Urban Governance of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services

Abstract

In an increasingly urban world the battle for biodiversity hinges on how effectively cities are governed, and how responsive those who run cities are to transforming the urban system to embrace ecosystem integrity and restoration. This chapter sets out the nascent fi eld of urban biodiversity governance, and is the fi rst scientifi c publication to provide a synthesis review of the urban biodiversity and ecosystem services governance literature. It notes the recent expansion of an interdisciplinary global urban biodiversity and ecosystem services governance agenda, and that a signifi cant body of academic material already has emerged. The chapter focuses on the challenges and opportunities of governing urban biodiversity and ecosystem services at the local, national, regional and global scales. It reveals that although overarching patterns of lack of political will, institutional capacity and knowledge are challenges to making an impact on ecological integrity, there are numerous sites of innovation, and solutions that have been put in practice. While the chapter fi nds patterns of challenges and opportunities experienced across cities covered in the literature, it is cautious about generalizations, as studies from Africa, South America and parts of Asia are largely lacking. Finally, the chapter considers what is required to improve governance of urban biodiversity and ecosystem services, and sets out a more inclusive research agenda to inform future global assessments of urban biodiversity and ecosystem services, with respect to local to global governance.

Reconocimiento de la biodiversidad urbana para la planeación en contextos de crecimiento informal

“…A su vez, la expansión urbana no plani cada, o mal gestionada, conduce a la contaminación, a la degradación de los componentes de la biodiversidad y a patrones de producción y de consumo insostenibles (UN, 2014). La presión sobre la biodiversidad es cada vez mayor, por lo cual su conservación depende de las normativas con que se rigen las ciudades, y de cómo respondan de acuerdo con la transformación del sistema urbano, para abarcar la integridad de los ecosistemas (Wilkinson, Sendstad, Parnell y Schewenius, 2013). Es por esto que la urbanización puede ser vista, en un escenario negativo, como la causa de la destrucción y la fragmentación de los hábitats nativos, en los que se crean otros hábitats que favorecen a especies no nativas y generalistas, que alteran y modi can los regímenes naturales.…”

Typology of Cities Based on City Biodiversity Index: Exploring Biodiversity Potentials and Possible Collaborations among Japanese Cities

“…Urban population is estimated to continuously increase to 66% of the world population by 2050 [2]. Until the end of the 20th century, urbanization had not gained global attention for its impact on the conservation of natural resources and environment [3][4][5]. However, since human activities in urban areas influence the global environment by affecting the circulation of substances between urban and non-urban areas [3,6,7], urbanization is a critical issue with regard to environmental sustainability.…”

“…Therefore, conservation and enhancement of biodiversity and ecosystems in cities are attracting increased attention [5,9,11,23] since they provide environmental as well as socio-economic benefits that can enhance the amenities and the quality of life for urban residents [17]. The ecosystems in a city influence the health and safety of urban populations [24], and can contribute to enhancing resilience against climate changes, natural disasters, or other security issues.…”

“…Therefore, accurately monitoring city biodiversity and ecosystem services is necessary [5,28]. For such monitoring, indicators to evaluate city biodiversity and ecosystem services have been developed, such as the city biodiversity index (CBI).…”

“…One such option is increasing collaboration among cities. For example, cities are required to collaborate, share experiences, and establish a network [5]. However, each individual city needs to maintain its own cultural, social, and environmental conditions; this might hinder the formation of such collaborations [29].…”