How can urban green spaces be used for sustainable urban development? The Brazilian urban planner Alexandra Aguiar Pedro addressed this question during her stay at the Centre for International Postgraduate Studies of Environmental Management (CIPSEM) at TU Dresden in 2018.

As part of her final thesis, the TUD-Alumna examined approaches to urban garden projects in Dresden - including the intercultural garden "Golgi Park" in Hellerau - and evaluated their transferability to the Brazilian context. Her work received the "Best Final Paper Award" and was recognized as one of the most promising action plans of the international continuing education program.

Together with Anna Görner and André Lindner (both TU Dresden) and Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Wende (Leibniz Institute of Ecological Urban and Regional Development and Chair of Urban Development at TU Dresden), Alexandra Aguiar Pedro further developed the approach. They published the results in the publication "More Than Fruits and Vegetables - Community garden experiences from the Global North to foster green development of informal areas in Sao Paulo, Brazil".

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The example of the Vila Nova Esperança favela in São Paulo shows that this transfer of theory into practice is successful. An award-winning model project was created there, which proves how "green" open spaces can improve quality of life and protect neighborhoods from uncontrolled expansion.

"The space must have value for the residents if it is to withstand the pressure to expand," explains Prof. Wolfgang Wende. "This is only possible if you create a sense of belonging so that people really feel responsible for these areas."

This development is also attracting international attention: BBC journalist Lottie Watters recently dedicated an article to the project entitled

"I had no idea it would snowball this far: Why a Brazilian favela facing eviction decided to go green".

This once again highlights the practical impact of the content of the CIPSEM courses at TU Dresden - and the contribution they make to sustainable urban development worldwide.