Welcome to SUTEE!
Showcasing Urban Trees for Environmental Education with
IoT Technology. SUTEE is an ERASMUS+ Strategic Cooperation Partnership in the field of school education project.
Trees and greenery in urban densely populated areas have many positive effects. Among them are lowering the heat effects of hot summer days, regulating the humidity and quality of the air, and providing a home to species like birds and squirrels, among others. Research has also confirmed the psychological benefits green plants have on humans. For these reasons, trees and other plants are essential for human wellbeing.
Unfortunately, modern city planning still often ignores these intrinsic desires that people have, especially in their immediate living areas of the city. Instead, money is spent on fog fountains and other technical aids that have little to no wider impact on the urban climate.
Figure 1. trees embedded in dusty ground.
No wonder then, that there are civic action groups like “SeeStadtgrün” that aim to bring more nature into the city by motivating people to combat dust and tarmac with plants and flowers in the neighbourhood. They also generate awareness in the general public by launching petitions and media campaigns.
Figure 2. sealed soil leads to deserted spaces.
Lessons can be learnt from historic city developments in hotter climate regions. They could serve as a good model for today. Look at these sample images of tree-covered streets and notice that the provided benches are in fact used by people to sit down and relax.
Figure 3. tree canopy providing shade where it matters.
Figure 4. triple alley covering the entire street.
Figure 5. tailored trees to comfort pedestrians.
We must, however, realise that trees take years to grow to a proper size that actually brings climatic benefits. All the more, we are tasked with protecting old fully-grown trees. City planning should, therefore, work around existing trees rather than cutting them down. Of course, the same should be true for private construction work so as to arrive at a connected tree cover wherever possible. Legislation to plant tree replacements (elsewhere) are often not effective enough to protect from intentional destruction of the urban tree canopy.
