Ecosystem Services Come to Town: Greening cities by working with nature -- Contents -- About the Author -- Acknowledgement -- 1. Introduction -- Modern Cities and the Disconnected -- Population Spike -- Limits to Growth -- Global Threats -- Ecosystem Services and Stewardship -- Greening Cities is Necessary -- Hope -- 2. Origins of Cities -- Why Look Back? -- Emergence of the Human Species -- Great Leap Forward -- Agriculture and Permanent Settlements -- Agriculture Around the World -- Agriculture Intensifies -- Empires Rise and Fall in Mesopotamia -- Nile Valley -- Indus Valley -- Ancient China -- Ancient Greece -- On the Ganges -- Rome -- The Moche -- Mesoamerica -- Fortified Centres of Administration -- European Renaissance -- Early Modern -- Squalor -- 3. Modern Cities -- Origins of the Modern City -- Industrial Revolution -- Railways -- Rapid Growth -- Ill Health -- Distinctive New Districts Emerge -- Paris Re-born -- Railways and Suburbs -- Planning and Zoning -- Garden Cities -- Motor Vehicles Herald in the Oil Age -- A Humane Outlook -- Going Up -- Continued Rise of the Motor Vehicle -- Decline of the Inner City -- New Towns -- City Plans -- An Unfinished Task -- 4. Issues Facing Contemporary Cities -- Impacts of Cities and City Living -- Habitat Loss -- Habitat Fragmentation -- Impacts on Soil -- The Water Cycle -- Water-borne Pollution -- Urban Heat Islands -- Air Pollution -- Noise -- Light Pollution -- Agricultural Land Take -- Concrete -- Steel -- Glass -- Timber -- Waste -- Drivers of Population Growth -- Peak Oil -- Peak Phosphorus -- Post Oil -- 5. Working with Nature -- Ecology and Ecosystems -- Born Free -- Saving the Great Lakes -- Earth Summit, Ecosystem Assessment and Ecosystem Services -- Cities as Part of the Biosphere -- Ecological Restoration -- Urban Wildlife -- Green Infrastructure -- Sustainable Sites Initiative.

Advice from Professional Bodies and Others -- Mimic Nature -- Working with Nature Works -- 6. Urban Nature -- Open Space Preservation -- The Naturalists -- Nature Leaves the City? -- Urban Nature Returns -- Wildlife Gardens -- Encapsulated Countryside -- Bukit Timah -- The Urban Forest -- Urban Wastelands -- Canvey Wick -- Emscher Park -- Urban Farming -- Biodiversity Action Plans -- River Corridors -- London's South Bank -- Minneapolis Riverfront -- 7. Water and Cities -- Fresh Clean Water - Essential and Increasingly Scarce -- Civilisation has Modified the Water Cycle -- Water Consumption -- Embodied Carbon -- Virtual Water -- Catchment Management -- Rainwater Harvesting -- Grey Water -- Sustainable Urban Drainage -- Water Sensitive Urban Design -- Rain Gardens -- The Streets are Changing -- Ponds -- Potsdamer Platz -- River Restoration -- The Cheonggyecheon River -- Singapore -- Water and Urban Heat Islands -- Towards the Water Sensitive City -- 8. City-wide Greening -- Bioregions -- Catchment Management for Clean Water -- Catchment Management for Ecosystem Services -- Regional Green Infrastructure Plans -- Biomass and the Bioregion -- Regional Ecological Networks -- Community Forests -- Green Belts -- Green Grids -- Transport -- Urban Heat Islands -- Blue Networks -- Masterplanning -- Regional Plans, Local Implementation -- 9. Greening Neighbourhoods and Buildings -- Sense of Neighbourhood -- Living Streets -- Standardising the Neighbourhood -- Design Your Own Park -- A Phoenix Rises -- Growing Their Own -- Learning from Squatter Settlements -- Rain Gardens -- They Paved Paradise -- Clapton Park Estate -- People of the Trees -- Tree Pits -- Tree Trenches -- No Space? -- Energy Efficient Buildings -- Water Efficiency -- Autonomy -- Building-integrated Vegetation -- A Coat for Buildings -- Value of Shade -- Living Walls.

Cooling Effect of Green Roofs -- Green Roofs, Rainwater Attenuation and Cooling -- Green Roofs Need the Right Substrate -- Green Roofs for Biodiversity -- London's Black Redstart Roofs -- Biodiverse Green Roofs in North America -- Roof Gardens for People -- Worldwide Applications -- Wildlife and Buildings -- Rooftop Harvests -- 10. Conclusion -- Interesting Times -- The Positives -- Cities and Citizens Take the Initiative -- Greening Requires Greenery -- Appendices -- I: award winning projects from IHDC website -- II: useful resources -- Notes and References -- Index.