THE CITY ‘GREENS’ : USHERING SUSTAINABLE URBANIZATION

Urban green spaces (parks, forests, green roofs, streams and community gardens) are public and private open spaces in urban areas, primarily covered by vegetation, which are directly (active or passive recreation) or indirectly (positive influence on the urban environment) available for the users. Most urban green spaces represent novel ecosystems providing critical ecosystem services. In fact, urban areas can support endemic native species and others of conservation concern both at regional and global levels. These species and the overall diversity in a city rely on the size, quantity, and quality of such spaces which facilitate citizens to connect with nature, witnessecological processes in action, and potentially become scientifically literate citizens, equipped to make informed decisions regarding conservation initiatives and policy.Quality green spaces in the city act as carbon ‘sinks’ and affect climate change. Apart from supporting a variety of species and habitats, they contribute to essential services including water filtration and absorption, nutrient cycling, air filtration and noise buffering. Identifying the ecological role and conservation value provided by different types of urban green spaces is of particular importance, given the continued growth of urban areas and the development of new cities, along with the promotion of certain types of green spaces. The recent Smart City initiative by the Indian Government promoting development of urban green spaces can be coupled with strategic landscaping to optimize benefits of greening programs, thus ushering sustainable urbanization