s Research & Consulting offered valuable insights into youth-specific needs in public space, drawn from her master’s thesis “Self-Care Practices of Young People in Vienna’s Public Space: Safe Spaces, Switching Off, and Having Fun.”

Sophie Thiel from the initiative geht-doch.wien also illustrated how NBS intersect with improvements for walkability in public space — from more greenery and reduced car traffic to safer pedestrian routes. On the second day, students engaged in conversations with representatives from the district administration of Neubau (1070 Vienna), the Austrian Sports Federation (ASVÖ), the planning office PlanSinn, and the Municipal Department for Environmental Protection (MA22). It became clear that implementing Nature-Based Solutions in a dense urban context always involves negotiation, compromise, and balancing diverse stakeholder interests, standards, and budgetary constraints.

For example, Heinrich Wurzian from ASVÖ Vienna emphasised that sports facilities are vital green spaces in cities but are rarely designed for multifunctional use or biodiversity. Questions arose such as: How can sports grounds be opened up to neighbourhood use or managed in a biodiversity-friendly way? Michelle Reischl from PlanSinn GmbH highlighted how participatory processes — such as those used in redesigning Gumpendorfer Straße — rely heavily on local knowledge from residents. She also emphasised the value of the Lokale Agenda 21, a co-creative process in which administration, district politics, and citizens collaborate to realise sustainable urban projects. With Jürgen Preis from MA22, students critically examined regulatory frameworks, particularly the 2023 amendment to the Vienna Building Code. While the changes introduced improvements in façade greening and mandatory unsealing for new construction, many existing buildings still show untapped potential. Although subsidies offer important incentives, they often fall short of breaking through entrenched structures. Nevertheless, as shown by district councillor Martin Heintel in Vienna’s 7^th district, much can be achieved through flexible and collaborative approaches. He presented impressive examples of Nature-Based Solutions implemented in cooperation with the neighbourhood and various municipal departments — with more to come.

Thinking Transdisciplinarily, Acting Collectively

The excursion clearly demonstrated that Nature-Based Solutions are far more than green design features — they are social and ecological negotiation spaces that require creativity, empathy, and a willingness to collaborate. These were two intensive days filled with knowledge exchange, perspective-sharing, and a shared commitment to developing sustainable urban solutions.

The course 853320 SoSe 2025 Exkursion zur Erholungsplanung / 853320 Field trip – recreation planning was held during the summer semester and was conducted by Birthe Uhlhorn and Alice Wanner. For more information, you can visit the course page here.