Urbanization and biodiversity loss in the post-COVID-19 era: complex challenges and possible solutions

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ABSTRACT

Although biodiversity conservation and restoration can significantly contribute to environmental health in urban areas, rapid urbanization undermines biodiversity in various ways. We hypothesize that one challenge that will arise after the COVID-19 pandemic is the accelerated expansion of urban areas through two distinct mechanisms: more informal settlements due to increased poverty and increased urban sprawl due to increased suburban development. In response to this challenge, we call for a global agenda to put the concept of wildlife-supportive green space design into action. We suggest 12 major issues for future research and practice that should be scrutinized in the post-COVID-19 era.

KEYWORDS:

• Urban biodiversity
• urban expansion
• COVID-19

Acknowledgements

Feedback received from five anonymous reviewers is highly appreciated.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the National Science Foundation (NSF) under the EPSCoR Track II cooperative agreement number OIA-1632810.

Notes on contributors

Amin Rastandeh

Amin Rastandeh is Postdoctoral Researcher in the Department of Sustainability & Environment at the University of South Dakota. He received his PhD in Landscape Architecture from Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand. He is interested in urban and regional ecology, strategic spatial design for biodiversity conservation, and land-use land-cover assessment in multifunctional landscapes.

Meghann Jarchow

Meghann Jarchow is Chair and Associate Professor in the Department of Sustainability & Environment at the University of South Dakota. She is interested in sustainability as a framework through which to create a more desirable world. Her specific focus within the field of sustainability is on creating more multifunctional landscapes within the former tallgrass prairie region and in sustainability education. Her research takes an interdisciplinary approach to evaluating opportunities to enhancing the multifunctionality of this region.