|
New urban ecology advisory group
Christchurch City Council and Lincoln
University have joined to set up a group that
aims to help the city become sustainable by
promoting and organising research, teaching
and education projects in urban ecology. The Urban Ecology Liaison and Advisory
Group has 10 members from council staff and
from Lincoln University’s Isaac Centre for
Nature Conservation and its Landscape
Architecture and Natural Resources
Engineering groups. Professor Ian Spellerberg, Director of the
Isaac Centre for Nature Conservation, says
taking care of urban ecological systems has
become vital. “Urban ecology’s not just about the plants
and animals in a city,” Professor Spellerberg
says. “Rather, it’s about nature’s goods and
services which provide fundamental support
for human well-being and the human
environment. “Urban ecology is the fundamental basis of a
clean, green image. “With only about 14 per cent of New
Zealand’s population living in rural areas today,
there is a concentration of human impacts on
the ecological systems within our towns and
cities.” In this year’s State of the Nation’s
Environment address at Lincoln University,
Parliamentary Environment Commissioner Dr
Morgan Williams said things New Zealanders
needed to begin thinking about in relation to
the future of their cities included “education
for sustainable living” and the need for “urban
research” to underpin planning. Allan Watson, Policy Leader at Christchurch
City Council, says the partnership will help the
city achieve its sustainable city outcomes and
will help Lincoln University to reach its
academic objectives in this field. “There are benefits in having access to
Lincoln University’s resources, and the
opportunity to link research and teaching
activities with real urban problems
encountered in the city,” Mr Watson says. “Where this link exists, the Council can
support the university in its applications for
funding from other agencies, provide
information and data, identify projects and
facilitate fieldwork.” |