Nature, Land, and Cities: What nature positive cities look like in the Arab region

The escalating challenges of the climate crisis and increasing pressure on and degradation of land systems prompt countries to act swiftly to protect their people and ecosystem services. The MENA region, the most urbanized region in the world, is particularly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change, already experiencing higher temperatures and increased frequency of extreme weather events e.g., drought, flash floods, and heatwaves, besides exacerbated water stresses and desertification. In response to these pressures, and to help achieve Land Degradation Neutrality (LDN) and work towards the G20 ambition to reduce degraded land by 50% by 2040 under the G20 Global Land Initiative at the UNCCD, integrated land use and landscape management and the adoption of science-based targets and frameworks that promote nature-based solutions (NbS) are essential.

Cities can enhance their resilience and adaptive capacities by working with nature and its ecosystems, bringing nature into the city, and enhancing resilient urban-rural linkages. Strengthening and safeguarding surrounding ecosystems enhances the provision of necessary basic services for city dwellers and their livelihoods. Besides adaptation benefits, the integration of NbS in urban planning and land management practices can also contribute to climate change mitigation through reducing urban emissions. Thus, NbS have the potential to provide long-term environmental, societal, and economic benefits including healthy and accessible food, green jobs, disaster risk reduction, and fostering biodiversity.

This event aims to promote sustainable practices including NbS through reflecting on global frameworks, guidelines and initiatives focused on land restoration and reducing land degradation, climate change adaptation, LDN, and nature-positive cities and how they can be effectively employed in the Arab region. The event shall present tools and case studies from Arab cities, highlighting local climate action and best practices as well as exploring key challenges to the implementation of NbS and how these can be addressed. This is a pivotal time for Arab cities to demonstrate their commitment to global initiatives on safeguarding land and nature and integrating it into the built environment. This event builds momentum for the role of cities in promoting NbS for climate change adaptation and LDN towards the UNCCD’s 16th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP16).