411
© The Author(s) 2019
M. R. Marselle et al. (eds.), Biodiversity and Health in the Face of Climate
Change, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-02318-8_18
Chapter 18
Resilience Management for Healthy Cities
in a Changing Climate
Thomas Elmqvist, Franz Gatzweiler, Elisabet Lindgren, and Jieling Liu
Abstract Cities are experiencing multiple impacts from global environmental
change, and the degree to which they will need to cope with and adapt to these challenges will continue to increase. We argue that a ‘complex systems and resilience
management’ view may significantly help guide future urban development through
innovative integration of, for example, grey, blue and green infrastructure embedded
in flexible institutions (both formal and informal) for multi-functionality and
improved health. For instance, the urban heat island effect will further increase citycentre temperatures during projected more frequent and intense heat waves. The
elderly and people with chronic cardiovascular and respiratory diseases are particularly vulnerable to heat. Integrating vegetation and especially trees in the urban
infrastructure helps reduce temperatures by shading and evapotranspiration. Great
complexity and uncertainty of urban social-ecological systems are behind this
heatwave- health nexus, and they need to be addressed in a more comprehensive
manner. We argue that a systems perspective can lead to innovative designs of new
urban infrastructure and the redesign of existing structures. Particularly to promoting the integration of grey, green and blue infrastructure in urban planning through
institutional innovation and structural reorganization of knowledge-action systems
may significantly enhance prospects for improved urban health and greater resilience under various scenarios of climate change.
Keywords Resilience management · Nature-based solutions · Urban health ·
Climate change · Urban complexity · Knowledge-action systems
T. Elmqvist (*) · E. Lindgren
Stockholm Resilience Center, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
e-mail: thomas.elmqvist@su.se; elisabet.lindgren@su.se
F. Gatzweiler
Institute of Urban Environment (IUE), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Xiamen, China
e-mail: franz@iue.ac.cn
J. Liu
Institute of Social Sciences (ICS), University of Lisbon, Lisbon, Portugal
e-mail: jielingliu@campus.ul.pt
© The Author(s) 2019
M. R. Marselle et al. (eds.), Biodiversity and Health in the Face of Climate
Change, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-02318-8_18
Chapter 18
Resilience Management for Healthy Cities
in a Changing Climate
Thomas Elmqvist, Franz Gatzweiler, Elisabet Lindgren, and Jieling Liu
Abstract Cities are experiencing multiple impacts from global environmental
change, and the degree to which they will need to cope with and adapt to these challenges will continue to increase. We argue that a ‘complex systems and resilience
management’ view may significantly help guide future urban development through
innovative integration of, for example, grey, blue and green infrastructure embedded
in flexible institutions (both formal and informal) for multi-functionality and
improved health. For instance, the urban heat island effect will further increase citycentre temperatures during projected more frequent and intense heat waves. The
elderly and people with chronic cardiovascular and respiratory diseases are particularly vulnerable to heat. Integrating vegetation and especially trees in the urban
infrastructure helps reduce temperatures by shading and evapotranspiration. Great
complexity and uncertainty of urban social-ecological systems are behind this
heatwave- health nexus, and they need to be addressed in a more comprehensive
manner. We argue that a systems perspective can lead to innovative designs of new
urban infrastructure and the redesign of existing structures. Particularly to promoting the integration of grey, green and blue infrastructure in urban planning through
institutional innovation and structural reorganization of knowledge-action systems
may significantly enhance prospects for improved urban health and greater resilience under various scenarios of climate change.
Keywords Resilience management · Nature-based solutions · Urban health ·
Climate change · Urban complexity · Knowledge-action systems
T. Elmqvist (*) · E. Lindgren
Stockholm Resilience Center, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
e-mail: thomas.elmqvist@su.se; elisabet.lindgren@su.se
F. Gatzweiler
Institute of Urban Environment (IUE), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Xiamen, China
e-mail: franz@iue.ac.cn
J. Liu
Institute of Social Sciences (ICS), University of Lisbon, Lisbon, Portugal
e-mail: jielingliu@campus.ul.pt