Nature Positive Cities Efforts to Advance the Transition Durban 2024

Forewordinfrastructure with strict environmental criteria in highly vulnerable areas. Officials from various city departments that interact with local ecosystems and nature participated in the deep dive. External stakeholders that work on nature conservation and monitoring projects – including local academic institutions, global experts, and organizations (both small and large) – also took part. The deep dive, a two-day multistakeholder dialogue, provided the perfect opportunity to revisit Durban’s Biodiversity Strategy (2017) and its latest Climate Action Plan (2022), giving special focus to nature as a solution for climate adaptation. To help meet the goals outlined in the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (2022), we in the City of Durban continuously apply a whole-of-society approach. It is crucial that a range of actors from the private sector and wider society work alongside us to ensure a nature-positive future for our city. The dialogue prompted a collective assessment of climate and nature strategies. It also allowed us to explore our organizational maturity and identify key enablers, which include accessing adequate funding from different sources, citizen participation, effective communication and impact-measurement strategies.In February 2024, the City of Durban in the eThekwini Municipality partnered with the World Economic Forum to conduct a deep dive as part of the Nature-Positive Cities initiative. The event was an integral part of the ongoing efforts to advocate for collective leadership on nature in urban environments. These efforts are directly connected with the commitment of the local government to cultivating urban development practices that benefit both people and the environment. Since September 2023, the city of Durban has been part of the Global Commission on Nature- Positive Cities, which is pioneering efforts to advance ecological restoration and implement nature-based solutions in cities around the world. The goal of the Commission has been to assess obstacles to urban resilience caused by rapid urbanization and inspire the roll-out of It is our intention that this valuable experience be the start of a longstanding engagement between the eThekwini Municipality and the Nature-Positive Cities global agenda. Our efforts will be continuously enhanced through public-private collaboration and structural reforms that facilitate the prioritization of interventions that show a positive impact on nature restoration and biodiversity recovery at all scales. I am confident that our commitment to the initiative and the resulting collaboration with global peers will put the City of Durban in a strong position as a nature-positive city that is climate-resilient and cares about its citizens.Cyril Xaba Mayor, Durban and the eThekwini Municipality Nature Positive: Cities’ Efforts to Advance the Transition 3