Nature based solution for building resilience in towns and cities

This publication emphasizes the need to recognize rehabilitating natural systems with nature based solutions as key for building sustainability and resilience in urban areas. It highlights the inextricable link of the two imperatives of resilience and sustainability in town development, as the solutions to one satisfy the needs of the other. This publication describes green infrastructure as nature based solutions for resilience to climate change adaptation for building better and more livable Mekong towns. It is a compendium of resources, ideas, and information sourced from around the world, referenced to allow users to follow through more deeply on topics of special interest. It summarizes in case studies the experience of three Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) towns—Battambang, Dong Ha, and Kaysone Phomvihane. The publication provides guidance for wide application of green infrastructure as an alternative and essential adjunct to conventional town infrastructure and development planning. This chapter distills some of the lessons learned by the three town climate change core groups involved in the project—from Battambang on the Northwest of Tonle Sap Lake in Cambodia, Dong Ha on the central coast of Viet Nam, and Kaysone Phomvihane lying on the Mekong River in Southern Lao People’s Democratic Republic (Lao PDR). The three groups, representing towns facing the full range of climate change challenges found in the GMS, were the central force in conducting the demonstration vulnerability assessment and adaptation planning work of the project. They wished to share some of those experiences with their planning and engineering counterparts in other Mekong towns in the form of consolidated lessons. More detailed lessons learned are provided in each of the town story chapters. This chapter introduces users to the GMS Climate Resilience in Cities technical assistance project of the Asian Development Bank (ADB). It describes in summary form the Resource Kit for Building Resilience and Sustainability in Mekong Towns, which is the main documented outcome of the project, and how it can guide town planning throughout the GMS. It is directed mainly at small and medium-sized Mekong towns but has immediate relevance for any size urban area.

source :

https://www.adb.org/publications/nature-based-solutions-building-resilience-towns-cities-gms