How can our cities become more friendly to wildlife, more energy efficient, and more sustainable for humanity in the face of climate change? In this clip from the BBC’s Planet Earth II, Sir David Attenborough shares visions of a present in Milan and Singapore, and a potential future for urban centers around the globe—because we need more Cities That Are Saving The Planet.
Is this a vision of our cities of the future? It could be possible to see wildlife thriving within our cities across the planet. We, after all, are the architects of the urban world. Now over half of us live in an urban environment; my home too is here in this city of London. Looking down on this great metropolis, the ingenuity with which we continue to reshape the surface of our planet is very striking.
But it’s also sobering. It reminds me of just how easy it is for us to lose our connection with the natural world. Yet it’s on this connection that the future of both humanity and the natural world will depend. It’s surely our responsibility to do everything within our power to create a planet that provides a home not just for us but for all life on Earth.
Related reading from Insider in 2012: Singapore Is Building An Army Of 150-Foot Tall Supertrees. Plus, more about Singapore’s landscaping project is home to 18 incredible Supertrees with Atlas Obscura.
And from Architectural Digest: How Milan’s Bosco Verticale Has Changed the Way Designers Think About Sustainable Design.
Plus, related tree and sustainability videos on TKSST:
• What happens if you cut down all of a city’s trees?
• Do Cities Need More Green Roofs?
• What if there were 1 trillion more trees?
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