As heatwaves and other climate-related emergencies increasingly threaten the Mediterranean region, MedCities believes in the power of municipal collaboration to build greener, more resilient, and inclusive cities for all. With this in mind, MedCities, within the NATURIncMed project funded by the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID), organised a technical study visit in València focused on green urban planning, with the support of Fundació València Clima i Energia – València City Council.

Held on the 1st and 2nd of July 2025, the visit took place within the framework of the NATURIncMed project, Promoting the naturalisation of public spaces with social inclusion and ecosystem services. It brought together the pilot cities Madaba (Jordan), Gabès (Tunisia), and El Mina (Lebanon), currently engaged in greening urban planning with a strong participatory component.

Participants also included members of the Working Group on Green and Resilient Cities, composed of municipalities committed to sustainable urban development and climate adaptation: Ein El Basha (Jordan), Agadir (Morocco), Roscovec (Albania), and Hatay and Bodrum (Turkey). The study visit served as a flagship activity within the group’s annual programme and also to support the Masar Al’an, the AECID regional cooperation programme with the Arab World. Designed to foster cooperation among Mediterranean cities, the visit provided participants with valuable insights into València’s approach to resilience and inclusion. The programme combined strategic presentations with immersive field visits to some of the city’s most emblematic urban transformation projects.

The first day focused on the city’s Climate Mission 2030 and Green and Biodiversity Plan, introduced at the Observatory of the Climate Change, a key node in València’s climate shelter network, a tool of city to address the increasing intensity and frequency of heatwaves. Participants also visited the renaturalised Turia River corridor, an old riverbed which is now a verdant sunken park that allows cyclists and pedestrians to traverse much of the city without the use of roads.

The second day began in Benicalap, a neighbourhood in northern València where the city is piloting integrated projects for urban greening, social inclusion, and climate adaptation. Guided by Las Naves – València Innovation Capital, participants visited various surrounding pilot sites, where NbS are being deployed to improve environmental quality and reduce social inequalities in one of the city’s most vulnerable districts, among them a community garden which also includes an area for socio-educational activities.

The sessions continued with different presentations linked to topics at hand, such as the EnerCmed project, which focuses on establishing Renewable Energy Communities (RECs) in marginalized port hinterlands to combat energy poverty and promote climate resilience, the initiative “Mi Barrio Verde” (My Green Neighbourhood), which aims at transforming three neighbourhoods from the inside out, based on residents’ proposals, into green, sustainable, and resilient spaces through community-driven activities.

And finally, the Green Schoolyard initiative was developed as part of the Fair Local Green Deals project of València City. One of its success stories is the school CEIP Ballester Fandos, which was the last visit that was made by the participants.

Lastly, the visit allowed not only to learn about the experiences of the city of València but also to exchange and reflect on the initiatives of each participating city and identify common barriers and challenges in developing Nature-based Solutions (NbS) in urban settings.