Green Communities Center
Urban Conservation: Thinking Megaregionally
This project was a collaboration between the South Atlantic LCC and APA to improve the utility and use of the Conservation Blueprint within populated areas for the mutual benefit of the planning and conservation professions.
Project Overview
Major metropolitan areas present direct threats to the conservation future of the South Atlantic, such as loss of habitat and open space, and indirect threats, such as barriers to connectivity. As a result, urban growth poses a challenge to traditional approaches to green infrastructure and conservation.
To address this, the South Atlantic Landscape Conservation Cooperative (South Atlantic LCC) engaged the American Planning Association's Green Communities Center in a scoping project that examined how large-scale green infrastructure definitions and urban scale definitions can be bridged in order to tackle this challenge and identify areas of shared conservation interest across the rural-urban continuum. Culminating in a comprehensive August 2018 report, the project also included a webinar and an interim report.
Using the South Atlantic Conservation Blueprint to Improve Integration Between the Natural and Built Environments
This report aims to improve the ability of planners and conservation professionals to depict areas and actions of shared conservation interest near and within cities by using the conservation blueprint. It includes a discussion of the benefits of environmental conservation for planning as well as the benefits of intrajurisdictional and regional coordination. It also details how the blueprint can be integrated with different types of plans, local planning tools, and other sources of conservation data.
South Atlantic Urban Conservation Summit: Thinking Megaregionally
This document summarizes the September 21–22, 2016, gathering of urban planners and conservation professionals from the South Atlantic region. It includes:
- Findings from interviews with 24 conservationists, planners, engineers, and parks professionals
- A discussion of our shared missions, issues, and opportunities for collaboration between the planning and conservation fields
- A glossary of definitions to help establish a common language to overcome communication barriers between conservation professionals and the planning sector
Urban Conservation: Thinking Megaregionally
Third Thursday Web Forum
As part of the South Atlantic LCC's series, APA presented summaries of interviews with planners and conservation professionals from across the Southeast. Participants discussed strategies to limit or mitigate the consequences of development on conservation areas, goals, and challenges.
Acknowledgments
This project was made possible by a grant by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to APA.
Image courtesy South Atlantic Landscape Conservation Cooperative.