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In April 2021, the Kochi City Corporation in collaboration with the World Resources Institute (WRI) and ICLEI South Asia inaugurated the Subhash Bose Park after a thorough renovation. The project was part of the overarching project "INTERACT-Bio" by ICLEI South Asia and the KAWAKI initiative by the WRI (part of the Cities4Forests movement in Kochi). The initiative was launched to demonstrate the application of Nature-Based Solutions (NBS) for climate mitigation in Kochi. The project aims to develop urban grooves similar to the traditional grooves that once existed in Kerala. Additionally, with this project, ICLEI South Asia aimed to address the problems of climate change through mainstreaming biodiversity objectives across the city. The park plays as a major carbon sink at the heart of the city that is home to over 300 species of native trees and many more species of native plants. Furthermore, the Kochi City Corporation is focused on increasing native biodiversity and communicating the importance of this biodiversity to residents in order to ensure long term conservation efforts. This was a key motivator for the city in the conceptualization of the garden which not only improves the native biodiversity of the city but also serves as a demonstration site for nature education. The park also includes a newly built pollinator garden that has augmented the pollinator base in the city. [1, 4, 7, 10]

Droughts are one of the most serious threats to water availability, food security, and local livelihoods in the semi-arid areas of Tanzania. Drought condition is coupled with a rainfall deficit and poor rainfall distribution. In Tanzania, drought conditions are observed more frequently in the country's northern and central portions (Arusha, Manyara, Shinyanga, Simiyu, and Dodoma). This consideration was paramount when in 2019, the Municipality of Dodoma, alongside ICLEI - Local Governments for Sustainability, erected a new garden positioned in a square in the centre of the city. Nyerere Square in Dodoma used to be an open, concrete space with the statue of Julius Kambarage Nyerere the only attraction apart from the informal traders scattered along the main walkway. Nyerere is the former prime minister and president of Tanganyika, as Tanzania was known before, and subsequently president of Tanzania. It would prove challenging to sustain such an initiative in this drought-prone city. To ensure the park outlived the project, the team installed a greywater system to irrigate the new garden and ensure there was always sufficient water to help the plants flourish. (1,2,3)

The project focuses on encouraging residents of Rio de Janerio's Arará favela to install green roofs on their homes, primarily to reduce the urban heat island effect but also to harness the broader social, environmental, and economic benefits which green roofs can provide, "...from providing thermal protection and improving air quality to mitigating stormwater runoff pollution and saving costs for both residents and cities" (Refs. 2 & 3). The individual behind the project, Luis Cassiano Silva, further hopes that introduction of green roofs into the favela which help to improve residents’ quality of life and "describes the emotional benefits of incorporating green space into the favela landscape" (Ref. 2).

Delhi Development Authority (DDA) has established a network of Biodiversity Parks in Delhi with unique landscapes that harbour a diversity of plants, animals and microbes living in ecologically sustainable biotic communities and rendering multiple ecological services. Presently there are seven Biodiversity Parks developed by DDA located across the landforms of Delhi. These parks have a mosaic of habitats with rich floristic and faunistic diversity that function as a dynamic ecosystem. They have ecosystem processes such as organic matter decomposition, regeneration of plants, pollination, resting and nesting of birds and colonisation by other animals. The biodiversity parks in Delhi have proved to provide extreme essential services by creating ecological corridors and maintaining the genetic diversity in an urban setup. Furthermore, these parks have shown substantial potential in storing carbon and other pollutants and help in mitigating climate change. [2, 3]

A new nature sanctuary was unveiled at the Kingfisher Wetlands, Gardens by the Bay, in Singapore in 2021. Before the sanctuary was created, the original site was a popular bird-watching spot for the birding community and nature photographers. However, it was isolated and "often missed by the general public". The new Kingfisher Wetlands was thus developed with the aim of enhancing and enriching the Gardens, as well as providing new nature areas for visitors to explore. The place is a new hotspot for the flourishing diversity of exotic flora and fauna. Furthermore, the project helps in mitigating climate change through mangrove plantations. Over 200 native true mangrove trees and mangrove associates have been planted, contributing to sustainability by storing “blue” carbon. Additionally, the project actively supports research into blue carbon science. This contributes to the country's effort to transform Singapore into a City in Nature by weaving nature more intensively into the urban fabric. [1, 4]

The Chulalongkorn University (CU) Centenary Park was created to provide a green space for the city and celebrate Chulalongkorn University’s 100th anniversary. Located in the centre of shopping and commerce, the park is designed as a multi-functional “urban forest”, which serves as an oasis for the residents and visitors of Bangkok, who can spend quality leisure time in a lush and pleasant environment. The park includes constructed wetlands with rain gardens, retention ponds, an underground water drainage system and green roof areas. Opened in 2017, Chulalongkorn Centenary Park is the first critical piece of green infrastructure in Bangkok to mitigate detrimental ecological issues and disaster risk reduction. Unlike other public parks around the city, this one is the first in Thailand to demonstrate how a park can help reduce urban flood risks and help the city confront climate change, all while offering city dwellers a place to reconnect with nature. Designed with various ecological design components, the park reminds the city of ways to live with water rather than fear it. [1, 2, 4]

The construction of "the biggest vertical garden in Uruguay" was completed in 2014 (Ref. 1). The vertical garden has an area of 300m2 and contains over 6,000 plants, of which most are endemic, comprising 35 species and 10 different families (Ref. 2). In addition to being aesthetically pleasing, the garden is intended to reduce temperature, produce oxygen and offset greenhouse gas emissions. It is thought to "contribute...to the filtration of approximately 165 tons of gases per year and [be] capable of producing the necessary oxygen for 255 people, in addition to trapping 130 kilos of dust" (Refs. 2 & 3).

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).

The Bluebelt programme in Staten Island was implemented as it "preserves natural drainage corridors including streams, ponds, and wetlands, and enhances them to perform their functions of conveying, storing, and filtering runoff precipitation or stormwater". (Ref. 2). By delivering "stormwater to engineered systems that are designed to mimic natural streams and ponds which...meander or wind back and forth, the water slows down naturally" (Ref. 1). These actions are intended to "help control flooding, pollution and erosion" (Ref. 2), whilst also providing open green areas for both local communities and a "diverse habitat for wildlife" (Ref. 2). Beginning in 1990, the Bluebelt programme has undergone continual expansion, recognising that "as New York City prepares for rising sea levels and heavier rains due to climate change, Bluebelts offer a natural and effective solution for stable and sound stormwater management" (Refs. 2 & 4). The Bluebelt now includes approximately 400 acres of freshwater wetland and riparian stream habitat and 11 miles of stream corridor (Ref. 4).

The project has seen the "installation of rock structures to reduce the energy of the water that is drained by conventional rainwater galleries and the strategic planting of certain plant species that, through phytoremediation, can mitigate the diffuse pollution that affects the body of the river" (Ref. 1). In combination, "these solutions aim to prevent erosion and landslides on the banks, stop the siltation of the river, improve water quality and strengthen the linear park as a leisure space increasingly demanded by the population in its surroundings" (Ref. 1). A demonstration project which occurred under ICLEI's INTERACT-Bio project, the implementation of NBS has also been accompanied by other measures which saw Lake Cabrinha be de-silted, a walking path, benches, and playground be built and LED lighting be installed" (Ref. 1).