Urban ecological restoration projects aim to restore nature to urban spaces, incorporating ecological functions into urban design via – for example – the creation of wetlands, parks and green roofs, to make towns and cities more sustainable and to support the well-being of the people who live there, including for future generations.
A majority of Indigenous Peoples now lives in urban areas worldwide, but they are not well represented in policy and planning mechanisms and other urban decision-making processes. Urbanisation itself, the creation of cities, has contributed to colonial processes that have divorced them from their cultural heritage, sites of significance, languages, cultural practices, knowledge systems, and opportunities to connect with nature.
Nonetheless, the value of partnering with Indigenous People for urban ecological restoration should not be underestimated. In a recent review, Shaun Awatere and Mahuru Wilcox from Manaaki Whenua – Landcare Research Group of the Bioeconomy Research Institute, with Erana Walker from the University of Waikato, have advocated for a greater inclusion of Māori, who value nature as kin rather than as a resource to be exploited – in urban ecological restoration in Aotearoa.
They argue that such an indigenous values-based approach has a higher likelihood of being accepted and maintained by local communities. Examples of good practice from Aotearoa include work by Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei in the restoration of urban forest in Auckland, restoration of the Waikato river undertaken by Waikato-Tainui, and estuarine shellfish restoration by Ngāi Tahu.
Another interesting example is the work done to rebuild Christchurch post-earthquake by the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority, whose recovery plan recognised the connection shared between Ngāi Tahu and their traditional territories, and showed how support of local indigenous communities could be achieved whilst also providing for the needs of the wider urban population. Post-quake ecological restoration along the city’s Avon/Ōtakaro river, for instance, including planting and landscape engineering to restore habitat, has created a series of vibrant bicultural spaces for residents and tourists.
The researchers conclude that the incorporation of indigenous values into approaches for restoration are important to address previous neglect of indigenous knowledge, but also will benefit in terms of better environmental outcomes for all urban dwellers. They conclude that “local indigenous knowledge and practice, partnered with sound ecological restoration knowledge, will provide the new tools required to meet the ever-evolving challenges for nature in our cities.”
