Penn IUR, the United Nations Environment Programme unveil new framework to address gap in urban nature finance

The Penn Institute for Urban Research (Penn IUR) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Cities Unit released the State of Finance for Nature in Cities 2024 report, From Grey to Green: Better data to finance nature in cities, during COP16 Colombia.

The report highlights the need for more robust data-and tools-to help cities integrate nature-based solutions into their financial and planning frameworks.

Urban areas are home to more than half of the world's population and are responsible for 70% of carbon dioxide emissions and 75 percent of resource use globally. Yet few cities have nature-based objectives, data, budget performance measurements, or guidelines that incorporate nature across municipal budgets, says report co-author Amanda Lloyd, global programs director at Penn IUR.

The report offers a tool for cities: a nature activity budget assessment with education components and simplified typologies designed to help cities integrate nature and nature-based solutions into their budget planning, connect to their biodiversity action plans, and target new financing and funding for nature.

Using case studies, the report guides cities on tracking, budgeting, and scaling their investments in nature, offering a path toward greener, more resilient urban futures.

The report is co-authored by Eugenie L. Birch, co-director of Penn IUR and Sam Geldin, a postdoctoral researcher at Penn IUR.

Read more at Penn IUR.