Accelerating action for BIODIVERSity Enhancement in CITIES to benefit nature and people

NSR is highly urbanised, impacting and disrupting nature. Biodiversity loss has negative consequences for climate change, ecosystems and peoples wellbeing. Policy attention is increasing, but in cities biodiversity is often overlooked and city professionals lack expertise. Cities are investing heavily in urban transformations (500M in pilot areas by 2030). They introduce nature-based solutions (NBS) to mitigate climate change impacts, but not to enhance biodiversity. A missed opportunity. Biodiverse Cities aims to accelerate action for biodiversity to transform NSR cities into nature-inclusive societies: cities where nature and people can thrive. We implement Biodiverse NBS (Bio-NBS) in 5 pilot cities and plan their replication in pollinator cities. Pilots cover all city areas (densely built centres, peri-urban etc.) to understand what works where and to deliver high quality green spaces. Partners will deploy innovative community engagement methods, e.g. spatial experimentation (temporal NBS in Bremen), social design (in Brest, children co-create biodiverse and gender-equal schoolyards), community activities (nature therapy in Dordrecht) to increase nature connectedness and improve wellbeing. The project delivers local action plans to mainstream biodiversity in city investment programmes for impact beyond project duration. Our cities are pilots for national policy implementation (e.g. NL policy on nature & biodiversity) and support neighbouring cities. We organise regional coordination to connect green areas and set common biodiversity goals for these. Biodiversity is a transnational issue and requires combined efforts. 16 partners bring wide expertise (ecology, governance, co-creation), deliver joint transnational pilots, organise peer learning and build upon previous NBS & NSR projects: BEGIN, RECONECT. We are: 8 Cities, 3 Universities, 2 NGOs, Flemish Environment Agency, IUCN (global expert in biodiversity) and Open Kaart (community design studio).



Overall Objective: Accelerate action for biodiversity in NSR cities, by implementing urban investments programmes enriched with innovative nature-based solutions that halt biodiversity loss, support ecosystem services and balance the co-existence of people and nature, towards nature-inclusive societies.