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Re-focus on greening towns and cities

Re-focus on greening towns and cities

AIPH International Green City Conference – Tuesday, 1 April 2014 ‘Growing green and healthy places’ is the theme of this International Green City Conference and Dinner. Organised by the International Association of Horticultural Producers (AIPH) Green City Committee the event takes place on 1 April 2014 in London, UK.

Green planting in urban areas is good for public health, good for the environment, good for society and good for the economy. Promoting this message, the conference will highlight case studies and research from around the world that shows that we simply cannot afford not to re-focus on greening our towns and cities.

The outstanding line-up of speakers at the conference includes: Sir Richard Thompson, President of the UK’s Royal College of Physicians, who will lay out why green planting has an important role in improving public health. This will be supported by Val Kirby, fellow of the Landscape Institute in her review of what makes a healthy landscape. The conference will assess tools for placing a financial value on landscape, with Tom Butterworth from Natural England and details of future plans for the Green Infrastructure Partnership from Julia Thrift of the Town and Country Planning Association.In addition, international case studies from Chinese Taipei, Australia and The Netherlands will show what can be achieved through being a Green City, whilst from the UK the lessons from the Olympic Park will be revealed by Mark Camley from the London Legacy Development Corporation. Leigh Hunt from the Royal Horticultural Society will also outline the importance of domestic gardens and RHS plans for more urban gardens.

Commenting on the event AIPH Secretary General, Tim Briercliffe said “The AIPH Green City Conference is designed to assist planners, councillors, local authorities, health directors, architects and landscape architects, the construction industry, contractors, green space experts and the horticultural industry to see what can be achieved in terms of urban greening and why it matters so much.  This conference will help delegates from around the world in building a case for change in this important area.”

The conference will take place in the beautiful venue of One Great George Street, right next to London’s Houses of Parliament.  Following this, the Green City Dinner will be held on board HMS Belfast on the River Thames near Tower Bridge on the same evening of 1 April 2014 and will bring together all those with an enthusiasm for greening towns and cities from all over the world.

For those who would like to see more of what London has done to green its urban areas, there is the option of joining the Green City London Tour, on 31 March 2014, culminating in a tour of the Olympic Park.

For more details and to book places visit www.greencity-events.org.


Rachel Wakefield

Communications Executive and Associate Editor
United Kingdom

rachel.wakefield@aiph.org