BalticGrow - Cross-Border Innovation for Sustainable Roof Ecosystems in the Southern Baltic Region (2025-2028)

The Baltic Sea region is facing growing climate-related challenges. Intense rainfall events overload stormwater systems and cause flooding, while urban heat islands lead to high temperatures and deteriorating living conditions during warm periods. Dense urban development reduces green spaces and biodiversity, and the need to reduce carbon emissions and energy use is more urgent than ever.

To address these complex challenges, integrated and innovative solutions are required, solutions that can combine climate adaptation, ecological sustainability, and energy production within the existing urban environment. BalticGrow addresses these issues by developing and testing multifunctional green and blue-green roofs adapted to the region’s climate and conditions.

The project focuses on promoting multifunctional green roofs to tackle urban challenges such as stormwater management, heat island mitigation, and biodiversity enhancement. The initiative combines hydrological modeling, material testing, and IoT-based monitoring to create a decision-support toolbox and a technology catalog for municipalities and companies.

Luleå University of Technology contributes to the technical evaluation of green infrastructure performance with respect to stormwater quantity. In addition, the research group in Luleå will investigate already installed green roofs, engage in dialogue with municipalities and companies, and analyze regulatory frameworks to support sustainable implementation across the Baltic Sea region.

BalticGrow is an Interreg South Baltic project led by Gdańsk University of Technology. Other project partners include IWEN Energy Institute (Germany), Bornholms Energi & Forsyning (Denmark), R&D Project (Poland), Lithuanian College of Engineering (Lithuania), and Luleå University of Technology (Sweden).

The project runs from July 2025 to June 2028.

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