Unlocking the potential of urban green infrastructure

Abstract: 

While green and blue infrastructure is recognized throughout the world for its multifunctionality and its large potential to effectively target and engage with existing and novel urban challenges, such as climate change or public health, the full understanding of how it fits into the social, ecological and technological totality of the urban system lags behind.

Theory and insights from social-ecological-technological systems (SETS) research and resilience thinking can help us build a systemic understanding of the generation and delivery of green and blue infrastructure benefits may inform cross-sectoral strategies and interventions for building resilience around urban quality of life and human wellbeing. A more holistic systems framing can ensure that intended ‘solutions’ better address sustainability broadly and extend to issues of equity, power, agency, nature-based solutions and ecological resilience.

About the Speaker:

Prof. Erik Andersson is a principal researcher with Stockholm Resilience Centre, Stockholm University and the Ecosystems and Environment Research Programme, University of Helsinki Finland, an extraordinary professor with North-West University in South Africa and a research associate with the New School in New York, USA. Andersson has experience in systems- and landscape ecology, geography, urban studies, landscape governance, participatory research, transdisciplinary research, review and synthesis work, climate change adaptation, action research and design. Andersson has successfully has led several larger European projects investigating broad sustainability issues and how green infrastructure and functioning social-ecological systems play in contributing to different solutions.

Other than research, Prof. Andersson has also 15 years of experience of working in the interface between academia and the wider society and is a dedicated editor for the journals Ambio and Sustainability Science.