Why the future of cities is WILD
The case for embracing urban wilding
Cities across the world are facing multiple challenges. For centuries, urban planning has sought to conquer and control nature, leaving many people disconnected from the natural world in their daily lives. This is often most acute for deprived and historically disadvantaged communities.
The design of cities, dominated by paved and artificial surfaces, also exacerbates extreme heat and flooding making urbanites more vulnerable to climate impacts.
Alongside all of this, the global biodiversity crisis is reflected in declining numbers of wildlife in and around many cities.
It’s tempting to think of all of these as separate problems with separate solutions. However, I propose that urban wilding is a powerful and effective response to many of the challenges cities are facing.
Why Urban Wilding?
Urban wilding is an umbrella term for a range of principles and strategies that aim to restore ecological processes in urban environments and promote human-wildlife co-existence. I define urban wilding broadly to include a range of approaches that can be applied in locally-specific projects.
Here are some examples.
Allowing lawns to grow long and not managing ‘weeds’. Reducing how often public parks are mowed leads to more complex vegetation and fosters more types of flowering plants. This has been shown in many studies to increase the numbers and diversity of invertebrates (like pollinators), which in turn provide food for birds.
Introducing native keystone species into appropriate urban green spaces. For example, the introduction of beavers to urban parks and peri-urban locations or the use of cows and ponies to graze grasslands. These keystone species create positive ripple effects by forming habitats for other species and boosting biodiversity.
Renaturalising urban watercourses that have been heavily modified or channelised. Seoul, Korea still provides one of the most famous examples (photo above).
Creating (or kickstarting) new habitats like ponds, woodlands and meadows. One of my favourite recent examples is the transformation of Place de Catalogne in Paris from traffic roundabout to urban woodland.
Naturally, these urban wilding practices have been shown to increase biodiversity. However, they also provide many benefits of urban communities. Biodiverse, robust and complex habitats are generally considered more resilient to extreme weather compared to the simple mown lawns and floral displays typical of many urban parks. Wilder spaces are more likely to survive droughts and heatwaves and provide services for communities like cooling the air. They also provide safe havens for wildlife during these stressful times.
Many urban wilding projects are delivered with flood mitigation in mind. The reintroduction of beavers to London, for instance, is helping to reduce flood risk for surrounding communities. A space with more trees and dense vegetation will slow rainfall and reduce the risk of flash flooding compared to bare and paved public spaces.
Bringing wild nature into the heart of urban communities also creates opportunities for meaningful nature connection, education and nature-based local businesses. There is ample evidence that nature connection (particular during childhood) is correlated with pro-environmental mindsets and behaviours.
In other words, the simple act of letting nature thrive (sometimes with a helping hand) makes life in cities safer and more joyful. Urban wilding is a practical response to the climate and biodiversity crises, which also improves quality of life for residents. It’s also often low-cost and low-tech.
Finally, wilding projects have potential to create ripple effects, inspiring people to live sustainably and advocate for nature.
It all sounds great, right? But how to do we make this mainstream? How do we make it normal to wild urban spaces?
That’s exactly what we’re working on at Urban Wilding Hub: a nonprofit with a mission to mainstream urban wilding across Europe. We are bringing together urban wilding practitioners and advocates to share knowledge, collaborate and accelerate local wilding projects.
Learn more here: https://urbanwildinghub.com/
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Not to mention the positive impact of urban wilding on mental health. Especially in adolescents, natural features are important determinants of mental health and wellbeing. Thanks for your insights!
This is part of a global move to bring green spaces into our cities. I have my reservations as to how far we can plan rewilding. We can plan to let go. We can look at a site and see what is holding it back, usually the Hemulen in the parks department who know how it will all go wrong if they lose control. That will do a lot to let our official public spaces flourish.
However, what I want is most is public acceptance of the spaces that nature has reclaimed for itself. I have a friend who devotes her life to removing every plant growing in the cracks of our pavements. The Rue-leaved Saxifrage bursts into flower between the cobbles and all she can see is weeds. I think it needs a tourist to get down on their knees to look at them before she can see how lovely they are.