GI favours a more sustainable and resource efficient development process by encouraging the use of Europe’s limited space in a coherent, smart and integrated way. GI comprises a wide range of environmental features that operate at different scales and form part of an interconnected ecological network. At the same time, these features must be multifunctional; they must be more than simply ‘a green space’. For example, a single tree in the middle of a city or an isolated patch of uniform grass are unlikely to be qualified as GI unless they also contribute to key local environmental values.