Raise public awareness of behaviours, lifestyle and cultural changes with mitigation potential

Rajshahi is a Bangladeshi metropolitan city located on the north bank of the Padma river. The city has seen, throughout the years, an increase in greenhouse emissions and maximum temperatures as well as a decrease in open spaces from 11.09% to 4.5%. To counteract many of these challenges, the Rajshahi City Corporation (RCC), with support from ICLEI South Asia and UN-Habitat implemented an initiative called the Urban-LEDS II, which was designed to help cities to adopt a low-emission development approach. (Ref 2)

The project's approach included support for better management and maintenance of Rajshahi's open green spaces, as well as an objective of raising awareness among stakeholders about the region's biodiversity and the ecosystem services it provides and promoting outdoor activities. (Ref 1)

The activities included in the approach were two-folded. One of them targeted the greening of the Rajshahi’s Kolpona-Talaimari river embankment through tree plantations on the slopes and was seen as a demonstration pilot for a bio-diverse plantation scheme. The project implemented a pilot-scale plantation employing native and introduced plant species, as well as maintenance, contracting out to a nearby nursery (Ref 1, 2). The other approach included an increase in public awareness and advanced conservation, hence common trees were identified and documented in a graphic guide. Mapping of the trees of Rajshahi called the Natural Asset Map, and a Pictorial Tree Handbook for its citizens in order to improve and better manage their urban green spaces and biodiversity were conducted. Maps of Rajshahi's natural resources have been created for the entire city as well as for each of its 30 administrative zones. ( (Ref 1, 2)

It was expected that through these actions, Rajshahi would contribute to Aichi Targets 1, 2 and 17; and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 11, 14, and 15 (Ref 3).

As part of the Green Pakistan Programme (GPP), the Ministry of Environment of Pakistan initiated a plantation drive on the Margalla Hills, threatened by climate change, droughts, floods and deforestation. Margalla Hills National Park (MHNP) is a national park of Pakistan located in the capital city, Islamabad. It was established in the 1980s with a total area of about 173 square kilometres constituting Margalla Hills, Shakarparian Park, Rawal Lake and the Cultural Complex (2,5). The primary purpose of GPP was to protect the environment and revive forests, as Pakistan is a forest-deficient country having 5.01 per cent of its total area under forest cover. The park is under the supervision of the Islamabad Wildlife Management Board (IWMB) which ensures the management, maintenance and preservation of wildlife and other species in the park vicinity. The campaign was set to take place over 5 years between 2017-2022. Furthermore, as part of the same program, an awareness campaign was started to generate knowledge about plants and make Islamabad green and beautiful. Thousands of people visit the national park daily to enjoy the natural environment and healthy recreational facilities and relax by looking at the serene landscape and natural viewpoints of the city visible from the different trails of the park. (1,2,3,4,5)

Penang is a state located in north-western Peninsular Malaysia with an area of 1,049 km2. It comprises two local authorities, Penang Island and the mainland. The former is further divided into five administrative districts which are further divided into mukims (sub-districts). Two urban mukims located on the island – George Town and Bayan Lepas – are the focus of the proposed nature-based solutions (NBS) climate adaptation programme. The programme was launched in 2022 by UN-Habitat in collaboration with the Ministry of Environment and Water (KASA) of Malaysia, Penang Island City Council (Majlis Bandaraya Pulau Pinang - MBPP), Department of Irrigation and Drainage (Jabatan Pengairan Dan Saliran - JPS) and Think City (a wholly-owned subsidiary of Khazanah Nasional Berhad (the sovereign wealth fund of the Government of Malaysia)). (Ref 1)

The implementation of the project responds to several challenges posed by climate change including heatwaves and flooding (Ref 4). The main goal of the programme is to enhance urban resilience and reduce human and ecosystem health vulnerability to climate change impacts and extreme weather events by implementing nature-based solutions (NBS) such as tree-lined streets, pocket parks, green parking spaces, green facades and rooftops, urban agriculture and blue-green corridors to reduce surface temperatures and stormwater runoff, as well as to increase social resilience and build institutional capacity (Ref 1, 3).

The International Cultural Garden Park (IC Park) is a comprehensive, private-sector-led, green development project in Yarmag, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. Initiated in 2021 by the Ikh Uilsiin Ereld Group LLC on its own property land as part of its social responsibility, the planned area covers a 35 hectares (86 acres) site. First, an international design competition was announced to plan the project. As a result of this competition, a contemporary park concept was developed for Ulaanbaatar's New Center to convey an international concept, with designs of significant cultural and historical elements from over ten different nations. The IC Park will also serve as a venue for a variety of international events, including conferences, sporting competitions, cultural festivals, and more. Green technology is being used with particular attention throughout the park's construction, and more than 90 species of trees and about 50 species of natural perennials growing in Mongolia are planned to be planted with the cooperation of professional tree planting and gardening organizations, specialists, researchers, and scientists. As of today, more than 7,000 trees have been planted in the project area, and professional personnel are diligently working on their care and pruning. The project is expected to reduce the negative consequences of global warming, create a greener environment, and secure long-term employment. (Ref. 1, 2, 4, 7)

The Beddagana Wetland Park is located in Sri Jayawardenapura Kotte, Sri Lanka's administrative capital. The wetland park plays an important role in flood regulation and keeping the city cool during periods of extreme heat. The city is located in the Colombo district and the project contributes to the flood management goals of the Metro Colombo Urban Development Project (MCUDP). It demonstrates how a wetland can be preserved while promoting eco-tourism and improved livability in the city. The target area is located within the Sri Jayewardenapura-Kotte municipality and is a part of Parliament Lake. While focusing on the protection of the wetland habitat as a flood-retention area, the project also supports selecting investments aimed at the protection and landscaping of key areas within the target area to improve livability for local people living in and around the area, while providing access to much-needed recreational space. [2, 7]

Typically considered dividers of the urban space, ravines ('barrancos') which run through Guatemala City are being targeted for an overhaul of their reputation and are instead being reframed as a way to bring people and their environment together (Ref. 3). Now metamorphosed into a grassroots movement, 'Barranqueando' "wants to continue integrating the ravines with the urban environment to generate ecological, social and economic benefits for their city", where the unexplored potential of the ravines can be realised as areas to "serve as natural reserves, as nodes and paths for sustainable mobility throughout the city, as rainwater collectors, as crucial carbon sinks, as well as for purifying and cooling the air" (Ref. 3).

One of the first projects of the movement was the development of Jungla Urbana, an ecological park that brought together a ravine and the adjacent urban space, "giv[ing] residents the opportunity to wander through largely untouched nature – and experience the natural ecology of the site their city is built on", and providing an area to "...explore how the city’s unique ecosystem can be used to benefit its citizens – ecologically, socially and economically" (Ref. 3).

Monavale Vlei is an important wetland area within the city of Harare, characterised by miombo woodlands that play an important role in the fragile ecosystem of the Manyame catchment basin, the main supplier of water for the city of Harare and its suburbs. Throughout the years, Monavale has been subjected to a number of threats such as construction developments, dumping of waste, fires, illegal farming, invasive plants, informal agricultural practices and loss of biodiversity. To address some of these challenges the local community organized itself into a group - Conservation Society of Monavale (Cosmo) Trust, to protect the area and, with the help of the municipality of Harare and some international bodies, implemented a series of actions designed to protect the wetland and reduce the loss of biodiversity, among many others. In 2009 the NGO was awarded a United Nations Development Programme Global Environment Facility Small Grant. The intervention had 3 objectives: to restore parts of the wetlands, to advocate with the local and international authorities for the legislative protection of the wetlands, and to engage the scientific community in research regarding the wetlands. This enabled Cosmo to restore Monavale vlei to an almost pristine wetland state, and other UN funding has made possible several training and awareness projects for a wide range of audiences. (1,2,3)

Beirut RiverLESS, a project initiated by OtherDada, aims to address the deterioration of the Beirut River and its negative impact on the surrounding communities and environment by developing a holistic response plan for the Beirut River Watershed. The river runs east to west, then curves north, separating the city of Beirut from its eastern suburbs, primarily Bourj Hammoud and Sin el Fil. The goal is to bring the Beirut River back to life by following a Landscape Ecology approach and by enabling local governance, leading to innovative ecological interventions. Throughout time, the river has been used as a water resource for drinking and irrigation. It also once had an important role as a space for recreational activities. In 1968, the river was transformed from a natural, healthy and performing ecosystem to a canalized infrastructure, becoming an open sewer of domestic and industrial wastewater, highly polluted and posing numerous health risks to its neighbours. The river also lost its recreational and social function as people no longer had access to it. (1)

Otchiva is the name of the NGO dedicated to reclaiming this Angolan Mangrove ecosystem, which has been disappearing at a frightening speed due to the rapid urbanization and huge demand for construction. A study shows that 60% of the loss of Mangroves in the Gulf of Guinea from Liberia to Angola is accredited to fuelwood exploitation for fish smoking, wood for construction, petroleum and gas exploration and exploitation activities along the coast and urban construction activities. In order to address issues of biodiversity loss and deforestation at a rapid rate, Otchiva embarked on a mangrove reforestation program, starting with 2019. The project by Otchiva is being implemented in all provinces of the coast of Angola Fernanda says. The Municipality of Lobito and the Capital of Angola in Luanda are the 2 places where the project already presents results. (2)

The creation of Nyandungu Wetland Eco-Tourism Park is part of Rwanda’s efforts to restore and conserve ecosystems while promoting social-economic development. The Rwandese capital, Kigali, experiences regular flooding during rainstorms, due to the runoff from the surrounding urbanized hills, with the stormwater concentrating at the valley bottom in former wetlands. These floods cause disruption to traffic, preventing all travel between hillside communities. In order to address stringent issues, the focus turned on the wetlands surrounding the capital of the country. One of these wetlands is the Nyandungu wetland, which has suffered a lot of land use changes over the years, including agricultural activities, pasturing, cattle farms, sand mining, and wetland reclamation. From a climate change point of view, the project aims to address problems related with flooding and sustained base-flows in rivers. From a biodiversity point of view, the project aims to enhance biodiversity conservation. The main goal is the reconstruction of the Nyandungu Wetland Eco-Park with green infrastructure and services strategies for green energy, saving and recycling water, use of local and natural materials as well as architectural designs that maximize natural lighting and ventilation. (1,4)