Building a Climate-Resilient City: Urban ecosystems

This policy brief outlines how cities can utilize urban ecosystems and green infrastructure to enhance climate resilience, reduce exposure to natural hazards, and provide cost-effective alternatives to traditional infrastructure.

• Urban ecosystems and green infrastructure serve as economic assets that protect against climate shocks and provide essential environmental, social, and economic services, as well as human health benefits.
• Investing in green infrastructure and urban ecosystems can offer more affordable solutions to various challenges than traditional infrastructure approaches.
• The 'Building a Climate-Resilient City' series, developed for the cities of Edmonton and Calgary, recommends municipal adaptation planning based on three resilience principles: robustness (strong design), redundancy (fail-safe networks via extra capacity), and resourcefulness (citizen empowerment).

APA

Terton,, A. (2017). Building a Climate-Resilient City: Urban ecosystems. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/publications/brief/building-climate-resilient-city-urban-ecosystems

Chicago

Terton,, Anika. Building a Climate-Resilient City: Urban ecosystems. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2017. https://www.iisd.org/publications/brief/building-climate-resilient-city-urban-ecosystems.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Terton, |first1=Anika |title=Building a Climate-Resilient City: Urban ecosystems |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=24 April 2017 |url=https://www.iisd.org/publications/brief/building-climate-resilient-city-urban-ecosystems |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{terton2017building, author = {Terton,, Anika}, title = {{Building a Climate-Resilient City: Urban ecosystems}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2017}, month = apr, url = {https://www.iisd.org/publications/brief/building-climate-resilient-city-urban-ecosystems}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }