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The rising tide of city resilience

Remember those 100 resilient cities? We used to hear a lot about them. Turns out, they didn’t go away. Quite the contrary. Enter the Global Resilient Cities Network (GRCN). Announced last week at the United Nations Habitat Urban World Forum, the city-led initiative is the evolution and expansion ...

The species the world lost this decade

The Rabbs’ fringe-limbed treefrog was unlike any other species on planet Earth. Inhabiting only the forests of Panama, the frog had enormously charismatic brown eyes, and feet so oversized they looked cartoonish. But what made the frog truly special was the way it looked after its tadpoles.

The suburbs can help cities in the fight against climate change

The edges of cities around the world are being devastated by fires and floods. It’s drawing attention to suburban residents and the role they’re playing in exacerbating their exposure to climate change risks. But instead of focusing on the suburban way of life alone, planners and policy-makers n ...

Third Expert Workshop on the City Biodiversity Index (Singapore Index)

11 - 13 October 2011, Singapore City, Singapore

Third meeting on the Implementation of the Plan of Action on Sub-National Governments, Cities and Other Local Authorities for Biodiversity 2011-2020

22 - 23 March 2012, Nagoya, Japan

This Dutch City Has Transformed Its Bus Stops Into Bee Stops

In the Dutch city Utrecht 316 bus stops now have a green roof. They do not only look great, they also help capture fine dust, storage of rainwater and provide cooling in the summertime.

This massive new rooftop farm helps keep Bangkok from flooding

Sea levels are rising around the world, but as they rise, Bangkok is sinking. The low-lying megacity, built on marshland, is also now so covered in concrete that during heavy rains—the type of storms that are becoming more common because of climate change—streets can quickly flood.

This urban forest in Kolkata is a haven for bird watchers

More than five years ago, HIDCO had set up the Pakhibitan at Eco Park with the help of an NGO. Now, the park, which has two water bodies and mature indigenous trees of several species, has developed a beautiful ecosystem and turned into a safe haven for several species of birds, insects, mammals ...

This year’s World Cities Day theme, “Changing the world: innovations and better life for future generations”, focuses on how urban governance can be used to achieve sustainable development.

Toward a more inclusive definition of green infrastructure

Green infrastructure has been embraced as a tool to help cities achieve sustainability and resilience goals while improving the lives of urban residents. How green infrastructure is defined guides the types of projects that cities implement, with enduring impacts to people and the urban environment.

Transforming Trees Into Skyscrapers

Brumunddal, a small municipality on the northeastern shore of Lake Mjøsa, in Norway, has for most of its history had little to recommend it to the passing visitor. There are no picturesque streets with cafés and boutiques, as there are in the ski resort of Lillehammer, some thirty miles to the n ...

Trees, Plants and Soil Could Help Cities Cut Their Carbon Footprints — When Used Smartly

Newswise — Cities and nations around the globe are shooting for carbon neutrality, with some experts already talking about the need to ultimately reach carbon negativity. Carbon footprint declarations are used to ease product selection for low carbon building, but these standards don’t yet exist ...

UN and civil society team up to make cities more sustainable and inclusive

How can we make sure that cities become more inclusive, with a smaller environmental footprint, and leave no-one behind? These questions will be tackled at the UN Civil Society Conference, which is due to take place in the capital of Utah, Salt Lake City, at the end of August.

UNEP/CBD/CB/2/1

Provisional Agenda

UNEP/CBD/CB/2/1/ADD1

Annotations to the Provisional Agenda

UNEP/CBD/CB/2/2

Report of the Second Curitiba Meeting on Cities and Biodiversity

UNEP/CBD/COP/10/INF/4

The City Biodiversity Index

UNEP/CBD/COP/10/INF/8

Progress Report on the CBD Initiative on Cities, Local Authorities and Biodiversity

UNEP/CBD/COP/11/INF/32

Report of the Executive Secretary on the Implementation of Decision X/22: Progress Made by National, Subnational and Local Governments

UNEP/CBD/COP/11/INF/45

Progress Report on the Singapore Index on Cities’ Biodiversity

UNEP/CBD/COP/9/INF/10

Cities and Biodiversity: Engaging Local Authorities in the Implementation of the Convention on Biological Diversity

UNEP/CBD/EW-DCBI/3/2

Report of the Third Expert Workshop on the Development of the City Biodiversity Index

UNEP/CBD/EW.DCBI/1/1

Provisional Agenda

UNEP/CBD/EW.DCBI/1/1/ADD1

Annotations to the Provisional Agenda

UNEP/CBD/EW.DCBI/1/1/INF/1

First Meeting on the Development of the City and Biodiversity Index

UNEP/CBD/EW.DCBI/1/2

First Meeting on the Development of the City and Biodiversity Index

UNEP/CBD/EW.DCBI/1/3

Report of the First Expert Workshop on the Development of the City Biodiversity Index

UNEP/CBD/EW.DCBI/2/3

Report of the Second Expert Workshop on the Development of the City Biodiversity Index

UNEP/CBD/IPA/SNGCOLA/1/1/ADD1

Annotations to the Provisional Agenda

UNEP/CBD/IPA/SNGCOLA/1/1/ADD1/CORR1

Annotations to the Provisional Agenda (Corrigendum)

UNEP/CBD/IPA/SNGCOLA/1/2

Final Report

UNEP/CBD/IPA/SNGCOLA/3/2

Report of the Workshop

UNEP/CBD/SNG/1/2

Report of the Meeting of Subnational Governments in Support of the Aichi Biodiversity Targets

UNEP/CBD/WGRI/5/9

Engagement with Subnational and Local Governments

US cities working to reduce emissions in the absence of bold action in Washington

After the Cop26 conference ended in Glasgow, many activists and climate scientists felt the agreement didn’t go far enough and that the US government was among those who had not backed strong words with enough actual deeds.

United Nations Day for South-South Cooperation 2020

12 September 2020, New York, United States of America

Urban Biodiversity and the Role of Cities in Biodiversity Conservation and Sustainable Use discussed at Bonn Biodiversity Conference

Bonn, 26 May—With more than half of the world’s people now living in cities, 191 countries are, for the first time, discussing ways to promote biodiversity in an urban setting at the Biodiversity Conference taking place in Bonn, Germany. The countries are joined by the mayors of the world, who w ...

Urban Biodiversity and the Role of Cities in Biodiversity Conservation and Sustainable Use discussed at Bonn Biodiversity Conference.

Urban Eco-Efficiency

The world is increasingly urban. By 2050, another three billion people will inhabit the world’s cities—this equals to adding one new city of one million people every ten days for the next 89 years. 70% of the human ecological footprints are marked by cities. Despite only representing 2% of th ...

Urban biodiversity: What is it, and why is it urgently needed?

Did you know that urban biodiversity makes you happier, increases sales at local businesses, and makes children develop their cognitive skills better, among other benefits? Urban restoration aims to renaturalize cities to make them compatible with lost nature, which is part of humanity. Why is i ...

Urban birds need to be smart or fast-breeding

To thrive in urban environments, birds need to either have large brains, or breed many times over their life, according to a new study involving UCL.

Urban farms to traffic bans: Cities prep for post-coronavirus future

As the coronavirus pandemic forced lockdowns in many parts of the world, cities from Amsterdam to Singapore are unveiling measures to improve sustainability, food security and living standards that urban experts said would soon become the norm.

Urban gardens boost biodiversity, make cities more sustainable

In building cities, we have created some of the harshest habitats on Earth—and then chosen to live in them.Temperatures in cities are typically 2-3 C warmer than those of the surrounding landscape. Pollution levels and noise can reach levels seen few other places on Earth.

Urban life is not to everyone's taste

Habitat change, for example through urbanisation, is one of the most important causes of biodiversity decline. By 2050, settlements and cities across the globe are predicted to increase by two to three million square kilometres - about half the size of Greenland. Natural and semi-natural habitat ...

Urban “wastelands” are a paradise for bees

A growing appreciation of how bees can thrive in urban environments has led many city dwellers to protect their habitat. Pollinator gardens are a regular feature of neighborhoods and schools; parks and nature sanctuaries are managed with bees in mind. Yet one potentially bee-rich environ still r ...

Urbanisation and climate change sting bees. What can cities do for them?

“Everyone wants honey. But no one wants the bees near them,” says 34-year-old Pune city resident Amit Godse of Bee Basket, who runs a business extricating beehives from neighborhoods that don’t like them. Godse then relocates the beehives to wooded areas or farmlands bordering the city or sends ...

Urbanization does not always decrease food diversity

Over half of the globe’s population currently lives in urban areas, a figure which will increase to 68 percent by 2050. According to scientists, increased urbanization drives changes in climate, land use, biodiversity, and human diet. A new study published in the journal One Earth has found that ...

Utrecht rooftops to be ‘greened’ with plants and mosses in new plan

Every roof in the city district of Utrecht is to be “greened” with plants and mosses or have solar panels installed under plans driven by the success of a similar scheme for the municipality’s bus stops.

WWF launches global green city awards

he World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) launched its “One Planet City Challenge 2019” on Tuesday.This year the One Planet City Challenge has a new assessment framework based on data from the IPCC, the UN climate panel.

Webinars on the long-term approach to mainstreaming biodiversity and the role of subnational governments and local authorities in the post-2020 global biodiversity framework

Reference: SCBD/SSSF/ML/OH/89116 (2020-072)
To: CBD National Focal Points, relevant organizations and partners