Co-creating Urban Nature Visions of Helsinki: Facilitating Mutual Learning and Capacity Building through Participatory Processes

Activity: Talk or presentation typesConference presentation

Description

In this conference session, we present our ongoing research project titled ‘Co-creating Urban Nature Visions of Helsinki: Facilitating Mutual Learning and Capacity Building through Participatory Processes’. Our research aims to enhance creative collaboration between residents and planning authorities in participatory urban planning practices, emphasizing their potential for integrating socio-ecological systems, building capacity, and fostering societal learning.

Central to our discussion is the recognition of cities as complex, adaptive systems, which necessitate holistic approaches to urban planning and design. Incorporating socio-ecological perspectives alongside socio-technical and socio-institutional dimensions is crucial for fostering resilience and sustainability. Our goal is to develop biodiversity-sensitive urban planning practices that embrace ecological perspectives, incorporate more-than-human viewpoints, and explore novel human-nature relationships in Helsinki city.

This research advocates for transcending sectoral boundaries and promoting participatory urban planning practices to facilitate deeper collaborations among Helsinki residents, planning authorities, and decision-makers. Empowering local communities and engaging diverse stakeholders in decision-making processes enable cities to mobilize bottom-up dynamics for climate adaptation and resilience, and to build synergies toward hybrid governance mechanisms. We emphasize the importance of using participatory urban planning practices as tools for societal learning and alignment, rather than mere consultation and evidence-gathering.
Period23 May 2024
Event titleKaupunkitutkimuksen päivät: Muuttuva kaupunki
Event typeConference
LocationHelsinki, FinlandShow on map
Degree of RecognitionNational

Keywords

  • cross-sectoral collaboration
  • biodiversity-sensitive planning
  • action research