What we are doing
Nature provides wide ranging benefits and essential services. Unfortunately, current development patterns are straining and displacing natural systems across the world, often to such an extent that nature cannot fully recover and weakening the ecosystems upon which human welfare and livelihoods depend. This trend is intensified in cities with rapid urban expansion patterns. These are often the same cities where the remaining biodiversity is of high value, not only for the cities themselves, but also for their surrounding regions.
Cities depend on nature for essential services like water purification, flood control, climate regulation, food security and clean air. Destruction of nature affects human health and well-being, limits opportunities for economic growth and social development, reduces cities’ resilience to climate change and lead to the loss of biodiversity and ecosystem services. To overcome these challenges, particularly at the local and subnational government level, multi-level governance, vertical integration and innovative methods are needed to mainstream biodiversity across city-region planning systems. This approach facilitates opportunities for nature-based solutions with gains for both biodiversity and our urban communities.
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How we are tracking
Indicator I: By the end of 2018 in all three project countries (Brazil, India and Tanzania) and the three selected city-regions, scoping studies on the initial situation are completed, and four intervention concepts are developed (one concept per city-region, as well as one concept to up-scale on the national level)
Indicator II: By the end of 2019, all three model city-regions have established multi-disciplinary and multi-sectoral forums, which assist in decision-making processes regarding the coordination and integration of spatial and land-use planning; and by the end of 2020, at least 8 priority areas of the NBSAPs of Brazil, India and Tanzania are included in the sub-national BSAP of each respective model city-region and all three model city-regions have developed or improved their sub-national Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans to directly affect sub-national spatial and technical planning and its implementation.
Indicator III: By June 2019, in each model city-region, three specific projects that support or clarify the issues of biodiversity and ecosystem services will be initiated/implemented. These projects will practically demonstrate the value of systematically integrating biodiversity management into spatial and technical planning, also for public visibility; and by the end of 2020, in each model city-region, one investment case that profiles the value of both the socio-economic and ecological benefits and supports the implementation of the projects, is developed and promoted
Indicator IV: By end 2019, at least 8 biodiversity-focused dialogues between national and local/regional actors have occurred in each project country; and for all three model city-regions, a report generated from the biodiversity reporting platform, which includes the commitments, goals and results of the achievement of biodiversity targets, will be available.
Indicator V: By the end of 2020, at least two side events on urban biodiversity are conducted at international conferences, e.g. CBD COPs, and the project progress and results are presented further at four international conferences by project staff and beneficiary subnational and/or national governments; and three case studies in each project country have been published.
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What we are achieving
The goal of this project is to mainstream biodiversity, nature-based solutions and ecosystem management, seek recognition for these as cross-sectoral tasks and integrating them in subnational Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plans and sector plans in three model city-regions. ICLEI launched the five-year INTERACT-Bio project in three Global South countries: Brazil, India and Tanzania. ICLEI is using a co-creation and co-production approach to implement project activities. Through the project, city-regions will align their planning with their National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plans (NBSAPs), which are required by the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). Through strengthened cooperation between the different levels of government, subnational action in support of the NBSAPs is promoted and enabled. Such collaborative approaches will ultimately support nations to accelerate biodiversity goals.
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