SoNaRR2020: Urban

Summary

As most people live in urban areas, their impact on other ecosystems is significant. At the same time, this concentration of people presents opportunities for innovation that helps to reduce impacts on the wider environment.

Through rethinking urban design, transport and planning, urban areas can be thought of as 'urban ecosystems' at the forefront of addressing the climate and nature emergencies. This would improve quality of life across the board by designing quiet, safe, clean and green urban space. It would also create new employment opportunities by enhancing the market for new technologies and green architecture.

Urban areas cannot solve their problems at the local level alone. Better policy integration and new governance, involving closer partnership and coordination at the local, regional and national levels, are required.

Urban ecosystems are where most people live and therefore:

Are the source of most of humanity’s demands on other ecosystems
Are where the impacts of environmental change on most people are felt
Offer great opportunities to create a healthy, productive, zero carbon society; and
Need an adequate supply of green infrastructure to secure liveable places for both people and places

Our assessment

Download the SoNaRR2020: Urban chapter (PDF)

This chapter identifies the need for changes to the way Welsh towns and cities are built, re-built and managed to make them better places for people and nature in a climate-challenged future. It also looks at the evidence needed to monitor and guide progress toward making urban areas sustainable for current and future generations.

The urban chapter's evidence needs are included in the overall evidence needs table.