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Contribution short abstract

Through a hybrid systematic-narrative review, this research explores meanings of the emerging concept of ‘urban rewilding’ within transdisciplinary literature. It identifies key features of urban rewilding and discusses their implications, highlighting the need for place-based approaches.

Contribution long abstract

Urban rewilding is an emerging concept being explored by global researchers, who provide varied insights on its meanings that have not yet been synthesised through a dedicated review. Taking a hybrid systematic-narrative approach to reviewing transdisciplinary literature, this study aims to provide deeper and holistic insights on meanings of urban rewilding at a time of significant attention on the subject. Potential sites of urban rewilding are identified as fragments that vary in scale, ecosystem and level of urbanisation. Aiming to create resilient, connected and self-sustaining ecosystems benefitting both people and nature, rewilding these sites involves active and passive actions dependent on evolving site conditions and multiple stakeholder priorities. Urban rewilding holds the potential to shift how nature is valued and managed in urban spaces to support the sustainability of multiple species, yet policy support varies between locations and is influenced by how the concept is being interpreted. This research highlights that urban rewilding should be promoted as a highly place-based concept, relating to people and nature, that aims to restore self-sustaining ecosystems in urban and peri-urban spaces.