Biodiversity – An Urban Necessity

By Jeremy Carew-Reid
Director General
International Centre for Environmental Management (ICEM)

 

As cities across Southeast Asia grow taller, denser, and more connected, a quieter, equally vital transformation is taking place—one that puts biodiversity at the heart of urban planning.

On International Biodiversity Day this May 22, we need to look beyond the concrete and steel to focus on the diversity of life thriving—often unnoticed—within our cities. Biodiversity, the rich variety of plants, animals, and microorganisms that share our urban spaces, is not just a side benefit of green space. It is a foundation of urban health, resilience, and quality of life.

Across the Asia-Pacific, urban populations are booming. Southeast Asia bracing for an influx of alone is expected to see an additional 100 million new city residents by 2030. Yet, as our cities expand, natural habitats shrink. A 2022 study by t he ASEAN Centre for Biodiversity found that urbanization in the region has led to a 35% decline in green cover in major metropolitan areas over the past two decades. This environmental loss directly undermines the well-being of urban communities.

Urban development must strategically embrace Restoring and expanding biodiversity restoration and expansion for clear and practical gains. This approach delivers essential benefits: cleaner air and water, natural temperatures regulation, reduce flood and drought vulnerability through better water management, accessible recreation and education, increase tourism revenue, and vital population support for urban food supplies.

Smart urban forestry offers a tangible solution to rising temperatures, capable of reducing local heat by 2 to 8°C—critical in Southeast Asia, where extreme heat in cities is becoming a seasonal norm (Figure 1). Moreover, as demonstrated in Singapore and elsewhere, biodiverse green spaces are not just environmental […]

Drinking Water Supply Vulnerability in Vietnam’s Mekong Delta

BACKGROUND

The Mekong is one of the world’s great rivers. It is the third-largest river in Asia and the largest river in Southeast Asia. The source of the Mekong is located on the high Tibetan plateau in China. As the river flows downstream, it is joined by tributaries from Myanmar, Lao PDR, Thailand and Cambodia, eventually reaching its delta in Vietnam.

On average, every year about 460 billion cubic metres of water flows from the Mekong into Vietnam’s Mekong Delta Region.[1] However, despite receiving this enormous amount of water every year, the delta’s population of about 20 million people face many challenges in obtaining fresh water that is suitable for drinking and other domestic purposes. There are also concerns that the water insecurity these communities currently face could significantly worsen in the future due to climate change and other developments in the Mekong Basin.  The delta is Vietnam’s main agricultural centre, so water insecurities for communities living here could have implications for Vietnam’s food security and economy at a national level.

Due to these concerns, the World Bank, with support from the Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery and the Global Water Security and Sanitation Partnership contracted ICEM to undertake a vulnerability assessment for rural water supply systems in the Mekong Delta region under two steps, as discussed below.  The first step was to assess the vulnerability of the delta’s rural water supply systems, and the potential effects of climate change and regional development on these vulnerabilities in the future. The second step was to recommend ways to increase the resilience of water supply systems to these vulnerabilities.

STEP 1:  VULNERABILITY ASSESSMENT

Figure 1: Known rural drinking water systems in […]

HUCE Student Design Competition: reimagine your campus!

In the context of promoting green and sustainable urban development, from 10 – 21 July 2023 ICEM and the Hanoi University of Civil Engineering – Faculty of Architecture and Planning (HUCE-FAP) organized a student design competition and workshop to reimagine the C.4 site on the HUCE campus, supported by the Asian Development Bank and the Global Environment Facility.

The competition provided a platform to develop new ideas and solutions to multifaceted urban challenges, and design creative spaces for education. A group of 30 students from architecture and engineering departments was trained on nature-based solutions, water-sensitive urban design, sustainable materials use, and gender- and social inclusive design. The group also undertook a site visit to the College of Urban Construction net-zero green building.

Facilitators and participants at the College of Urban Construction

Students were encouraged to apply climate-sensitive solutions to the C.4 site – a former set of classrooms surrounding a small public yard behind the university canteen which faces flooding and high temperatures. In their final designs, students were asked to consider material use, flood risk reduction measures, energy efficiency, health and safety, community resilience, architectural design features, and feasibility.

Through an iterative design process students prepared a vision for the site, followed by interim presentations. The groups worked together with experts from HUCE and ICEM and received guidance on integrating nature-based solutions in their proposed designs.

Winners of the overall best design – Group 3

On Friday 21 July each group presented their designs followed by comments and questions from the jury panel consisting of HUCE, Asian Development Bank, Monash University and ICEM. After […]

Ministries and technical experts gather to discuss application of NbS in the water sector

Ministries and technical experts gather to discuss application of Nature-based Solutions (NbS) in the water sector barriers, potential solutions and entry points to policy and planning

Hyatt Regency, Phnom Penh, Cambodia

On the 15th of February 2023, the World Bank and ICEM organized a cross-sector dialogue with technical experts and key Cambodian ministries on the application of Nature-based solutions (NbS) in the Cambodian water sector. Participants in the dialogue came from the Ministry of Industry, Science, Technology, & Innovation (MISTI), the Ministry of Water Resources and Meteorology (MoWRAM), the Ministry of Rural Development (MRD), and the Ministry of Environment (MOE). Named the Policy Dialogue on Application of Nature-based Solutions in the Water Sector, Cambodia, the discussion aimed to promote the use of NbS in Cambodia’s policy and planning and the delivery of water infrastructure.

Nature-based solutions are approaches to building infrastructure and providing services in a way that uses or imitates natural processes. By observing the structures and systems that appear in nature, we can bring the benefits of healthy ecosystems back to our cities and make our communities more resilient to climate change.

“Estimates suggest that NbS can provide up to 37% of the mitigation needed until 2030 to achieve the targets of the Paris Agreement”’ – Ms Marie Chapuis, Task Team Leader, the World Bank.

The use of NbS to solve infrastructure problems in […]

Forest and Agricultural Landscape Restoration in Cambodia and the Philippines

Participatory Field Survey in community forests in Cambodia

In the headlands of Cambodia’s Stung Sangker river basin, local farmers watch as one of Cambodia’s leading forest restoration specialists demonstrates planting techniques to reintroduce native tree species into the basin’s degraded forest land. A few weeks later, in an upstream site in the Manupali watershed in the Philippines, a professor from the University of the Philippines takes community members, farmers and local government officials through the latest iteration of their plan to restore forest to the bare landscape around them.

As in many parts of Southeast Asia, watersheds in Cambodia and the Philippines have lost swathes of forest land to monoculture and intensive agriculture practices. The rapid economic growth of both countries, and agricultural expansion have led to extensive land degradation, illegal logging and timber extraction.

Without tree cover and vegetation to lock in moisture, rainfall washes topsoils into the lakes and rivers below, playing havoc with freshwater ecosystems and downstream hydrology. The loss of native tree species is disastrous for biodiversity, something – we are coming to understand – that will present long-term challenges at both the local and global levels.

One of the restoration sites in the Philippines: fallow grazing portion of Ladera farm in the foreground and the lettuce in the background

Over the last 8 months, the demonstrations took place in two of over a dozen expert missions planned for nine demonstration sites across the two watersheds. At each site ICEM’s teams of international and national experts have worked with local communities and officials to assess degraded landscapes and develop plans to bring them back to life, in the process demonstrating […]

[ARCHIVE] Analysis of Pollution from Manufacturing Sectors in Vietnam

Analysis of Pollution from Manufacturing Sectors in Vietnam

This study of pollution from Vietnam’s manufacturing sector was undertaken as part of The World Bank’s commitment to conduct Country Environmental Analyses on a regular basis to help governments, the Bank, and other development partners address the environmental challenges of development. Following discussions with MONRE and MOI, it was determined that this Country Environmental Analysis would best contribute to Vietnam’s environment protection agenda by: (1) establishing a systematic framework for setting pollution management priorities and for monitoring and reporting on pollution in the manufacturing sector nationwide; and (2) identifying the policy, institutional and procedural innovations needed for effective industrial pollution management (IPM).

Download the report here.

 

“Prepare to be challenged, prepare to be inspired” – regional workshop on Nature-Based Solutions in Asia’s agricultural sector hosted by ICEM in Hanoi

Sheraton Hotel, Ha Noi, Viet Nam – 24-25th July 

Nature-Based Solutions (NBS), defined as the use of natural processes and/or elements to increase ecosystem health of human-altered systems, have strong potential to achieve the triple goal of reducing damage to ecosystems, meeting increasing demands and enhancing resilience to climate change in Asia’s agricultural sector. Primary purposes of NBS can be production, structural engineering (green infrastructure (GI)), bioremediation, or conservation. Although certain practices that fall within this definition have long been utilised by farmers, there is an advantage to bringing them under the umbrella of NBS, together with innovative measures which are emerging from other sectors like urban planning and design, where the concept of GI is more commonly applied.

Natural ecosystems are multifunctional, and their processes and elements are therefore excellent at providing multiple benefits. Riparian buffer zones, a conserved strip of vegetation between a stream or river and adjacent agricultural fields, for example, can filter pollution from agricultural runoff and subsurface flow, protect river banks from erosion. Additionally, they can increase resilience against climate change by decreasing the impact of floods or even droughts and high temperatures (mostly through the provision of shelter and shading by trees), and providing tree-based produce which can diversify the food and income of rural communities.

From the 24-25th July 2019, ICEM with the Government of Vietnam and FAO, convened a regional workshop “Potential for applying Nature-Based Solutions and Green Infrastructure in Asia’s agriculture”, with the aim to exchange knowledge and experience on challenges and opportunities with current and potential NBS in the agricultural sector.  The workshop is part of the FAO funded project “Identifying Green Infrastructure and Nature-Based Solutions for More Resilient Rural Communities”. As part of the project, ICEM is […]

Free training course on disaster risk management for urban planning practitioners in ASEAN region now available online

Ensuring safe and resilient urban growth is a priority of the ASEAN member counties. The region is highly vulnerable to the impacts of disasters and will continue to be so due to the effects of climate change.

ICEM has developed a free, self-learning training course on disaster risk management for practitioners involved in urban planning in support of BUILD SAFELY, a programme under Phase II of the ASEAN agreement on Disaster Management and Emergency Response (AADMER) Work Programme 2016-2020.

The course contains three modules which provide useful approaches, methods and tools:

  • Urban disaster risk in the ASEAN region
  • Integrating disaster risk reduction into urban planning
  • Integrating disaster risk reduction into urban infrastructure planning and design

The materials cover processes and procedures that architects, engineers, urban planners and others involved in urban planning are familiar with and apply in their work.

The materials may be downloaded and completed independently. They include PowerPoints, written and video based case studies, handout style reading materials and activities. The course will take approximately 2.5 days, but can be undertaken over a longer period.

Download it here at www.icem.com.au/learndrm

This project has been completed with the support of the Government of Canada through the Integrated Disaster Risk Management (IDRM) Fund administered by the Asian Development Bank (ADB).

For more information, please visit the Building Climate Change Resilience in Asia’s Critical Infrastructure project page View more of ICEM’s work in building climate resilient infrastructure

Mission to Indonesia takes project team step closer to understanding climate change risk to critical infrastructure in region

Jakarta, Indonesia – July, 2018

To meet crucial development, inclusion and environmental goals in low-income countries and emerging markets, investment in large infrastructure is critical. The Asian Development Bank (ADB) estimated in 2017 that the developing Asia needed to invest around $26 trillion from 2016 to 2030 ($1.7 trillion annually) in transport, power, telecommunications and water and sanitation infrastructure to maintain current levels of growth. 

To increase knowledge on the risks of climate change to critical infrastructure in South and Southeast Asia, and to build a better understanding of the actions and innovations necessary to build critical infrastructure resilient to climate change, the ADB has commissioned TA 9191: Building Climate Change Resilience in Asia’s Critical Infrastructure. The project is being carried out by a joint venture between ICEM – International Centre for Environmental Management, the Asian Disaster Preparedness Center (ADPC), and Philkoei International. The project supports ADB’s effort to scale-up climate-resilient investments in its developing member countries (DMCs).

The project team recently undertook its first consultation mission to Indonesia, one of the project’s three pilot countries, to engage relevant Indonesian government agencies and to refine the scope of work in the country.

Transport infrastructure in Jakarta, Indonesia

The team met with various government agencies, institutes and organizations to secure their involvement, including the Ministry of National Development Planning (BAPPENAS), Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources (MEMR), Ministry of Public Works and Housing (MPWH), Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG), Ministry of Environment and Forestry (MFF) and National Agency for Disaster Management (BNPB).

While the project was introduced to […]

Go to Top