Athens, Greece – a lively event focused on transforming urban environments into wellbeing cities took place recently in the Greek capital.
The Hearth Summit Athens, organized by Impact Hub Athens, brought together 120 participants from across Europe to discuss innovative solutions for sustainable urban living. The first edition of Hearth Summit in Southern Europe explored various aspects of creating wellbeing cities, including ecological integration, climate resilience, and cultivating vibrant communities.
The Summit featured a diverse array of sessions covering crucial aspects of urban sustainability and wellbeing. Key themes included “Impact Economy vs Wellbeing Economy,” exploring the shift towards prioritizing societal health, and “Cultivating Vibrant Communities,” which focused on citizen participation in urban development. “Ecological Integration & Nature-Based Learning” emphasized incorporating nature into urban environments, while “Climate Resilience & Extreme Weather” addressed strategies for mitigating climate-related challenges. Other significant topics included “Climate & Mental Health,” “Equity in Cities,” “Decentralization & Repopulation,” “Sustainable Consumption,” “Sustainable Tourism,” and “Climate Justice.” These sessions collectively provided a comprehensive exploration of the multifaceted approaches needed to create wellbeing cities, addressing environmental, social, and economic aspects of urban sustainability.
Tadej Stepišnik Perdih from the National Technical University of Athens attended the event and presented the poster with the preliminary results of CARDIMED project. Poster focused on urban demonstration cases in Zaragoza, Marseille, Ferla and Nicosia. It highlighted the benefits Nature-based solutions offer to residents of cities. You can find the poster below.
Tadej mentioned: “This was really a great gathering of stakeholders with very diverse backgrounds. I had the opportunity to hear from investors, city authorities, professors and, perhaps most intriguing, from many grassroot initiatives. Everyday people, who anyone can meet on the streets. But because they care, they act as community leaders. It was great to share thoughts on how we imagine wellbeing cities! Even though we were approaching this summit from different perspectives, I was glad to see that Nature-based Solutions were a part of almost all discussions. For me, this really highlights the multiple benefits nature can provide.”
