CLEVER Cities and Connecting Nature have joined forces to bring the UrbanByNature (UbN) programme to China. Thereby, UbN China is leveraging CLEVER Cities’ expertise on NBS for urban regeneration and Connecting Nature’s wealth of knowledge on NBS for climate & water resilience.
Tailored to the needs and interests of Chinese local governments and urban stakeholders, UbN China is providing capacity-building and good practice exchange on a variety of topics including stakeholder engagement, technical implementation and monitoring of nature-based solutions.
Launched in November 2020 in Chengdu, China, the UrbanByNature programme hosted a six-part webinar series for China between June 2021 and February 2022.
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"The ancient Chinese theory that man is an integral part of nature holds more truth than ever amid a time when COVID-19 continues to surge across the world. As the share of the population residing in cities is increasing in all regions, there is an increasing need for urban decision-makers and citizens to adopt policies and practices to integrate nature into daily life; after all, nature may very well offer the key to address a myriad of challenges urbanization presents. The ICLEI East Asia Secretariat is excited to facilitate the knowledge and expertise exchange between China and Europe, through UrbanByNature, in mainstreaming nature-based solutions into urban development."
Shu Zhu, Regional Director at ICLEI East Asia
Past events
Webinar #6: Replicating nature-based solutions across the urban fabric
The final UrbanByNature (UbN) China webinar concluded with STEP7/UPSCALE of the UbN programme and focused on main-streaming nature-based-solutions in urban planning and policy. Speakers from Connecting Nature, CLEVER Cities and China shared their experiences working with community members and local authorities to successfully replicate nature-based-solutions. They discussed how they utilized the Replication Roadmap, addressing challenges and accomplishments specific to each speaker's local context. See the playlist on YouTube and read our recap.
Webinar #5: Monitoring and Evaluation of Nature-based Solutions
The fifth UrbanByNature (UbN) China webinar focused on STEP6/MONITOR of the UbN programme. Speakers from Connecting Nature, CLEVER Cities and China shared their experiences in developing and using monitoring and evaluation tools and methods for nature-based solutions. They discussed how to holistically measure NBS interventions and assess their impact, and how to iteratively use those measures to change and improve projects. See the playlist on YouTube and read our recap.
Webinar #4: Technical Implementation of Nature-based Solutions
The fourth UrbanByNature (UbN) China webinar, introducing STEP5/IMPLEMENT of the UbN programme, zoomed in on the technical aspects of NBS design and delivery. Speakers from Connecting Nature, CLEVER Cities and China outlined how they went about choosing the most appropriate nature-based solutions. They elaborated on selection criteria they used for comparing different options such as performance, costs, maintenance requirements and site conditions to identify the right interventions for their local contexts and needs. See the playlist on YouTube and read our recap.
Webinar #3: Planning Nature-based Solutions with Citizens and other Stakeholders
The third UrbanByNature (UbN) China webinar proceeded to STEP3/PRIORITISE of the UbN programme. The webinar provided insights into the importance of stakeholder engagement in the planning of nature-based solutions. Speakers from Connecting Nature, CLEVER Cities and China shared their experiences in working with citizens and other stakeholder groups. They presented approaches and methods of stakeholder engagement and showcased how they have been applied in practice. See the playlist on YouTube and read our recap.
Webinar#2: Enabling conditions and barriers to implementing Nature-based Solutions
The second UrbanByNature China webinar focused on STEP2/EXPLORE of the programme. Speakers from Connecting Nature, CLEVER Cities and China shared their experiences in identifying the enabling conditions and overcoming the barriers to urban NBS implementation, using examples from Poznan (Poland), London (UK) and the Chinese cities of Zhuhai, Zhenjiang and Shanghai. See the playlist on YouTube and read our recap here.
Webinar#1: Introducing NBS and the UrbanByNature programme in China
In this inaugural UrbanByNature China webinar, participants were introduced to the concept of NBS and how they are being implemented across cities in Europe. Participants were able to learn about the potential of NBS to contribute to urban regeneration efforts and climate resilience goals. In addition, good practice examples from Shanghai showcased the relevance of NBS for cities in China. See the playlist on YouTube and read our webinar recap.
UrbanByNature China launch in Chengdu, China
The launch of the UrbanByNature programme stream for China took place on 17 November 2020 during the 4th High-Level International Forum on Sustainable Urban Development in the City of Chengdu, China. Over 70 participants took part in the session which allowed for in-person attendance at the national level as well as virtual attendance for international participants.
Read more here.
