Ecosystem-based Approach to Climate Adaptation Malmö, Sweden

Communities are beginning to apply and test ecosystem-based approaches to climate adaptation and then share the lessons learned and benefits acquired from them.

For example, in the Augustenborg neighbourhood in the city of Malmö, Sweden, they have taken the ecosystem-based adaptation approach seriously to achieve a broader and sustainable community transition.

This city has been facing flooding problems due to stormwater overflow and socio-economic decline. Instead of building bigger pipes to address flooding, the city has chosen a sustainable urban drainage system that includes 6 km of water channels and ten retention ponds.

Rainwater from roofs, roads, and car parks flows through trenches, ponds, and wetlands, and only the surplus goes to the conventional sewer system. The city has also constructed green roofs on existing buildings to retain rainwater.

Augustenborg’s ecosystem-based adaptation has many benefits. Flooding has ceased, the city’s image has improved, and the stormwater and combined sewer systems in the area have been enhanced.

To know more about Augustenborg’s ecosystem-based approach to climate adaptation and the benefits it brought to the community, we are sharing two links below:

Below is the link to the brochure about Ekostaden (Ecocity) Augustenborg. It explains how and when the process started, who was involved, and what prompted the city to take the ecosystem-based adaptation approach. It also features its people and community, how the green infrastructure projects have benefitted them, and how it has inspired other cities to do the same.