Urban Planning, Ecological Transition, Urban Services and Housing

The roof terrace at the Palau Foronda has a new cultivation area with a capacity for 440 vegetable plants and aromatic plants, looked after by people with disabilities from the organisations Centre Psicoteràpia Barcelona (CPB) and Centre Condal. The initiative makes the most of unused rooftops on municipal buildings, the goal being to improve the physical, social and emotional health of people with disabilities.

‘L’hort al terrat’, a project launched by the Municipal Institute for People with Disabilities (IMPD), was started in the spring of 2016 and currently has eight rooftop cultivation areas on unused roof terraces on municipal buildings. The projects foster the social inclusion of people with disabilities, promoting their autonomy and learning in horticulture through managing these vegetable gardens.

The people who run the vegetable terraces have physical or intellectual disabilities or mental health disorders. They get technical support from the company Groots Hydroponics, which shows them how to plant, cultivate and harvest vegetables.

The excess harvest is shared out among soup kitchens and the food bank nearest to each project. In this case, the vegetables are being taken to the NGO De Veí a Veí and the Fundació Barcelonactua, in the neighbourhood of Sant Antoni. Both organisations provide support for local people in vulnerable situations.

In terms of the environment, the projects continue to pursue more ecological and environmentally sustainable models, such as a hydroponic cultivation system with growbags, drip-watering and fertirrigation, which reduce water costs by nearly 90%.

The cultivation area on the roof terrace at the Palau Foronda was possible thanks to the involvement of the Manager’s Office for Resources at Barcelona City Council, whose participation in the Climate Emergency Marathon 2020 generated the funding required.