UrbanShift at GEF Assembly

From August 22-26 in Vancouver, Canada, the Seventh Assembly of the Global Environment Facility will gather leaders from 185 countries to discuss solutions and policies under the overarching theme of “Healthy Planet, Healthy People.” Building on recent diplomatic breakthroughs on biodiversity loss, toxic chemicals, and the high seas, the GEF Assembly will be a critical stocktaking for 2030 goals to end pollution and nature loss, combat climate change, and propel inclusive, locally-led conservation. This milestone event for climate action will launch the Global Biodiversity Framework Fund, a new funding source for endangered ecosystems committed to during the COP15 Convention on Biological Diversity in December 2022.

As a GEF-funded initiative to support integrated urban development across the Global South, UrbanShift will host two events during the GEF Assembly to further the dialogue around the role of cities in climate action. Find more details on the events below.

Side Event: Innovative Solutions for Nature in Cities

Date: Tuesday 22 August

Time: 15:00-16:30 PDT

Location: Vancouver Convention Center, Room 6

City life is becoming the default human experience, with more than 70% of the world’s population expected to live in urban areas by 2050. However, the rapid growth of cities can exacerbate environmental and socioeconomic challenges, posing a threat to the well-being of their inhabitants, particularly the vulnerable and marginalized. Issues like air pollution, inadequate green spaces, and a lack of biodiversity are common in urban contexts. To ensure the health and prosperity of all city dwellers, it is crucial to address these challenges and reimagine cities as vibrant, sustainable ecosystems.

Promoting nature in cities is key to building resilient, healthy, and equitable urban environments. Urban Nature-based Solutions (NbS) offer a pathway to achieving multiple Sustainable Development Goals. Despite the well-documented benefits of incorporating nature into cities, significant obstacles hinder widespread implementation. Limited space, competing interests, insufficient funding, and the perception of nature as separate from urban life have impeded progress. The session hosted by UrbanShift and the Global Platform for Sustainable Cities will explore innovative solutions and approaches that can play a pivotal role in overcoming those barriers and unleash the power of nature based solutions, while promoting inclusivity, gender equality, and youth engagement. It will engage participants in a discussion to explore and envision innovative solutions for integrating nature into cities, ensuring that diverse perspectives, including those of women, marginalised communities, and youth, are actively included and valued.

Agenda:

Welcoming remarks on the importance of nature in cities and the need for innovative solutions.
Best Practices Showcase: short presentations from diverse stakeholders on their innovative solutions and approaches to harness the power of Nature in Cities, followed by a Q&A with the audience.
Interactive Visioning Exercise: facilitators will guide groups through a discussion about what it means to develop cities with nature in mind, and will generate pictures of the groups' green city of the future with an AI image generator.
Concluding remarks with key takeaways and call to action to implement nature-based solutions in cities.