City wild: how making space for nature might help achieve the sustainable and resilient city

As potential shorthand for biodiversity, “wildness” might suggest the sorts of spaces and places where the patterns and processes of species diversity and richness might continue to flourish, unhindered by human interference. Places like Antarctica and the Amazon may even spring to mind. However, globally, biodiversity is on the decline, due to a combination of the anthropogenic factors of land-use change, climate change, and environmental destruction and ecological fragmentation. In an urban context, however, wildness is not a term that we often associate. Cities are largely places considered as tame environments and notions of wild being in far off places. Despite this, it is our cities that exert the greatest forces to what is left of the wildness in the world. But what if we were to consider the term wild not as a remote destination, but one that describes places, ecological processes, and even as a description for an approach or attitude toward the place of nature within our growing and changing cities? Through a reflection upon contemporary city planning practice, several examples give rise to the potential to better plan for biodiversity in our cities through a three-fold process. First, to build an understanding of wildness in an urban context. Second making space and finding opportunity for this to happen at all scales. Third, to better communicate and visualize the potentials and benefits through spatial, visual, and written means. Through this approach, a case is made for the potential of rewilding of cities to not only help achieve or help contribute to better addressing biodiversity depletion and ecological fragmentation and destruction at the local level but also one inclusive of the other manifold benefits of wild cities including addressing the urban heat island, human mental and physical health and well-being and contributions to sense of place. Such local action can also contribute globally to support biodiversity protection, biophilia, better city planning, and biodiversity futures.