Publication

Prior to the 2012 London Olympics, city planners added extensive wildflower meadows and something interesting happened: The number of pollinating insects and other local species (e.g., the biodiversity of the area) increased dramatically (Conniff, 2014). In response to statistics indicating that the portion of our planet characterized as urban is on track to triple from 2000-2030, scientists and community members in the United Kingdom and some American cities are taking action to study (e.g., Lerman, Nislow, Nowak, DeStefano, Kind, Jones-Farrand, 2014) and introduce often simple strategies for increasing urban biodiversity. Recent studies demonstrate that modest actions, such as adding community gardens or being conscious of habitat corridors for safe travel by wildlife, can increase native species (Conniff, 2014).