Greenhouse classroom open to public!
The official opening ceremony of the greenhouse classroom in the courtyard of the 15th Highchool Adam Mickiewicz was held on 14.03.2024 /Thursday/ at 13:30. The greenhouse classroom is part of the Healthy Corridor in the district of Nadezhda in Sofia, which was developed within the framework of the URBiNAT project.
The greenhouse classroom meets the contemporary educational needs of the students from the school and draws inspiration from the co-creation workshops organised by the URBINAT team. It was designed by experts from IAAC /Institute for Advanced Architecture of Catalonia/ and the construction was carried out by two Bulgarian companies – Interhold Ltd. and Sponec Ltd. The greenhouse has a geothermal heating system, powered by the mineral spring in the school yard. The hydroponic irrigation system is the work of the Spanish company NGS /New Growing System/. Together with IAAC, the Danish Technology Institute /DTI/, where the structural properties of the greenhouse were tested, as well as SLA, who prepared the initial catalogue of plants to be grown inside, they are among the partners of Sofia Municipality in the URBiNAT project consortium.
The greenhouse was inaugurated by the Mayor of Nadezhda District, the Chief Architect of Sofia Municipality, The Headmistress of the 15th Highschool, as well as representatives from the Ministry of Education, the National Teachers Syndicate and the URBiNAT team. The gracious hosts from the school welcomed everyone with song and dance performances by the students who were very eager to begin their classes in the brand new facility.
The Healthy Corridor itself is a pedestrian route of approx. 3 km, which connects Nadezhda Park with North Park. Four main intervention zones are located along the route hosting diverse public facilities for recreation, culture and outdoor sports.
The Corridor starts from the reconstructed bridge at Nadezhda Park and continues to the Green Amphitheatre zone that features an outdoor event venue as well as an informal place for social gatherings within a new autochthonous forest environment. The Aqua Vita zone behind the 15th Highschool, where the greenhouse is located, focuses on different uses for the mineral spring in the school yard. Among the elements of the zone are outdoor gym facilities and an exhibition area. The next zone, Health Energy, includes reconstructed playgrounds and restored multi-purpose sports fields. Nearby, there are new ecoparking facilities for vehicles and bicycles. The fourth zone, Co-Place, is adjacent to the North Park and houses a variety of outdoor recreation and play areas.
URBiNAT is an international action-research HORIZON 2020 project, in which Sofia is one of the leading cities. The academic partner of Sofia Municipality is the University of Architecture, Civil Engineering and Geodesy. All the implemented environmentally friendly interventions in the urban fabric /NBS/ are the result of many years of collaborative efforts by the citizens of Nadezhda, the administration of Sofia Municipality, numerous local and foreign experts.
Photos: Teodor Angelov
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