Adelaide awarded the national park city title in 2021: the first in Australia and second in the world after London
The Adelaide National Park City bid was spearheaded by Green Adelaide, the landscape board for Greater Adelaide, representing 17 local governments.
Image courtesy Green Adelaide
Adelaide became Australia’s first, and the world's second (after London), national park city in 2021.
Officials from the National Park City Foundation, World Urban Parks and Salzburg Global Seminar assessed Adelaide's application for the title across 23 facets including the city's landscape, community, culture, long-term vision and ability to deliver on its goals.
National Park City Foundation chairman Paul de Zylva said he was delighted to welcome Adelaide into the growing family: “At a time of great health, climate and ecological anxiety, becoming a national park city is an incredibly positive, hopeful and pragmatic step for a city to take.”
De Zylva said that becoming a national park city was not just about the status of the city but a statement of intent and “a way of organising to radically improve life for both people and wildlife, now and into the future."
Green Adelaide, the Greater Adelaide's landscape board, spearheaded the campaign for the national park city title. The bid won the support of all 17 local government councils in Greater Adelaide. Adelaide National Park City covered all of Greater Adelaide from Salisbury to the north, Aldinga to the south, Burnside to the east, and Grange to the west, plus the city centre. The Kaurna nation, industry leaders, conservation organisations, community groups also supported the bid.
Adelaide National Park City was a movement to improve life in Greater Adelaide. Its aims were to bring:
• a more beautiful natural place for everyone to enjoy,
* diversity in employment opportunities,
* healthier plants and animals,
• support for people's health and wellbeing,
* better air and water quality,
* a global tourism drawcard for Adelaide.
Adelaide’s case as a national park city was bolstered by being consistently rated as one of the world’s most liveable cities, with outstanding food and wine, clean coastlines, beautiful hills, iconic wildlife, as well as national and conservation parks, and local reserves. Adelaide already had 30% green space, and diverse wildlife from 1,080 native plant species and 281 native species of birds, to 60 native fish species and 47 native mammal species, plus more than 58 species of reptiles. For 95% of Adelaide residents, they only needed to travel around 400 metres to connect with an open green area.
Rewilding projects were being delivered to demonstrate Green Adelaide's commitment to help improve people’s connection with nature.
