Urban greenery, also known as urban greenspace, distinguishes urban (city) areas from rural ones. Urban greenery includes public spaces such as parks, city forests, cemeteries, playgrounds, and sports fields, roadside greenery, and green spaces around public buildings. It also encompasses private areas like gardens, green infrastructure, and agricultural land. In our cities, plants serve as the link between people and the grey infrastructure, contributing to physical and mental well-being with their diverse positive attributes. To enhance resilience and sustainability, both biotic and abiotic factors are examined to optimize healthy urban greenery. We promote sustainable design and utilization of green spaces in urban areas while considering ecological, economic, and social aspects.

Cities are more affected by climate change than rural areas due to the urban heat island effect. Heatwaves, water shortages, and extreme weather events cause irreparable damage to urban green spaces. In contrast, greenery cools and ventilates buildings and urban areas, contributing to the reduction of air-, water-, and noise pollution. Shading by trees and façade greenery reduces the thermal heating of surfaces, insulates buildings and reduces the need for heating and air conditioning. Urban greenery plays a crucial role in climate protection and climate adaptation.

Essential for the climate-resilient transformation of cities is a robust vegetation that can withstand climate-related disturbances such as drought and heat damage, as well as diseases and pests. We conduct research to diagnose and monitor abiotic and biotic urban stress factors and develop solutions to address climate-change-dependent heat and drought stress.

City green spaces are limited and must be qualified, and therefore should be planned, designed, and utilized in a multifunctional manner. In this context, one of our goals is to shape green infrastructure by incorporating urban agriculture into the urban environment and developing nature-friendly, environmentally sustainable, and user-friendly cultivation, maintenance, and protection measures.

Urban agriculture encompasses all production systems and processes related to agriculture in the broadest sense, which are used in urban or peri-urban areas, whether on land, in water, or on, in, or around buildings, for commercial or non-commercial purposes, in the city or its immediate vicinity, to generate services in the city-region. It therefore connects peri- and intra-urban spaces and forms the city region. The resulting "productive green infrastructure" is a subset of green infrastructure that supports the city's food system and connects urban residents with horticultural production facilities, as well as self-sustaining individuals in private gardens.