Turning over a new leaf

Esteemed British sculptor and environmentalist Andy Goldsworthy once said “We often forget that we are nature. Nature is not something separate from us”. Never a truer word was spoken, but sadly you don’t have to look far to realise we’ve severed our connection with nature.

The concrete-paved status quo of urban development is a major culprit, with urban sprawl threatening productive land and contributing to a perilous decline in ecosystems and biodiversity.

Statistics paint a grim picture. Over 75 percent of Aotearoa’s indigenous species of reptiles, bird, bat, and freshwater fish are threatened with extinction or are at risk of becoming threatened. Sixty percent of our remaining wetlands are estimated to be in a degraded state.

To help reverse these trends, there’s a well-established playbook we can take from. Biodiverse natural habitats - such as Wellington's famed Town Belt and Auckland’s Harbourview Reserve - already exist in and around our bustling urban centres. Many more are needed.

Māori have a deep kinship between humans and the natural world that is nurtured generation after generation. This connection is best expressed in the word kaitiakitanga - a way of caring for the environment from the sea (moana), rivers and springs (awa and puna), to lakes (roto), maunga (mountains), and forests (ngahere).

Understanding and working with a kaitiakitanga approach can improve outcomes for urban living and ecology. Several urban projects such as Wigram Skies in Christchurch and Victoria University’s remarkable Living Pā have been designed with a deep responsibility to enduring place and putting kaitiakitanga at the centre of the project priorities.

A standout example of how we can connect the built and natural environments is on Wellington’s waterfront at Waitangi Park. Here, water-loving native plants help manage stormwater flow, restoring a wetland area once fed by the Waitangi Stream before urbanisation.

In Christchurch, an award-winning flood remediation project at Dudley Creek saw infrastructure improvements done alongside extensive riparian and native tree planting. The upshot was mitigated flood risk and an inviting and accessible corridor for birds and beasts.

Similar efforts to heal, restore and enhance nature are found internationally, like regenerative and sustainable urban design practices in Singapore, the restoration of the Anglesea mine (Melbourne) into an ecotourism location, and rainforest, biomes and biodiverse habitat and biosphere projects in the UK.

Solutions like these that work with nature help to return the health of the environment, encourage the flourishing of nature, mitigate the effects of climate change, and boost people's health and well-being. Research shows they can also result in more liveable, resilient cities.

The best nature-based solutions change and improve over time because we learn from them as we go. This ongoing process helps us find better ways to live more harmoniously with nature, reducing our impacts on environments and eco-systems - ultimately, making things better for people and place.

Creating urban areas where people, economies, and nature thrive isn’t just a ‘nice-to-do'; it’s a must-do. But how do we get there? Breaking down the silo mentality within the public service would be a good start.

It's essential that local authorities and central government come together to recognise the interconnected nature of society’s biodiversity, climate, infrastructure, and social challenges. Why? Because several concerning mega-trends are heading our way all at once, including biodiversity freefall, declining mental health, and more frequent and intense storms.

Traditionally, the approach to urban development has been based around separately tackling individual aspects such as housing or transport. For example, housing projects designed to accommodate a growing population do just that - provide houses. But a housing project could also be an ecological regeneration project, or a climate resilience project, or a social cohesion project, or all the above.

Not having sufficient focus on maintaining and protecting nature is a serious economic issue. The World Economic Forum notes that $44 trillion of economic value generation – over half the world’s total GDP – is moderately or highly dependent on nature. In Aotearoa, the bioeconomy could create $30 billion for the economy and help reduce carbon emissions by 12.5 Mt CO2-e.

Moving to an urban development model focused on economic, environmental, and social outcomes is the only way forward if we want to preserve our precious natural ecosystems and benefit from more sustainable, resilient, liveable cities.

Nature-based solutions don't happen overnight. That's why it's important for authorities to come together and break free from what has, until now, been short-term planning and development thinking. Government agencies and industry need to do a better job of joining up their thinking and working on intergenerational plans.

While funding is likely to remain a challenge, Aotearoa must commit to investing strategically for the long term, collaborating to maximise the benefits of nature-based solutions. That way, we can avoid the costs of constantly changing plans for short-term gains, leading to better outcomes.

Being inventive around the use of funds should also be seriously explored. A portion of funds from a healthcare budget, for example, could be given to infrastructure projects that promote better health outcomes. A fitting example from London saw a hospital fund the creation of a low-traffic neighbourhood to encourage active travel and improve overall health.

A road construction approach taken by the Welsh Government is another example we can look to for inspiration. They implemented a policy saying that any new road project must result in a reduction of carbon emissions and not adversely affect ecologically valuable sites.

An ambitious proposal to rewild all of Aotearoa and the idea of Auckland as a national park are among a myriad of local examples of reimagining our future and blurring the lines between urban and natural landscapes.

What are your thoughts on the role of nature-based solutions in urban development? Contact us and let us know!