A data-driven roadmap to urban biodiversity – from mapping to action
Published on: May 9, 2025
As part of its ambitious goals to enhance biodiversity by 2030 and 2050, the City of Copenhagen partnered with Sweco to carry out a municipality-wide biodiversity screening. The project marks a major step towards integrating nature into urban development – and offers a scalable model for cities everywhere.
Understanding the Urban Biodiversity Potential
To identify where biodiversity in Copenhagen could be preserved, improved or expanded, Sweco developed a data-driven method that maps the biodiversity potential across the entire city. Using an interdisciplinary approach, a team of biologists, landscape architects and GIS experts analysed biotic and urban parameters.
The city was divided into hexagonal zones, each scored based on biodiversity-relevant data. This enabled the creation of three comprehensive “potential maps”:
- Preservation & Improvement Areas – where existing biodiversity is high and can be strengthened further
- Expansion Zones – where new habitats can be introduced for plants and animals
- Improvement Areas – where current biodiversity is limited but has strong potential with the right interventions
From Map to Action: The Inspiration Catalogue
To translate the mapping into actionable strategies, Sweco created an inspiration catalogue. This guide includes nine diverse case studies, each with tailored, location-specific biodiversity recommendations.
Each recommendation reflects local conditions and addresses how to preserve, improve or expand biodiversity, while also considering opportunities for public engagement, education and community-building.
A Toolkit for Landowners and Decision-Makers
Beyond municipal areas, the catalogue provides strategies for private, state and non-profit landowners. With visual tools, a generic project roadmap and clear biodiversity goals, the screening enables:
- Informed prioritisation of areas for action
- Cross-property dialogue between stakeholders
- Integration of biodiversity into future investments and development plans
Scalable Beyond Copenhagen
The methodology can be applied in other urban settings as well as rural areas – in Denmark or internationally. By combining scientific rigour with place-based insights, it paves the way for a systematic, scalable approach to making cities more biodiverse, resilient and liveable.
