Pop-up urban canopies from France can bring the beauty of foliage to the concrete jungle, without the expense and schedule challenges associated with infrastructure construction. Urban Canopee’s solution is a self-contained pot with a unique expandable scaffolding that allows various climbing plants to grow anywhere.

Its onboard reservoir automatically waters the plants. When a water refill is necessary, the unit sends a text message to the maintenance team. And like a tree planted in the ground, it uses the rays of the sun via its solar panel to power its onboard electronics.

Given that these are in containers without permanent infrastructure, they are ideal for temporary installations as they are easy to move. Municipal governments, corporations, and really any organization that wants to help green up a given location are the target market.

In addition to providing a glimpse of nature, Loïs Lenhardt indicates another benefit is the reduction in the urban heat island. Lendhardt, who is the U.S. Development Representative for Urban Canopee, suggests that covering one-fourth of a city’s landmass could reduce surface temperatures by up to 2.5 degrees Celsius.

CES2022 was Urban Canopee’s U.S. debut, after successful deployments in Europe, Africa, and Australia. Since then, they have made inroads into the U.S., specifically at the Peachtree Corners’ Town Center. Urban Canopee is working with Peachtree Corners’ Curiosity Lab for this particular project.

(Curiosity Labs was featured in this Viodi View interview about their autonomous vehicle testing).