Sustainable urban infrastructure refers to the physical systems that support cities. This includes water, energy, transportation and green spaces systems as well as regenerative landscape practices.
Cities that employ nature-based infrastructure (NBI) see direct benefits. NBI delivers cost-effective climate resilient infrastructure services while reaping many co-benefits.
Water
Water-based infrastructure systems play a pivotal role in urban sustainability by providing ecosystem services like flood protection, air and water filtration, temperature regulation and biodiversity habitat. Unfortunately, however, many such structures are built and maintained by disparate institutions that can find it difficult to coordinate collective actions for systems organization and management.
Unsustainable resource usage rates can lead to path dependencies that drive high rates of consumption, contributing to biodiversity loss and climate change. Therefore, sustainable urban infrastructure planning must take into account environmental, social and economic (including climate resilience) impacts throughout its life cycle.
Building with nature instead of against it creates cost-effective, climate-resilient and inclusive urban infrastructure. Integrating green infrastructure into urban planning can achieve multiple goals simultaneously, from pollution control to public health benefits, property value increase and pollution prevention. Urban green spaces like parks, greenways & trails, street trees & horticultural gardens all help cities realize these advantages.
Energy
Cities around the globe need sustainable infrastructure that addresses an array of challenges. Nature-based infrastructure (NBI) offers cost-effective, climate-resilient infrastructure services ranging from flood protection and water filtration, temperature regulation and carbon sequestration – while providing numerous other co-benefits such as reduced air pollution, better health outcomes, biodiversity enhancement and increased property value. Parks, gardens, urban wetlands roofs or individual green elements such as trees can all serve as NBI sites.
Cities around the world are seeking ways to reduce their environmental footprint and become more resilient by building with nature rather than against it. Sao Paulo has made strides toward this end by turning concrete and tarmac built areas into green, absorbent spaces known as rain gardens; such innovations help cities become more sustainable while fulfilling global goals set forth in Paris Agreement on climate change.
Transportation
As cities become ever more populous, they must find ways to reduce their environmental impact. One method involves shifting away from non-renewable energy sources towards renewable ones while increasing public transportation options to decrease air pollution and traffic congestion.
Build with nature is another effective strategy. Green infrastructure (GI), also known as natural ecosystem-integrated development, encompasses areas that incorporate forests, parks and wetlands as infrastructure services such as flood protection, water filtration and temperature regulation – plus many co-benefits for communities.
City leaders looking to accelerate GI projects may benefit from considering private investments in sustainable urban development, such as social impact bonds. These contracts bring together private investors committed to producing tangible social, economic and environmental outputs and benefits; additional collaborations with universities, NGOs and business groups may help build capacity and spur innovation within sustainable urban development initiatives.
Buildings
City buildings can be an immense source of energy consumption and CO2 emissions. Adopting sustainable building practices and initiatives helps decrease waste while simultaneously decreasing energy use and improving energy efficiency of buildings.
Cities across the globe are taking steps to become more sustainable. Munich, Germany has made strides toward becoming carbon neutral by 2020 while other cities promote energy-efficient buildings and encourage the use of electric vehicles.
One challenge cities face in regard to sustainability issues is lack of awareness. Cities should endeavor to educate citizens on its benefits, including how it can enhance their lives; this can be accomplished via school curricula and public events such as seminars and workshops. Furthermore, private organisations need to be encouraged to invest in more environmentally sustainable infrastructure through using Social Impact Bonds (SIBs), which pool private funds for projects with tangible measurable returns on investment.