AFAMOUR participates in the 49 edition of the National Congress of Public Parks and Gardens held in Madrid

AFAMOUR was present, The days 15, 16 and 17 of February in the 49 Edition of the PARJAP Congress Organized by the Spanish Association of Public Parks and Gardens, in your 50 anniversary.

This edition was held in The Ship, The innovation center driven by the Madrid City Council, A meeting point open to all citizens, students, Entrepreneurs and investors. The inauguration of the Congress was attended by the Mayor of Madrid, José Luis Martínez-Almeida Navasqües.

 

José Luis Martínez-Almeida Navasqües, Mayor of Madrid, at PARJAP Congress 2023

 

National Congress of Public Parks and Gardens

The AEPJP and the Madrid City Council presented this edition of the PARJAP Congress Madrid 2023, under the heading 'Parks and gardens, Natural health systems', Structured in four interesting thematic blocks: The green city and health, Well-being as an objective of urban planning, Therapeutic designs of green spaces and real experiences and solutions (through case studies).

20 Speakers from the 5 continents for an audience of up to 600 Congressmen in this 50 anniversary of the AEPJP.

Stand ASES XXI at PARJAP Congress 2023

Several of AFAMOUR's associates participated in different ways. ASES XXI E ISABA attended with their own stand; and other partners such as Kompan Spain attended the presentations of the Congress. All of them, At the forefront of the sector.

 

1. "The green city and health" and "Well-being as an objective in urban planning" at the National Congress of Public Parks and Gardens

Wednesday 15 of February began with the conference on "The green city and health" and "Well-being as an objective of urban planning". Thursday 16 of February we attended presentations related to "Therapeutic designs of green spaces". At last, on Friday 17 February the congress had expert speakers in "Real experiences and solutions: case studies".

On the first day we heard from the president of the World Association of Urban Parks (World Urban Parks), Jayne Miller. Also to the president of the social research scientist at the University of Washington, Kathleen Wolf, who focused his presentation on recent scientific findings about the important Health benefits of nature.

We also had the pleasure of listening to the director of the Center for Research on Open Spaces of the Universof Edinburgh, Catharine Ward Thmpson. He shared with us several Studies that demonstrate the effectiveness of green spaces in the health of citizens.

 

PARJAP Congress 2023, in La Nave (Madrid)

 

 

2. "Therapeutic designs of green spaces" at the National Congress of Public Parks and Gardens

The second day of the PARJAP Congress 2023, the 16 February, It began with the multi-presentation around the thematic block "Therapeutic designs of green spaces" in which Rafael Olmedo was present, Patricia Tassari and Karim Palmlöf.

Rafael Olmedo, CEO of Geko Navasat, Presented Blind Explorer, one Sensory guidance app for the blind in parks and gardens, a whole Revolution in accessibility. It is a system that facilitates the enjoyment of green spaces to more than 285 million visually impaired. A project that has been awarded with nothing more and nothing less than 15 International Awards.

Patrizia Tassari also took part in the presentation, Full Professor at the University of Bologna and coordinator of the PhD program in 'Health, safety and green systems'. This is a PhD program with a unique focus in Italy. Summarize the content of this program in 3 Topics: the Urban health and healthier cities, Urban space planning and resilient green systems, and finally the Safety and sustainability of spaces.

 

Miren Jimenez Azpilicueta, President of AFAMOUR and General Director of ISABA

 

Finally we could also enjoy the presentation of Karim Palmlöf, Agricultural Engineer. Karim gives as an example in his presentation the therapeutic garden of healthy aging 'The Senses' in Coslada, a population where at least the 36% of citizens are older than 55 years, and therefore have very different needs than younger people.

During the day on Thursday 16 In January we also attended other presentations on "Green areas as an instrument at the service of health: the case of Madrid" by Francisco Muñoz García, General Director of Water and Green Areas of the Madrid City Council. Or "Healthy routes in the city of Madrid" by Mercedes Ceinos Arcones, reference of the Alas program, among many others throughout the day.

 

3. "Real experiences and solutions: case studies" and conclusions of the National Congress of Public Parks and Gardens

Finally, the PARJAP Congress closed on Friday 17 of February with the presentation of case studies and the conclusions of the three days of presentations.

The Main idea To highlight of these intense days has been The importance of green infrastructure helps citizens reduce stress, improve attention and mood, as well as facilitate physical activity, thanks to games, walks or the same sports practice. This type of infrastructure also contributes to Mitigating climate change and to ensure the well-being of all life on the planet.

We can emphasize that those Densely populated neighborhoods have few parks, and these are barely connected.

And of course, emphasis has been placed on Need to enable accessibility for all citizens, as well as making them participants in the management of these spaces.

To all these conclusions is added the importance of the Good practices and reference models from other countries in the Green infrastructure management that were exposed throughout this last day of the PARJAP Congress.

 

PARJAP Congress 2023, in La Nave (Madrid)