While urbanization can threaten biodiversity, the sustainable transformation of urban landscapes is key to achieving the 2030 GBF targets. Conserving and expanding urban and peri-urban green areas not only provides habitat for wildlife, sustains ecosystem services, and enhances climate resilience, but also supports human well-being. Yet, the multifunctional potential of urban green spaces is often underused due to weak regulations, limited implementation of biodiversity measures, siloed decision-making, and competing land-use demands.
This session examines how greening measures in urban and peri-urban environments can maximize benefits for both ecosystems and society. It explores what good examples of biodiversity-inclusive planning, governance, and management processes look like, for example, by including both traditional and scientific knowledge about species and habitats in the territory. We invite contributions on land-use regulations, planning processes, and policies that foster biodiversity in urban and peri-urban areas. Greening measures can include, for example, non-sealing and greening policies, river restoration, urban forestry, native planting, and other nature-based solutions or blue-green infrastructures. We focus on approaches with transformative leverage, capable of turning urban environments into diverse and resilient habitats for human and non-human species.
By bringing together research that integrates natural and social sciences, showcases biodiversity mainstreaming, and reflects on barriers and enablers of implementation, the session will highlight how collaborative and integrated approaches can accelerate GBF implementation and expand the quantity, quality, connectivity, accessibility, and social benefits of urban green spaces.