A Gardener as a Cultural Actor, with Jacques Soignon

Send us Fan MailA greener city is not just about planting more trees. It is about making nature easy to reach, hard to ignore, and emotionally meaningful in everyday life. In this episode we chat to ecologist and horticulturalist Jacques Sognon, former director of Green Spaces and Environment for the City of Nantes and vice president of France’s Conservatoire for Special Plant Collections.We explore how Nantes evolved from “a city of a hundred gardens” into “the city in the garden”, building a connected network of parks and routes through a major green master plan. Jacques shares why continuity, patient delivery, and opening up connections between green spaces can shift a whole city’s identity, and how public participation grows when green infrastructure feels like a shared cultural project.We also get practical with the biophilic cities 3-30-300 rule, tree canopy cover targets, and the case for cutting back unnecessary hard surfaces. From heatwaves to the hidden lessons a snowfall can reveal, we talk climate adaptation, urban biodiversity, and nature-based solutions that improve health, comfort, and everyday movement.Listen in to our story of the city in the garden! Follow GoodGeist for more episodes on sustainability, communications and how creativity can help make the world a better place.