Urban Releaf project launched in Dundee

A new citizen science project, Urban Releaf, has launched in Dundee, inviting residents to share their perceptions of the city’s greenspaces. By providing feedback through the Urban Releaf Cities app or an online survey, residents can contribute valuable data. This information will support the development of the Council’s strategies aimed at improving air pollution, health and wellbeing, and biodiversity.

This is a collaborative project between Dundee City Council and the University of Dundee, which is funded by the United Kingdom Research and Innovation (UKRI) Innovate UK agency.

Climate, Environment & Biodiversity Convener Cllr Heather Anderson said: “It’s important that everyone in the city has easy access to quality greenspace as the benefits are proven to improve health, wellbeing and community resilience.

“In Dundee, we are lucky to live in one of the greenest cities in the UK, however it is important we gain insights of how the public interacts with greenspaces.

“The data collected will be used to further enhance our greenspaces and help to tailor them to the needs of the community.

“In-depth qualitative data will also be collected from citizens through interviews, group discussions and engagement at public events.

“There will be specific focus on gathering the experiences and perceptions from people who benefit most from improved access to greenspace such as people experiencing long-term health issues or social isolation, the elderly, young people as well as children.

“Our greenspaces also play an important role in how climate resilient we are as the management of such spaces has a direct impact on how we adapt to a changing climate.”

The first phase of the project will take place until April 2025 with the experiences collected directly feeding into plans and strategies at city-level.

Dundee joins Athens in Greece, Cascais in Portugal, Mannheim in Germany, Riga in Latvia, and Utrecht in the Netherlands as part of the wider Urban Releaf project.

The Urban Releaf perceptions app can be downloaded from the Google Play Store and the Apple App Store.

More information about the wider project is available on the Urban Releaf website.