Timothy Welch, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau
A new report sets out the practical ways New Zealand can improve its urban resilience to flooding due to climate change. But time, rather than money, is of the essence.
A public survey found 86% of people want more space for nature in the city. The city council is already taking steps to add green space and increase biodiversity, which should boost public wellbeing.
The communities of Australia’s biggest cities could soon face the prospect of having nowhere to bury their loved ones. Four key changes are needed to avert the crisis.
Timothy Welch, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau
New Zealand’s urban green space has dwindled over the past six decades. The Commissioner for the Environment has issued a warning and a challenge – get greener before climate change gets meaner.
A big reason the idea is gaining momentum globally is that the benefits for the health of individuals, communities and the environment are clear and almost immediate.
Voters in the region have long been seen as caring more about their finances than green issues. But living through extreme heat, rain and floods has them focused on living with climate change.
Urban green spaces are threatened by growing cities. But research shows the importance of protecting access to nature as housing densification increases.
Urban plantings are part of the solution to living in warmer cities, but most tree and shrub species in the world’s cities will struggle too. The impacts on liveability could be huge.
When the pandemic hit, green space was there for us at a time when others weren’t or couldn’t be. Urban greening might be the solution to the ‘lonelygenic environment’ that our cities have created.
Seen from above, parts of our cities now have very little green space, and we’re losing the green corridors that enable wildlife to move between the remaining urban habitats.