Cities Can Combine Ecology with Community Planning

Why this is here: The framework emphasizes managing trade-offs between allowing public access to rewilded areas and protecting sensitive ecological systems.

Researchers propose assisted urban rewilding as a framework in cities worldwide. They build on existing rewilding concepts by adding inclusive governance and adaptive management. This approach blends self-regulating ecological processes with intentional design and social considerations.

The team identifies key principles through participatory research, workshops, and webinars with international networks. They emphasize balancing ecological goals with social acceptance, inclusion, and equity. Assisted urban rewilding aims to create multifunctional nature-based solutions that are ecologically sound and socially balanced.

Navigating differing stakeholder values during co-design presents a challenge. Long-term governance that empowers communities also requires attention.

The researchers outline a three-pathway framework linking planning, governance, and spatial integration. Further work will focus on embedding assisted urban rewilding into broader blue-green infrastructure initiatives.