Connecting Nature Summit Series - Innovation Summit

The summit will now take place virtually rather than in Glasgow but we’d still like you to experience a bit of Glasgow culture: the host city of the UN COP26 in Nov 2021.

Visit our virtual host city of Glasgow 

THIS EVENT IS NOW CLOSED - PLEASE CHECK BACK,  EVENT OUTCOMES & VIDEOS WILL BE POSTED PRESENTLY

Over three days in March the Innovation Summit will bring together an international audience to explore how we shift to sustainable, greener cities that deliver for their citizens using nature-based solutions. It will share the learning from the community of cities involved in Connecting Nature and introduce the innovative tools and methods being developed through the project.

The Summit is virtual but will still be culturally rooted in Glasgow and Scotland. Glasgow is a Front-Runner City along with the cities of Genk (Belgium) and Poznan (Poland).

We are facing huge, unprecedented problems: a global pandemic, climate change and an ecological emergency. As countries and cities adapt to living with Covid-19 and implement recovery strategies they have been presented with a unique opportunity:  an opportunity to build back better and to use innovative solutions to do so. Building a strong city ecosystem using nature-based solutions that support society, nature and economic growth is key but it will be challenging to build.

The Summit will showcase exemplar projects from across Europe with a focus on Glasgow and Scotland. It will demonstrate methods being developed collaboratively by Connecting Nature partners to realise the co-benefits of nature in cities.

Join us on-line as we explore the challenges and opportunities and hear more about innovations emerging to support the design, implementation and stewardship of nature-based solutions in cities.

The Summit content is designed around the following themes:

Day 1 Reducing the risks – nature-based solutions for biodiversity, climate change mitigation and adaptation, water management and extreme weather events.

Day 2 Healing sick cities - nature-based solutions for health, wellbeing, place-based planning, human scale, food growing and food provision.

Day 3 Routes to recovery – nature-based solutions for a green recovery from the economic recession following Covid-19, nature-based skills, employability and enterprise.

Hosted on a virtual platform with panel discussions, presentations, workshops and opportunities to connect with other delegates. The programme outline lets you see what is on offer. Further details and speakers will be added throughout February and March.

Who should come?

The Summit wants to engage with other global cities, politicians, urban and environmental practitioners, funding bodies, policy and decision makers at a national and international level. We’d like to encourage learning and dialogue between cities, academics, community organisations, environmental businesses, NGOs and third sector organisations.

Co-hosted by Glasgow City Council and greenspace scotland, the full Connecting Nature Innovation Summit registration will open in Feb 2021.