This video discussion took place at the recent ICLEI Urban Nature Forum in Belo Horizonte, Brazil this month and discusses the value of urban biodiversity and how to bring that diversity back to the cities. It’s presented by the Stockholm Resilience Centre. Oliver Hillel discusses how nature used to be in the cities and how we simply have [...]
Featured Stories Book Review: Biophilic Cities by Timothy Beatley This is a great book review on Biophilic Cities: Integrating Nature into Urban Design and Planning. Source:: Local Ecologist Goodbye to grass This article features several homeowners who have ditched the grass for a landscaped yard. Source:: StarTribune Like moths to a flame An fascinating look at the relationship [...]
Swifts are one of the few birds that can draw crowds like rock stars. Their roosting is one of the greatest migration wonders of the natural world and they often choose to share it with us in the urban world. Several species of swifts are well known to roost in chimneys, often where many people [...]
The Pollinator Pathway is planned along a one-mile stretch in Seattle from Seattle University to Nora’s Woods replacing grass strips with pollinator gardens. The brainchild and creation of Sarah Bergmann, the Pollinator Pathway currently consists of two installed gardens with another 16 planned and has 20 total homeowners signed up to participate. I visited one [...]
The Common Nighthawk (Chordeiles minor) is a small, highly camouflaged bird that is most active at dusk. They are not hawks, but are instead in the nightjar family. They breed throughout North and Central America and spend the rest of their time in South America. The Nighthawk is often also called a bull-bat while the [...]
The first question many people will ask when you tell them you want to create habitat is why, which often comes before the how. It’s important to formulate an educated response to the why whether it’s a homeowner or city planner asking. There are many answers to that question and I plan to address many [...]