Rewilding cities

All over the globe, animals returned to urban areas during the COVID-19 lockdowns. Dolphins returned to the waters surrounding Venice, lions filled roads that would have otherwise been filled with tourists, and mountain goats roamed the streets in Wales. Clearly, humans are limiting the range of wildlife; this shrinking of their ranges can cause serious negative implications on wildlife.

I think city planners should value animal populations more. I envision a world where humans minimize their impact on the ranges and natural behaviours of animals. I also envision a world where communities appreciate that flourishing wildlife populations are indicative of a healthy environment.

Some ideas to realize this future would be to replace roads and cars with underground subway networks, reduce the area that sprawling suburban neighbourhoods take up by replacing them with denser city cores, and prioritize more biodiverse green-spaces throughout cities.