As part of the ongoing activities of CARDIMED, Gardens of the Future hosted the MATCH Nicosia Capacity Building Workshop between 2 and 4 November 2025. The workshop brought together artists, researchers, cultural practitioners, and policy actors from across the Mediterranean to examine how artistic practice and community-based activation can support climate resilience, circularity, and environmentally conscious urban development.
Integration of CARDIMED Objectives
During the workshop, the Gardens of the Future team provided a dedicated tour of the premises, placing particular emphasis on the newly installed vertical gardens. The system – combining aquaponic and hydroponic techniques – was presented as a practical demonstration of a nature-based solution implemented under CARDIMED. Participants were introduced to the operational principles of the installation, its multifunctional role within the garden ecosystem, and its potential for replicability in dense Mediterranean urban environments.
The vertical garden tour served as a tangible example of how small-scale urban interventions can directly contribute to the programme’s broader goals of ecosystem restoration, climate adaptation, and nature-positive community engagement. The visit generated significant interest among the visiting cultural and academic partners, many of whom engaged in discussion about the potential use of such systems within artistic residencies, educational programming, and interdisciplinary research.
Municipal Contribution to CARDIMED Awareness
A key moment of the workshop was the presentation delivered by Georgios Georgiou, representative of the Municipality of Nicosia and official partner of the CARDIMED consortium. His intervention introduced CARDIMED’s scope, priorities, and planned activities to the international participants. He highlighted the municipality’s role in advancing climate adaptation strategies and outlined how local authorities can work with cultural organisations such as Gardens of the Future to embed sustainable practices in neighbourhood-level planning.
This presentation ensured that all MATCH participants gained a solid understanding of the programme’s framework and provided an entry point for future collaborations between cultural practitioners and the CARDIMED network.
Workshop Context and Outcomes
The MATCH workshop was structured across three days and included artistic reflection sessions, academic dialogue, public talks, and collaborative exercises. The programme involved contributions from D6:EU, NTUA, DDRC, AKTI, the Creative Europe Desk, and the Municipality of Nicosia. Discussions explored how artistic research can act as a catalyst for community awareness, and how local policy frameworks can integrate culture-driven environmental action.
Gardens of the Future’s engagement, especially through the vertical garden demonstration and the municipal CARDIMED presentation, strengthened the connection between cultural activation and nature-based urban innovation. The workshop concluded with presentations from upcoming resident artists, further reinforcing MATCH’s alignment with CARDIMED’s commitment to community-centred and environmentally informed practice.
Conclusion
The hosting of the MATCH Capacity Building Workshop at Gardens of the Future provided a meaningful platform to showcase CARDIMED’s nature-based solutions and to engage Mediterranean cultural stakeholders in climate-resilient urban strategies. Through guided tours, technical explanations of the vertical gardens, and the municipal partner’s contribution, participants gained direct insight into how CARDIMED is being implemented in Nicosia and how cultural organisations can act as multipliers for sustainable transformation across the region.
