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Estonian Urban Biodiversity  ·  EKA 2025

Urban
Nature
Estonia

A comprehensive overview of legislation, strategic documents, and active projects shaping urban biodiversity across Estonian cities — and the gaps between them.

Hannes Aava  ·  Supervisors: Siim Tuksam, Damiano Cerrone  ·  Estonian Academy of Arts

5
National Laws
13%
Tallinn Protected
42
Butterfly species
Pollinator Hwy
13.5km
Pollinator Highway
900+
Species in
Biodiversity DB
70+
Green Tracks
activities
Chapter 01 — Legal Framework

Five laws.
One fragmented system.

Estonia's green space governance spans national acts with no single universal definition of urban green space.

National Standards (EVS)
Tallinn Municipal Regulations
    Chapter 02 — Strategic Documents

    Plans, handbooks
    & tools.

    The instruments that translate law into practice — from national spatial plans to city-level biodiversity catalogues.

    Handbooks & Tools
    Tallinn
    Tallinn 2035
    Urban Strategy  ·  European Green Capital 2023
      Tartu
      Tartu 2040+
      General Plan  ·  UrbanLIFECircles EU Project
        Chapter 03 — Active Projects

        Where policy
        meets ground.

        Real initiatives in Tallinn and Tartu. These demonstrate what is possible when practice leads policy.

        Chapter 04 — Ecological Framework

        From law
        to living ground.

        Reference Biotopes

        Native Estonian ecosystems that can inspire urban ecological design:

        Undesignated Land — Opportunity Zones
        Sihtotstarbeta maa — land without designated use — appears on national cadastral maps and represents potential biodiversity zones. Plots sit in planning limbo but self-generate biodiversity in the interim. Identified via Maa-amet's Maa-info map, layer: KÜ sihtotstarbe järgi.
        Chapter 05 — Policy Network

        Interconnections
        & shortfalls.

        Connections, gaps and conflicts across Estonian urban biodiversity policy instruments.

        Filter
        Law
        Strategy
        Standard
        Project
        Handbook
        Select a node
        Chapter 06 — Strengths & Gaps

        Progress built on
        incomplete foundations.

        Urban green space is not explicitly and universally defined in Estonian legislative documents. It is treated indirectly through context — mainly through environmental protection, urban planning, and environmental management.
        Key Finding  ·  EDITUA Research  ·  Estonian Academy of Arts  ·  2025