Inspiring city initiatives in the fight against climate change have sprung up around the world, from the conversion of former landfill sites into wetlands in Buenos Aires, to Delhi closing its most polluting power plant, to Guangzhou electrifying its entire bus network. At the same time, questions linger over why cities like Lagos or Dakar…
ICLEI South Asia, the Climate Development and Knowledge Network (CDKN) Asia Coordinator, organised an online Policy Dialogue on Peri-Urban Ecosystems – Potential for a Planned Approach in India on the 25th of August 2020. Field experts from various organisations participated in the dialogue and gave their feedback on the brief prepared by the CDKN Asia…
Local action moves the world! This fact has been highlighted even more in the present scenario. Rapid urbanization has led to environmental degradation across the globe. Loss of biodiversity, particularly in the urban areas has several cascading and far reaching consequences. Biodiversity provides ecosystem goods and services and also has benefits such as Flood Control,…
In a time when cities are bursting at the seams, policy reform is vital to protect ecosystems and build climate resilient cities that preserve urban nature. This three-part series will share three policy victories in Malawi where nature is being conserved and considered in Lilongwe City, the country’s capital, and beyond. Lilongwe City is often…
By: Dr Sebastiaan van Herk and Sophie Rasbash of Bax & Company The cost of climate adaptation for developing countries is rising rapidly. Global public finance commitments to address climate change are also growing. According to the IHE Delft Institute, funding jumped from $4 billion in 2010 to $25 billion in 2013, but this is…
by Sophia Rettberg, Resilient Cities 2019 Guest Blogger Environmental hazards such as flooding, heat waves and droughts are increasingly common challenges for cities around the globe. As these issues demand on-going adaptation and innovation, local governments have turned to design thinking – a people-centered approach for building products and services – for solutions. Landscape architecture and…
With the release of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) global assessment, it is increasingly clear that biodiversity and natural ecosystems play a crucial role in maintaining the health of the planet, particularly in the face of climate change. The natural environment provides many valuable and free services that contribute directly…
By Laura Huffman, Texas Regional Director, The Nature Conservancy Cities get things done at the right scale: the human scale. They have the pace and vigor to turn momentum into action, connecting locally to move the needle globally on a host of issues. When the U.S. government withdrew from the Paris Agreement, the response from…
By Brian Richter, Chief Scientist, Water at The Nature Conservancy Fresh water touches every part of daily life—from drinking water and sanitation, to agriculture and energy production. Unfortunately, for nearly half of the world’s population, water scarcity is a growing issue with devastating impacts to our communities, economies and nature. In the past, countries have…
By Daniel Shemie, Kari Vigerstol, Mu Quan, Wang Longzhu The Nature Conservancy What do the Chinese cities of Harbin, Ningbo, Qingdao and Xuzhou have in common? They are all water stressed, but they are also perfectly positioned to lead the country toward a more sustainable water future. While China encompasses almost 20 percent of the…
A common thread among local governments that are globally recognized as urban sustainability leaders – a category which includes the eight cities taking part in the EU-Canada Urban Policy Cooperation – is that they actively work to protect, restore, and grow biodiverse urban green spaces. Vitoria-Gasteiz is at the forefront of this trend: in the…
Post by Irina Velasco, ICLEI Africa In seven days, the third Urban Nature Congress will take place at the ICLEI World Congress 2015, and we are busy preparing for this exciting gathering! Providing a platform to share information, promote case studies, encourage interactive discussion, and offer inspiration for cities, “Urban Nature 2015: Local Action for…