RE-NATURING THE CITY
Urban Rewilding across the Pomeranian and Eastern Slovakia
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"Restoring nature in cities through science, collaboration, and practical tools."
ABOUT THE PROJECT
Re-Naturing the City: Urban Rewilding Across the Pomeranian and Eastern Slovakia
Poland – Slovakia | 2026–2027
Funded by NAWA under Grant Agreement No. BPN/BSK/2025/1/00002/U/00001 and APVV, under Grant Agreement No. SK-PL-25-0045
This project explores urban rewilding as a practical and innovative approach to addressing these issues. Urban rewilding focuses on restoring natural ecosystems and ecological processes within cities—creating greener, more resilient, and more livable urban environments.
The project is a bilateral collaboration between the University of Gdańsk (Poland) and the University of Prešov (Slovakia). It investigates how rewilding can support socio-ecological regeneration in two contrasting regions:
the Pomeranian Voivodeship in northern Poland
the Prešov and Košice Regions in eastern Slovakia
These areas represent diverse urban contexts—from post-industrial coastal cities to inland urban systems—each facing distinct environmental challenges, yet sharing a common need for more connected, biodiverse, and inclusive green spaces.
WHAT THE PROJECT DOES
The project combines research, collaboration, and practical application. Through a shared methodology, the Polish and Slovak teams conduct expert interviews with planners, policymakers, and environmental specialists; community-based surveys exploring public perceptions of rewilding; field observations and spatial analysis of urban green areas; and institutional analysis of planning and governance frameworks.
This comparative approach helps identify how rewilding is understood in different contexts, what enables or limits its implementation, and how it can be adapted to local conditions.
This project goes beyond research. By combining science, practice, and collaboration, it contributes to more resilient and inclusive cities, better integration of nature-based solutions, and stronger regional cooperation. It aligns with key European priorities, including: the European Green Deal, the EU Biodiversity Strategy, and the New Leipzig Charter.
Ultimately, the project aims to reshape how nature is understood, planned, and experienced in cities across Poland and Slovakia.
PROJECT TIMELINE
MAIN OUTPUTS
URBAN REWILDING TOOLKIT
(Currently under development — expected completion: 2027)
The project’s central outcome is the Bilateral Urban Rewilding Toolkit—an open-access resource designed to support cities, planners, and community actors in implementing rewilding strategies.
The toolkit will provide a practical planning guidance, design typologies for urban rewilding interventions, stakeholder engagement approaches, and site selection and implementation frameworks. It is being developed as a flexible and context-sensitive tool, tailored to the planning realities of Central and Eastern European cities. The toolkit will be available in English, Polish, and Slovak.
PUBLICATIONS
(Currently under development — expected completion: 2027)
The project will produce peer-reviewed academic outputs based on comparative research conducted in Poland and Slovakia. These publications will contribute to advancing knowledge on urban rewilding, nature-based solutions, and sustainable urban transformation in post-socialist contexts.
FINAL REPORT
(Currently under development — expected completion: 2027)
A comprehensive comparative report will synthesize findings from both countries, including insights from fieldwork, surveys, and stakeholder engagement activities. The report will provide evidence-based recommendations for policymakers, planners, and practitioners working with urban green infrastructure and rewilding approaches.
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