Growing Sky Sanctuaries: An Investigation into Green Roofs as a Tool for Native Birds in Wellington City.

Urbanisation and the loss of nature in cities has resulted in a global biodiversity crisis and a call for more sustainable cities.

The artificial urban environment has resulted in a population disconnected from nature. One of the irrefutable approachesto sustainable urban design is the adoption of green roofs. Research has indicated that green roofs have the power tooffset the impacts of urbanisation by decreasing runoff, cooling cities and increasing biodiversity. Nevertheless, the uptake ofgreen roofs in New Zealand has been slow, and therefore their potential for native ecology is not well understood.

Wellington city, the capital of New Zealand, has seen a remarkable increase in birdlife as a result of conservationefforts. However, the same increase is not reflected in the city centre due to predation and a lack of green cover. Wellington’sPredator Free 2050 initiative offers the remarkable opportunity to allow vulnerable native birds beyond the bounds of apredator-proof fence. This research attempts to explore the potential application of green roofs to facilitate native birdsinto the city and the positive opportunities for locals to connect with nature or so-called biophilia.