On the occasion of International Day for Biodiversity on 22 May, Valérie Plante, Mayor of Montreal and ICLEI Global Ambassador for Local Biodiversity, penned a compelling letter, calling on mayors and leaders of local and subnational governments from around the world to jointly take urgent action to halt and reverse the trends of biodiversity loss. She points out that the COVID-19 pandemic provides a sobering opportunity to reflect on our relationship with nature.

In the letter, Mayor Plante also draws attention to the unique opportunity to act in the coming year, firstly in developing COVID response plans, and secondly as the local and subnational government constituency prepares for the 15^th Conference of the Parties (COP) of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). It is at COP 15 where the Parties will adopt the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF), and it is critical that local and subnational governments are positioned as central to its implementation.

Local and subnational governments around the world are making ambitious commitments to conserve, restore, and live in harmony with nature in the coming decade. As a proud pioneer of the CitiesWithNature partnership initiative, Montreal is among over 150 front running cities and regions who are raising their ambition in support of the Post-2020 GBF. However, these ambitious commitments need to be met with the same level of action when it comes to implementation. Furthermore, this action needs to be captured as collective contributions to achieving the global biodiversity agenda.

On the occasion of World Environment Day, Montreal leads by example once again and demonstrates how their biodiversity actions are linked to the action targets in the CBD’s Zero Draft of the Post-2020 GBF.

The six good practice sheets below, compiled by Montreal, each present a key initiative of interest for the protection of biodiversity that is being implemented by the city, provide advice to facilitate the replication of the initiatives in other cities, and indicate which of the Post-2020 global biodiversity targets the initiative contributes to achieving. The sheets are a source of inspiration that showcase local and subnational leadership in the global biodiversity arena.

The launch of this initiative by Montreal, with support from the ICLEI Cities Biodiversity Center, the CitiesWithNature partnership initiative, and the Secretariat to the CBD, is timely. It stands as a further demonstration of the critical role of local and subnational governments in the CBD, and offers a blueprint for other cities and regions to demonstrate how they are achieving their biodiversity commitments. No action is too small. Instead, collective local action is our best chance at achieving global impact. Montreal is calling on other cities to join the journey to create vibrant cities, where people and biodiversity can thrive. Mayor Plante and the City of Montreal encourage other cities to develop similar resources that demonstrate their commitments in action, as well as the linkages between their local initiatives and global biodiversity targets.

As momentum builds towards COP 15, we need to think globally, and act locally! Global biodiversity targets need to be translated to the urban context to ensure that urban dwellers can enjoy the benefits of nature in their lives. Turning commitments into concrete action is critical now, more than ever before. Montreal’s initiative is an invitation to join a community of practice of local and subnational governments who stand ready to implement the Post-2020 GBF.

You can access the good practice sheets below:

By Timothy Blatch, CitiesWithNature Program Coordinator

Locations: Los Angeles, Montreal, Melbourne, London, and Durban

In the time of COVID-19, cities are on the frontlines of response efforts. While the pandemic has shone a spotlight on our healthcare systems and our socio-economic disparities, it has also brought our relationship with nature to the fore. The links between ecosystem stability, the natural environment, and human health have never been clearer. According to UNEPP (2020), it is precisely because of the interconnected nature of all life on this planet, that an ambitious post-2020 biodiversity framework matters greatly, and why nature needs to take center stage in our efforts to “build back better” in the coming days.

Inger Anderson, Chief of UN Environment put it well when she said, “Humanity’s expansion on the terrestrial earth surface means that, today, human activity has altered almost 75 per cent of the earth’s surface, squeezing wildlife and nature into an ever-smaller corner of the planet. And yet, nature is critical to our own survival: nature provides us with our oxygen, regulates our weather patterns, pollinates our crops and produces our food, feed and fibre, but it is under increasing stress.”

Anderson goes on to say that “we need to take on board the environmental signals and what they mean for our future and wellbeing, because COVID-19 is by no means a ‘silver lining’ for the environment. Visible, positive impacts are but temporary, because they come on the back of tragic economic slowdown and human distress.” In her First Person Editorial Ms. Andersen calls instead for a profound, systemic shift to a more sustainable economy that works for both people and the planet.

As almost half of humankind have lesser or even no options to connect with nature in these trying times, many are realising anew just how essential our connection with nature is for own health and wellbeing, and how we long for it once we are separated from it. We all need nature, even more so in these unprecedented times where the fast-changing daily dynamics of COVID-19 are consuming and fundamentally altering our lives.

“Urban parks and green open spaces provide opportunities for urban communities to enjoy and connect with nature, improving health and wellbeing. While we cannot all access our parks right now, we know that nature never closes and its multiple gifts continue to benefit our cities. Together we stand in solidarity with our cities to celebrate the value of nature and our urban parks, as we build resilient CitiesWithNature” – Kobie Brand, Global Director, ICLEI Cities Biodiversity Center

Building urban resilience is critical

The COVID-19 pandemic is placing huge strain on our communities, our governments, our healthcare systems and our economies. Our cities still continue to grapple with massive sustainability challenges, and building resilience will be even more critical now and as we move forward during and after the COVID-19 pandemic.

We need to protect and respect nature:

Nature provides diverse life-supporting and life-enhancing contributions to people. All cities critically depend on healthy interconnected ecosystems within and around them. There is a growing urgency for collective and large-scale action to protect biodiversity and respect nature in and around cities to prevent irreversible loss and damage to the natural systems that protect us.

Nature is good for everyone:

It is well known that spending time outdoors in nature can be good for mental and physical health and wellbeing. Levels of stress and anxiety have increased dramatically since the outbreak of the COVID-19 virus, so any activity that offers stress reduction and improved health is a gift. If people don’t have symptoms and cities aren’t in total lockdown, spending time in nature, where people maintain adequate physical distance, can be very beneficial.

We increasingly need to connect online:

The pandemic is calling us to increasingly connect online. CitiesWithNature, as a unique, next-generation initiative, is supporting an online community of practice, enabling learning and action around integrating nature in cities and (re)connecting people with nature. CitiesWithNature:

• Demonstrates innovative ways of engaging cities and regions, partners and individuals on urban nature
• Provides a platform for knowledge sharing and learning on the critical importance of nature in urban life
• Offers a space for collective action at the local level to realise global impact
• Invites partners to come on board and shape the initiative going forward e.g. the development of a pathway on the critical importance of urban parks
• Grows and strengthens a virtual community of practice that is resilient to crises and is not dependent on physical space or in-person interaction
• Facilitates mainstreaming of nature in and around our cities to secure our increasingly urban future

Join the journey today and be a part of this exciting global movement in pursuit of building CitiesWithNature, which is especially critical both during and after the pandemic.

Urban parks are of critical importance for the health and wellbeing of urban communities and for the resilience of our urban areas, which is especially apparent now, more than ever before. It is, however, essential that these benefits are distributed equitable across our cities and that access to urban parks and green open spaces is ensured in as far as possible. Online, virtual, and more sustainable engagement mechanisms are key to a new way of doing in 2020 and beyond.

World Urban Parks and ICLEI- Local Governments for Sustainability, through its Cities Biodiversity Center, are thrilled to announce our exciting, new partnership. The signing of our collaboration agreement formalizes a strong partnership between World Urban Parks and ICLEI for collaboration on the CitiesWithNature Partnership Initiative and the WUP Campaign. Leveraging the individual and collective strengths of our organizations, our joint work programme will help to mainstream, protect, and enhance nature and maximize the benefit derived from the ecosystem services and nature-based solutions. This partnership is timeous, given the current circumstances surrounding the pandemic and the need for us to fundamentally rethink our relationship with the natural world.

“The overall aim of this partnership is to reconnect communities with nature in and around urban areas and use the CitiesWithNature platform to facilitate this aim, for the benefit of all partners of the Partnership Initiative.  This partnership brings together two strong global organizations committed to advancing the protection and advancement of nature in urban environments for the health and well-being of all people and our planet” – Jayne Miller, Chair of World Urban Parks

Both our organisations look forward to working together to advance our joint vision for greener, healthier CitiesWithNature.

The COVID-19 International Parks Expert Roundtable Statement

On April 2^nd, the World Urban Parks with its key global partners, including ICLEI’s Cities Biodiversity Center, held the first COVID19 International Parks Expert Panel to discuss how to further collaborate both during and after this global crisis on the importance of urban parks for people in our rapidly changing world.

From the statement of collaboration, there is overwhelming endorsement that parks are a critical public health and social resource and we recognize that stay-at-home measures and physical distancing will likely take a toll on our mental health, especially during high-stress and anxiety-producing global public health emergencies. We also know from medical research how important nature is in urban life and how access to parks and open space provides that “nature fix” for human survival – providing opportunities for physical activity and regaining our emotional, psychological and mental balance.

The world has changed substantially and the COVID-19 crisis needs a response that is far from business as usual. The COVID-19 International Parks Expert Panel of core members have agreed to work together, leveraging our individual and collective strengths, through leadership and collaboration, the co-creation of a clear vision, knowledge sharing and communication of clear, positive, time-sensitive messaging.

#NatureNeverCloses

ICLEI Cities Biodiversity Center was also a core partner in the World Urban Parks Park Week campaign: #NatureNeverCloses that ran from April 25^th– May 3^rd 2020.

With COVID-19 is affecting each country, region and city differently. For World Parks Week 2020, World Urban Parks, ICLEI Cities Biodiversity Center, and partners challenged all urban citizens to explore how and in what ways they are experiencing nature in their own circumstances. For example, some cities have completely closed off access to urban parks and green open spaces at this time. In some cities, residents are not allowed to leave their homes except for essential grocery store and pharmacy visits. However, some cities have allowed limited access to parks and green spaces and some have even kept their parks wide open to the public, with differing degrees of social distancing regulations. Even at this time, there are ways we can experience nature in our daily lives. This may take the form of birdwatching from the window or looking after the house plants. The pandemic has shown us that even when we seem to be locked down, nature never closes.

World Parks Week 2020 was an opportunity for us to share how and in what ways we are exploring nature!

During Parks Week, ICLEI CBC hosted a CitiesWithNature webinar on The Benefits of Access to Nature for Urban Communities During and Beyond Pandemics and Associated Movement Restrictions. The webinar brought together a panel of five city officials from major cities across the globe to share their experiences and learnings from the pandemic and to showcase how more than ever before, we need nature in and around our cities. The list of cities represented included Los Angeles, London, Melbourne, Durban, and Montreal.

“Life is all about connections, dynamics, and relationships. In cities, parks are essential places of contact with nature’s biodiversity. Parks are also places where people like to gather. Social distancing in parks is understandably a big and complex change that sparks important discussions. And while we navigate through restrictions in this sensitive context, we can bring to light the positive message that important well-being and health benefits can still be experienced, through immersion in nature, contemplation, and inspiration, which may be optimal when visiting a park alone. Discovering the unnoticed ‘nearby nature’ in smaller neighbourhood green areas can also bring positive and unsuspected discoveries for families, close to home. For so many reasons, biodiversity protection in cities is vital.” – Joëlle Roy LeFrançois: Planning Advisor, Urban Biodiversity Division, Parks and biodiversity management Department, Ville de Montreal

“This pandemic has reminded us that the available open space in an urban setting is inadequate, especially in our disadvantaged communities and also indicated how important these recreational areas are for our physical and mental health. We need to investigate the open space access indicator from not only the native wildlife standpoint, but also from the environmental justice perspective. Another valuable and obvious lesson that we learned is how clean the air and water have become while the world shelters in place. Many wildlife sightings in our open space (national parks) and urban environment reflects our adverse impacts on native faunas and that more access for all to open spaces and parks will have unintended consequence of adversely impacting native fauna.” – Mas Dojiri: Assistant General Manager at LA Sanitation & Environment (LASAN) and LASAN’s Chief Scientist, Los Angeles

Mr Errol Douwes: Senior Manager: Restoration Ecology Branch, Environmental Planning and Climate Protection Department, EThekwini Municipality (City of Durban) presented a collection of images of the nature in and around the City of Durban, in South Africa. Noting that South Africa’s response to COVID-19 has, to date, come with strict movement restrictions and citizens not being able to access green spaces or parks, Errol’s photo montage was a stark reminder of how beautiful nature is and how we long for it, especially when we cannot access it. Errol’s key message was that “globally, we need to integrate nature and open spaces into all our urban environments. This improves air quality, sequesters carbon, reduces stress levels and helps to protect biodiversity. Cities and local governments can be the leading proponents in this work.”

The case of London was presented by Peter Massini: Lead – Green Infrastructure, Development, Enterprise & Environment, Greater London Authority, which stands in contrast to the Durban experience.

“In London, throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, continued access to parks was permitted provided users abided by the social distancing rules. The reduction in the background noise of traffic resulted in a surge in the numbers of people reporting hearing and appreciating birdsong. But there is a caveat; the data suggests that it is younger, more affluent Londoners who have been using parks more. This reflects, perhaps, that it is this demographic who are most likely to be able to work from home, and have shifted their exercise routine. Londoners in lower socio-economic groups and other disadvantaged groups seem not to have significantly increased their use of parks.

We need to redouble our efforts to provide access to green space and nature for all Londoners, especially for the most vulnerable groups and for those who’s working patterns or caring responsibilities limit their opportunity to make regular trips to the local park. We need to provide some of the benefits of visiting a park part of everyone’s everyday experience.”

In Melbourne, all outdoors spaces are closed but public parks and gardens may still be used for essential daily exercise. The exercise exemption has been a life-saver for residents while schools are closed and parents are working from home. According to Mr. David Callow: Acting Director for Parks and City Greening for the City, families especially have been finding headspace in parks by running, walking and cycling. However, residents are not allowed to sit and enjoy these spaces, which highlights the importance of fostering green spaces at home. The city’s program to increase biodiversity in home gardens is seeing more volunteer teachers participate now that the ‘home visits’ are conducted online.

Our ‘Paris moment’ for nature

The coming weeks and months will be critical in shaping our collective urban future. Our response to the pandemic and to the socio-economic recovery should be one that is nature-centric. It should transform our economic, social, and environmental systems as we pursue greater resilience in the face of increasing natural disasters, climate change impacts, and even pandemics. We are dependent on nature and our lives are better for having nature in them. We need to respect and protect nature to ensure that are cities are filled with the multiple benefits it provides, both in our response to the pandemic and beyond.

We have a unique opportunity now to define how we build back better after COVID-19. This allows us to ask the question ‘What if?’. What if your city was a National Park City? The National Park City vision aims to create cities where nature and people are connected. The Universal Charter for National Park Cities is a monumental document has been written to inspire people, create a common understanding of what National Park Cities are and to encourage positive collaborations. Developed by the National Park City Foundation in partnership with World Urban Parks and Salzburg Global Seminar, people from more than 50 countries have commented on and contributed to its development. Through the National Park City foundation, a movement is growing, drawing people together to take action in transforming our cities into CitiesWithNature.

This World Biodiversity Day is the perfect moment for us to reflect. It is a time for us to see nature from behind our windows and long to be in it. This longing reminds us how much we value nature: in our homes, in our cities, and in every aspect of our urban lives. It is also a critical moment for nature as our leaders negotiate the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework that will guide the global agenda over the next decade.

In our rapidly urbanising world, it is critical that we design, build, and sustain CitiesWithNature, now more than ever before. Cities are at the forefront of implementing the new framework, and cities are mobilising to take collective action for global impact. The voice of local and subnational governments is growing ever louder, as we stand united, ready to take up our role in contributing to the most ambitious global biodiversity agenda ever adopted. This is the ‘Paris moment for nature.’

World Urban Parks (WUP) and ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability, through its Cities Biodiversity Center (CBC), are thrilled to announce an exciting partnership. The signing of a collaboration agreement formalizes the strong partnership between World Urban Parks and ICLEI for collaboration on the CitiesWithNature partnership initiative and the WUP campaign. Leveraging the individual and collective strengths of the two organizations, this partnership will establish a joint work programme on establishing sustainable urban areas that mainstream, protect, and enhance nature, and maximize the benefit derived from the ecosystem services and nature-based solutions that nature provides for all people and cities.

“The overall aim of this partnership is to reconnect communities with nature in and around urban areas and use the CitiesWithNature platform to facilitate this aim, for the benefit of all partners of the Partnership Initiative.  This partnership brings together two strong global organizations committed to advancing the protection and advancement of nature in urban environments for the health and well-being of all people and our planet,” says Jayne Miller, Chair of World Urban Parks.

ICLEI CBC acts globally on biodiversity and nature on behalf of ICLEI, representing the local and subnational government constituency in the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), and is secretariat of the CitiesWithNature partnership initiative, on behalf of the founding partners: ICLEI, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and The Nature Conservancy (TNC), and the growing network of supporting partners.

World Urban Parks serves as the global voice for urban parks, nature and nature-based solutions providing advocacy, best practices, and bench-marking through global collaboration to resolve issues and increase knowledge and capacity for urban park professionals around the globe.

“We welcome World Urban Parks as a partner on CitiesWithNature. Urban parks and green open spaces provide opportunities for urban communities to enjoy and connect with nature, improving health and well-being. While we cannot all access our parks right now, we know that nature never closes and its multiple gifts continue to benefit our cities. Together we stand in solidarity with our cities to celebrate the value of nature and our urban parks, as we build resilient CitiesWithNature,” said Kobie Brand, Global Director: ICLEI CBC.

Both organizations look forward to working together to advance our joint vision for greener, healthier CitiesWithNature.

Contacts:

 WUP Secretariat Coordinator

office@worldurbanparks.org

1-780-644-6976

ICLEI Cities Biodiversity Center

https://cbc.iclei.org/

biodiversity@iclei.org

CitiesWithNature

www.citieswithnature.org

info@cwn-wp.lndo.site

We now face a sixth mass extinction, in which an estimated one million species are predicted to disappear. Does it matter? We survived the dodo’s demise and, though tragic, will the imminent extinction of the northern rhino really affect our lives?

In fact, it will. All living things on our planet depend on healthy and diverse ecosystems for air, water, and nutritious food. These same ecosystems regulate the climate and provide the raw materials and resources on which our economies – and lives – depend. The annual global value of natural services each year is estimated to be $125 trillion.

Yet, biodiversity loss and ecosystem collapse are among the biggest risks to economic prosperity and global development, according to the World Economic Forum. For many, it is a matter of life or death. For all of us, it is an existential threat as far-reaching, complex, and urgent as climate change.

The world’s failure to meet almost all of its biodiversity goals highlights how we’ve underestimated that threat. Humanity wonders at the natural world but fails to value it. We pollute ecosystems, exploit their resources with abandon, and make them inhospitable. Too often, we fixate on the threatened extinction of iconic species – the polar bears and koalas whose suffering makes headlines – while ignoring the vast range of organisms we may never see, but which are essential to sustaining the habitats that support and shelter all life, including us.

The most endangered ecosystems are wetlands, including freshwater rivers, lakes, paddies, marshes and peatlands, and saltwater estuaries, mangroves, coral reefs, seagrass beds, and lagoons. We have lost 87% of our wetlands in the past 300 years, and 35% since 1970. Today, they are disappearing faster than any other ecosystem – three times faster than even forests. As they vanish, so does the life within them. More than 25% of wetland plants and animals – which comprise up to 40% of all the world’s species – are at risk of extinction, and stocks of other remaining species are declining rapidly.

Mathew White and colleagues surveyed 19,806 adults in England on how much time they had spent over the past week in natural environments, such as fields and woodlands (but not including their own garden), and their self-reported health and wellbeing. They show that people who reported spending 120 minutes or more in nature were more likely to report good health or high levels of wellbeing.

The authors found this association was independent of the size of the available green space in their local neighbourhood. The relationship was also seen in participants of all ages, including those with long-term health issues, which may suggest that the findings were not simply due to healthier people visiting nature more often. It did not matter if the 120 minutes were spent in nature on one occasion or several shorter visits throughout the week, the authors report. Spending under 120 minutes a week in nature was not associated with improved wellbeing, while spending between 200–300 minutes in natural environments showed no additional benefit.

The authors conclude that, although preliminary, the findings represent an important starting point for discussions around providing simple, evidence-based recommendations about the amount of time spent in natural settings that could result in meaningful promotion of health and wellbeing.

Original post here.

The health of natural ecosystems is crucial to the health of cities and urban populations. From essential services like water purification, flood control and climate regulation to a range of physical and mental health benefits, societies thrive by building a strong connection to nature.

Biodiversity loss and ecosystem changes are a reality in our urban world. They have occurred more rapidly in the last half-century than any other time in human history as a result of urban sprawl, pollution and climate change. In our rapidly urbanizing world, nature is pushed increasingly to the periphery, often resulting in irreversible loss.

With urban areas at the center of our future, integrating nature into urban development and planning is crucial. Local and regional governments across the global ICLEI network are taking this forward. Through INTERACT-Bio, a four-year project in Brazil, India and Tanzania, nine cities are reshaping their current urban landscapes and development plans with nature. The project is designed to strengthen institutions and encourage integrated, interdisciplinary thinking and coordination across all levels of government and jurisdictional boundaries.

In Campinas, Brazil, for instance, city and ICLEI technical staff are supporting the preparation and implementation of a multifunctional nature connectivity area comprising all 20 municipalities within the metropolitan region. This is building on an already established program, which aims to recover and conserve regional fauna and flora through ecological corridors. Through a series of technical workshops, conferences and meetings, Campinas is also actively engaged in developing the regional urban development strategy, bringing a nature-based development lens to the conversation.

For more information on project cities and actions, take a look at the INTERACT-Bio newsletter or visit the project website.

Picture: Campinas’s downtown as seen from Torre do Castelo (‘Castle Tower’) belvedere.
© Fazousafreitas