CREAF Talk with Ian MacGregor Fors: Building up biodiversity to action: The Urban Ecosystem Integrity Index

Ian MacGregor-Fors, Professor of Urban Biodiversity and Ecosystems at the University of Helsinki, will present selected examples from his research on urban biodiversity, conducted across diverse locations and spatial scales. He will then show how this foundation has contributed to the development of spatially explicit, city-wide assessments that integrate biodiversity data with continuous physical characteristics of urban systems.

In collaboration with an exceptional team of colleagues, he has framed this approach within the concept of ecosystem integrity. This joint effort culminated in the creation of the Urban Ecosystem Integrity Index (UEII), a user-friendly tool designed to advance urban environmental monitoring. Notably, the UEII is customizable based on available data and funding, and it is highly comparable across different regions (e.g., tropical vs. boreal).

The UEII provides cities with detailed, spatially explicit information to support the evaluation and enhancement of their ecological integrity, ultimately offering valuable insights to inform urban planning and management in the pursuit of livable and healthy cities.

Short biography:

Ian MacGregor-Fors is Professor of Urban Biodiversity and Ecosystems at the University of Helsinki. His passion for birds since adolescence led him to study Biology at the University of Guadalajara (Mexico). After receiving a Ph.D. with honors at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), he has focused his research on the response of wildlife communities to human disturbances (mainly in towns and cities) and the ecology and distribution of invading bird species. He has authored or co-authored over 150 publications in scientific journals, as well as several books and book chapters, and diverse popular science pieces.

Since 2012, he has been part of the Advisory Board of the International Network Urban Biodiversity & Design (URBIO), seeking to promote the implementation of the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) in urban areas. He is co-Editor-in-Chief for Animal Biodiversity and Conservation, as well as Associate Editor for Ecology, Urban Ecosystems, and Journal of Urban Ecology. He is confident that the use of evidence-based knowledge considering the physical, ecological, and social dimensions of urban systems can result in the development of livable and healthy cities, for which willingness of all implied stakeholders is keystone.

HOW TO CONNECT: direct link to Ian MacGregor Fors's conference