Greening London
London is one of the greenest cities in the world. Seen from above, more than half of the area is green or blue – amazing for one of the world’s major cities. Glass skyscrapers, busy street and heritage buildings coexist with allotments, rivers, parks and gardens. London is surprisingly rich in wildlife and natural landscapes too. As well as Thames side marshes in the east, medieval parkland in the west, ancient woodlands in the north and chalk downland in the south, peregrine falcons breed in the heart of London.
London has some of the finest parks of any capital city in the world. But there are many areas which lack green spaces, or where the local green space is poor.
The Mayor wants to make London greener. Not just because parks and green spaces are part of what makes London special, but also because the capital’s network of green and open spaces, (including its gardens and street trees, rivers and reservoirs, farmland and woodland) provides a welcome refuge in our increasingly urbanised world:
- Visiting a well-managed park or walking down a tree-lined can help combat health problems such as obesity and improve mental wellbeing.
- Greening London’s grey spaces (including roofs and walls) can keep the city cooler in hot weather, reduce flood risk in wet weather and address the likely impacts of climate change.
- Promoting new approaches to urban land management can encourage Londoners to grow their own food or create space for wildlife to increase people’s connection with nature.
- Encouraging people to participate in the care and management of their local environment fosters civic pride and community cohesion.
In short, greening the city makes London a better place to live in, visit and invest.
London's Great Outdoors, is the Mayor’s key programme to improve the public realm, open space, parks and green spaces, creating places that are fit for a great world city and which are enjoyable for everyone who uses or visits them.
