Collaborative workshop focuses on green infrastructure in Manchester

Participants are seated around tables during a workshop while two presenters stand at the front beside a screen displaying a presentation about Greater Manchester transport scenarios.

DARe recently hosted a collaborative stakeholder workshop in Manchester with colleagues from the Hub’s project partner Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM), and the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA), bringing together transport sector colleagues and researchers to explore climate adaptation for urban transport systems.

The session formed a key part of DARe’s Greater Manchester case study, which focuses on how heat, flooding, and compound climate hazards affect public and active travel in a dense urban environment. Participants worked collaboratively to explore potential green infrastructure interventions that could mitigate risks and strengthen the climate adaptability and resilience of transport networks, including those of the future.

Led by Dr Tabea Sonnenschein (University of Cambridge) and Dr Alistair Ford (Newcastle University), the workshop brought together stakeholders to share their tacit knowledge of Greater Manchester through a structured and collaborative process. Following a brief introduction and project recap, participants engaged in roundtable discussions on green infrastructure and future transport developments, identifying key opportunities and constraints with the help of maps and scientific summaries, before moving into collaborative mapping exercises on Greater Manchester basemaps to inform the development of intervention scenarios. This approach highlighted how closely integrating scientific insight with practitioner expertise can lead to more grounded, relevant, and actionable outcomes.

Workshop participants stand and gather around tables, examining a large printed map with sticky notes and markers during a group activity.

“I found it incredibly enriching to work closely with the urban, environmental, and transport planners of Greater Manchester. Those interdisciplinary exchanges, ranging from detailed, geography- and policy-specific considerations to broader climate adaptation narratives, made the scenarios far more relevant and insightful. Greater Manchester stands out as a compelling case study, where climate risks, strong momentum for resilience, and diverse urban conditions open up especially interesting possibilities for intervention scenario analysis.”

Dr Tabea Sonnenschein, University of Cambridge

Green infrastructure is not one-size-fits-all. The type and location of interventions can shape different climate and social outcomes, with feasibility varying across contexts. A key learning from the workshop was that effective planning must account for constraints such as limited space and conflicts with existing infrastructure (e.g. utilities), alongside careful consideration of species selection and long-term maintenance. This workshop emphasised the importance of tailoring approaches to local conditions in order to support heat and flood resilience.

Huge thanks to the stakeholders who participated and contributed their expertise and perspectives, to help further the development of the Greater Manchester case study.