Cities and Natural Ecology

Synopsis: Cities and Natural Ecology serves as a green development training manual for urban and rural construction managers. Centred on the theme of ‘harmonious coexistence between humanity and nature,’ it analyses urban ecological dilemmas and proposes pathways for integrated urban-rural development.

The book identifies four major ecological predicaments in contemporary cities: - Spatial patterns: Urban expansion disregards natural landscapes, leading to ill-suited new district locations and landscape degradation. - Natural systems: Industrial development fragments ecological communities, causing wetland loss and habitat fragmentation. - Infrastructure: Overreliance on grey technologies undermines natural services like rainwater regulation. - Production and lifestyles: High resource consumption and emissions stem from industrial civilisation's ‘man conquers nature’ mindset.

To address these challenges, the book proposes an ecological civilisation action framework: spatially, prioritising ecological site selection and establishing ‘counter-planning’ boundaries, such as Weihai, Shandong, balancing development and conservation through its ‘mountain-sea-city’ configuration; in ecological infrastructure, advancing landscape restoration and applying sponge city technologies, exemplified by Sanya's wetland-based flood mitigation and Boston's ‘Sapphire Necklace’ linking ecological and cultural resources; At the living and production level, it promotes circular economies and compact urban design, exemplified by Sweden's Hammarby community as a low-carbon model. The core philosophy emphasises shifting from an ‘antagonistic’ to a ‘symbiotic’ relationship between cities and nature, requiring a systemic perspective, innovative methodologies, and multi-scale collaborative action. This provides managers with theoretical and practical tools to powerfully advance the green transformation of urban and rural development.