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The climate and biodiversity crises are being felt throughout Europe. Extreme weather events and changing weather patterns, declining biodiversity and disconnection from nature are all widely acknowledged problems. Urban residents often feel these challenges most acutely.
Urban wilding is an emerging practice of recovering and stewarding urban nature that can help to reverse biodiversity decline and build climate resilience. In order to maximise the benefits for people and nature across European cities, urban wilding needs to become mainstream and normalised. This is Urban Wilding Hub’s key mission and reason for existing.
‘Urban wilding’ as a set of practices is in the early stages of development. It’s emerging organically in different locations as pilot projects. In order to scale up to its potential, urban wilding needs to transition into a mature discipline built on shared knowledge and standards.
Our vision is for a near future where communities across Europe embrace and benefit from wild urban nature in their daily lives. Cities become catalysts for biodiversity recovery, with positive ripple effects into the surrounding countryside. Urban communities are more resilient to climate change and extreme weather events. Access to wild nature provides opportunities for meaningful nature connection experiences, which inspire people to pursue more sustainable lifestyles and advocate for nature.
Through our activities activities, we contribute to urban wilding becoming a cohesive, legitimate and well-known practice, which are essential building blocks for mainstreaming. We are playing a strategic role in mainstreaming urban wilding by:
Urban Wilding Hub acts as a strategic intermediary, bringing together the various actors involved to share knowledge, build community and collaborate on creating shared visions and strategies. At this moment, our main vehicle for achieving this is the Wilding Partners programme; a free online community for urban wilding practitioners, advocates and researchers. By creating a forum for knowledge sharing and collaboration, we are accelerating successful urban wilding projects.
Moving forward, we will leverage the Wilding Partners community to create best practice guidance and standards for urban wilding to further legitimise the practice and make it accessible to a range of professionals and communities.
Through our digital communications we are spreading the principles of urban wilding to the general public. We work with partner organisations to reach new audiences to ensure we are not just ‘preaching to the converted’. This helps to raise the profile of urban wilding and encourage urban citizens and professionals to support urban wilding in their local areas.
As time goes on and urban wilding becomes more mainstream, our organisation and activities will evolve to respond to new challenges and opportunities that emerge.