Denser and greener cities: Green interventions to achieve both urban density and nature

McDonald, Robert I.; Aronson, Myla F. J.; Beatley, Timothy; Beller, Erin E.; Bazo, Micaela; Grossinger, Robin M.; Jessup, Kelsey; Mansur, Andressa V.; Oliveira, José A. Puppim de; Panlasigui, Stephanie; Burg, Joe; Pevzner, Nicholas; Shanahan, Danielle F.; Stoneburner, Lauren; Rudd, Andrew; Spotswood, Erica N.

doi:10.1002/pan3.10423

Cited by 44 publications

(14 citation statements)

References 85 publications

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“…A recent quantitative analysis of data on urban tree canopy cover and open space in the United States shows negative correlation between population density and green spaces (McDonald et al, 2023). Singapore, as one of the most densely populated cities in the world, has put in place interventions that buck this trend.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Singapore, as one of the most densely populated cities in the world, has put in place interventions that buck this trend. To this end, the City in Nature vision seeks to use green interventions that share space with nature (McDonald et al, 2023). It aims to safeguard and manage the country's natural capital and to ensure that green spaces are well connected and easily accessible to every household.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The contributions of urban horticulture to cities' liveability and resilience: Insights from Singapore

Sia

Tan

2023

Plants People Planet

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Social Impact StatementThe importance of urban horticulture, a practice of growing plants in an urban environment, is increasingly recognized. It is widely acknowledged that such initiatives contribute towards liveable, sustainable, and resilient cities. Based on Singapore as a case example, this study highlights how urban horticulture programs, informed by research and implemented at a national level, bring about important benefits to urban dwellers including health and well‐being, and social cohesion through people and plant interactions. They support Singapore's vision to be a City in Nature, in addition to promoting food security. The experience in Singapore holds useful lessons for other cities.SummaryOver the past few decades, there has been widespread recognition of the importance of urban vegetation to support cities' goals to be liveable, sustainable, and resilient to disturbances brought about by climate change. In this opinion article, we further highlight the importance of urban horticulture and its role in fostering the vision of Singapore to be a green city. Through the discussion of four national level programs, we illustrate how urban horticulture initiatives contributed to the social imperative to cultivate community ownership of green estates, community ties, and interest in horticulture. Community gardens offer distinct platforms for people to get together. Allotment gardens in parklands enable individuals to engage with nature through the various gardening activities and reap produce. The Gardening with Edibles program encourages home gardening through provision of resources. Lastly, specially designed therapeutic horticulture programs engage target groups to receive benefits from the facilitated nature‐based activities. The involvement of relevant governmental agencies, driven by taking an expanded view of urban horticulture targeted at delivering social objectives and achieving the environmental and ecological objectives of city greening, has contributed to the growth and expansion of the initiatives.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The contributions of urban horticulture to cities' liveability and resilience: Insights from Singapore

Sia

Tan

2023

Plants People Planet

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“…Cities can have multifunctional green spaces that are designed and implemented to meet the needs of people and increase ecosystem services, but they should also align their urban greening goals with sustainability goals and their obligations under the Convention on Biological Diversity. Biodiversity is declining globally, and cities provide opportunities to increase indigenous biodiversity (Ives et al 2016, Lepczyk et al 2023, McDonald et al 2023. For example, some threatened plants, including the 'Nationally Endangered' shrubby tororaro (Muehlenbeckia astonii), are now included in plans for traffic island plantings in Aotearoa-New Zealand cities (figure 2, de Lange and Jones 2000).…”

Section: Multifunctional Green Spaces Provide Opportunities To Enhanc...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Connecting people with place-specific nature in cities reduces unintentional harm

Stanley,

Galbraith

2024

Environ. Res.: Ecology

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There is an increasing disconnect between people and nature as we become more urbanised. Intensification in cities often results in a reduction of natural areas, more homogenised and manicured green spaces, and loss of biota. Compared to people in rural areas, urban dwellers are less likely visit natural areas and recognise and value biota. Reconnecting people with nature in the city not only benefits human mental and physical wellbeing but can also have positive effects on how people value biodiversity and act on conservation issues. However, in some contexts, the push to reconnect people with nature may have unintended negative outcomes on biodiversity, particularly if place-specific nature is not used in urban greening. In the current biodiversity crisis, using vegetation and green space design that is not reflective of the environmental context of a city can further disconnect residents, particularly Indigenous people, from their local environment and species, and further entrench extinction of experience and loss of environmental values. This disconnect can result in residents applying wildlife gardening practices, such as bird feeding, that are not specific to place, and benefit introduced species over indigenous species. Furthermore, cities are gateways for invasive species, and using species in greening projects that are not locally sourced has already left cities and their surrounding regions with a large weed legacy. Using place-specific nature and green space in cities can be less resource intensive, highly beneficial for biodiversity and give residents a unique sense of place. Rather than simply adding ‘more nature’ in cities, the messaging should be more complex, emphasising the need for urban greening to be context specific to avoid negative impacts on biodiversity and ecological and cultural services.

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“…The urban landscape displays a gradient of increasing intensity of use from the periphery to the more urbanized and verticalized central regions, exhibiting a negative correlation with green coverage: as the intensity increases, the green coverage diminishes (Blair, 1996;Lin et al, 2015;McDonald et al, 2023). Such changes have effects on the composition, abundance, and richness of the bird assemblage, increasing the number of exotic species and decreasing overall species richness and diversity (Blair, 1996;de Toledo et al, 2011;Kurucz et al, 2021), leading to a homogenization of bird assemblages (Blair, 2001;McKinney, 2006;Luck and Smallbone, 2011).…”

Section: Hypothesis 3: the Behavior Occurrence Is In Uenced By Enviro...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Nest predatory behavior in the Great Kiskadee (Pitangus sulphuratus): an overlooked predator in the Neotropical cities?

Camilotti¹

2024

Preprint

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Bird’s nest predation can have a significant impact on the diversity and structure of bird assemblages in urban ecosystems. Our understanding of this phenomenon in Neotropical cities, however, is still limited. The Great Kiskadee (Pitangus sulphuratus), a common species in urban environments, is known to prey on various vertebrate species, yet there is little information on its predation of birds or their nests. Similar to other well-known nest predators in cities worldwide, the Great Kiskadee exhibits behavioral and ecological traits that suggest it may play an important role in nest predation. Nevertheless, its role in this context has yet to be explored. Through a case report of nest predation on the Purple-throated Euphonia (Euphonia chlorotica) in an urban setting and a review of its ecological and biological traits, this study explores the potential and possibly overlooked role of the Great Kiskadee as a significant nest predator in Neotropical cities.

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Denser and greener cities: Green interventions to achieve both urban density and nature

Abstract: the text 'a doubling of density' has been changed to 'a 10% increase in density'].

Cited by 44 publications

References 85 publications

The contributions of urban horticulture to cities' liveability and resilience: Insights from Singapore

The contributions of urban horticulture to cities' liveability and resilience: Insights from Singapore

Connecting people with place-specific nature in cities reduces unintentional harm

Nest predatory behavior in the Great Kiskadee (Pitangus sulphuratus): an overlooked predator in the Neotropical cities?

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