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Boosting Naryn’s Climate Resilience One Seed at a Time
Author: Lily Nemirovsky, NURP Volunteer
Last winter, as the plants, gardeners, and landscapers of Naryn rested from the growing season, the Naryn Urban Resilience Program (NURP) team published a catalogue to help residents prepare for future planting periods in ways that will create a more sustainable, adaptable, and comfortable urban environment. The catalogue presents a curated list of plants which are native to Naryn, and, therefore well adapted to the area’s specific microclimate of cold winters, hot summers, and arid soil.
The catalogue is designed to serve as a practical guide for both municipal service providers and private residents. It contains a description of eight trees, 13 shrubs, 13 types of grasses, and two species of vines that are endemic to Naryn and can be used for urban greening. The descriptions include information about which types of soil they grow best in, their preferred amount of sunlight, the frequency of watering required, and their effectiveness at sequestering carbon dioxide.
By investing in ‘Kyrgyz-specific’ landscaping, municipal services and the wider community can ensure the success and long-lasting impact of their efforts to make the city greener, thereby contributing to a more resilient urban environment.
The advantages of increasing native plant coverage within the city are numerous:
- Cleaner air: Lined along streets, plants can reduce dust pollution and remove pollutants such as carbon dioxide from the air.
- Erosion and mudslide prevention: Due to Naryn’s mountainous location, there are many slopes which are prone to mudslides. These difficult-to-maintain slopes can be reinforced with the roots of native plant species, which don’t require frequent human care.
- Reduced maintenance: Introducing native species to public spaces such as parks would reduce the city’s cost of maintaining such spaces since they require less irrigation and fertilization.
- Natural pest control: The symbiotic relationship between native plants and animals such as birds works as a form of natural pest control.
- Highlighting endemic beauty: Plants which are characteristic of Naryn’s natural ecosystem add aesthetic value to the urban landscape by celebrating the city’s unique features and showcasing the strength, vitality and beauty of local nature.
See the full catalogue here.
This project was supported by The Aga Khan Agency for Habitat, the University of Central Asia (UCA), and the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO).
