The continuous urban development associated with the growth of the world population has become one of the most important challenges of the present time. Today, cities accommodate more than 54% of the world's population, a proportion that is expected to increase to 70% by 2050. Trends in urbanization show that cities are becoming more complex and heterogeneous social-ecological systems with growing demand for natural resources mainly for infrastructure, housing, food, water, and energy. These coupled with generalized environmental degradation and rapid social transformation is posing growing challenges that require innovative and holistic ways of planning, managing and governing urban areas.

In this context, research is focusing on the role of the urban green infrastructure to deliver the ecosystem services necessary to city-dwellers. The urban green infrastructure is composed by the network of green spaces, such as public parks, urban forests, allotment gardens, green roofs, derelict lands, and street trees among other. These green spaces are important for addressing urban sustainability and resilience to global changes, as they play an important role to ensure the well-being of human populations.

The continuous urban development associated with the growth of the world population has become one of the most important challenges of the present time. Today, cities accommodate more than 54% of the world's population, a proportion that is expected to increase to 70% by 2050. Trends in urbanization show that cities are becoming more complex and heterogeneous social-ecological systems with growing demand for natural resources mainly for infrastructure, housing, food, water, and energy. These coupled with generalized environmental degradation and rapid social transformation is posing growing challenges that require innovative and holistic ways of planning, managing and governing urban areas. In this context, research is focusing on the role of the urban green infrastructure to deliver the ecosystem services necessary to city-dwellers. The urban green infrastructure is composed by the network of green spaces, such as public parks, urban forests, allotment gardens, green roofs, derelict lands, and street trees among other. These green spaces are important for addressing urban sustainability and resilience to global changes, as they play an important role to ensure the well-being of human populations.

Date: February 19th, 2018 to February 23rd, 2018
Deadline for Applications: January 19th, 2018