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The Role of Urban Green Spaces in Climate Change Resilience

As Australian cities continue to expand and temperatures rise, our urban environments face a growing challenge. Concrete jungles are heating up, biodiversity is declining, and communities are feeling the strain. But there’s a powerful solution taking root across the country: Urban Shade Forests.

These urban green spaces are proving to be one of our most effective tools in building climate resilience. From reducing extreme heat to supporting biodiversity and improving community wellbeing, these pockets of nature in our cities are doing far more heavy lifting than most of us realise.

What Are Urban Green Spaces?

Urban green spaces encompass a diverse range of natural and semi-natural areas woven into the fabric of our cities. They include parks, nature reserves, street trees, community gardens, sporting ovals, biodiversity corridors, rooftop gardens, and more.

These spaces aren’t just aesthetically pleasing additions to our neighbourhoods; they’re essential infrastructure for creating liveable, resilient cities. Together, they form what urban planners call “green infrastructure“: a connected network of natural systems that supports both people and wildlife.

Why Urban Green Spaces Matter More Than Ever

With 89% of Australians living in urban areas, our cities are growing fast. As natural landscapes give way to buildings and roads, we’re seeing what scientists call the “urban heat island effect“, where cities become noticeably warmer than surrounding areas because concrete and asphalt absorb and store heat.

But we can do something about it. Between 2013 and 2020, every Australian capital city – except for Hobart and Canberra – lost green cover, but this challenge presents an opportunity. Thoughtful, strategic urban tree planting can lower air temperatures at street level by up to 10°C, and there’s growing momentum across Australia to green our cities and suburbs.

Here’s why green spaces are so valuable for our cities:

• Carbon capture: A mature tree absorbs up to 150 kg of carbon dioxide every year — 12 trees can offset a person’s annual carbon emissions.
• Flood resilience: Vegetation absorbs rainfall, reducing stormwater runoff and flooding risks
• Biodiversity havens: About half of Australia’s threatened species live in urban areas, making city habitats critical for conservation
• Community wellbeing: Green spaces provide cooler, healthier environments where everyone can connect with nature.

How Trees Keep Cities Cool

Ever wondered why standing under a tree feels so much cooler on a hot day? It’s not just the shade. Trees perform a remarkable natural process called evapotranspiration — they draw water up through their roots and release it through their leaves, actively cooling the surrounding air like a natural air conditioner.

This process can reduce peak summer temperatures by up to 5°C in some locations. When you combine this cooling effect with other benefits, urban green spaces become powerful tools for climate resilience:

• Stormwater management: Trees intercept and absorb rainfall, reducing flooding during storms
• Cleaner air: Plants filter pollutants and produce oxygen
• Mental health: Access to nature reduces stress and improves wellbeing — something many of us rediscovered during COVID-19 lockdowns
• Biodiversity support: Urban forests provide habitat and food for native wildlife right in our neighbourhoods

CVA’s Urban Shade Forests: Growing Solutions for Hotter Cities

At Conservation Volunteers Australia, we’re tackling urban heat head-on through our Urban Shade Forests initiative — a nature-based solution that’s making Australian cities cooler, greener, and more resilient.

What Makes an Urban Shade Forest?

Urban Shade Forests are carefully planned groves of native trees and other vegetation strategically planted in built-up areas. Each forest is designed to create maximum cooling impact while supporting local biodiversity and bringing communities together.

Since launching this initiative in 2022, we’ve already planted more than 20,000 native seedlings in urban and suburban spaces across Australia. Most importantly, these forests are taking root in areas that need them most: suburbs with low canopy cover and high socio-economic vulnerability.

Where We’re Making an Impact

Our Urban Shade Forests are growing strong in communities across Australia:

Rockingham, Western Australia: Thousands of native seedlings have been planted across Lewington Reserve, Rockingham and Seahaven Reserve in Waikiki. The Baldivis Children’s Forest, a 20-hectare nature reserve, is now home to just over 3,000 new native seedlings that will support the area’s impressive native wildlife, including Western grey kangaroos, boobook owls, and 25 different species of reptiles. In 2026, we will be moving the project over to the City of Kwinana to further expand our Forests in WA, so watch this space!

Campbelltown, South Australia: In July 2025, we officially expanded into South Australia with an ex-TREE-vaganza at River Drive Reserve in Athelstone, where 133 volunteers planted 2,000 seedlings in just one day, contributing to our goal of planting 7,000 seedlings at the site this year alone. Even though Adelaide experienced its wettest July in over 20 years, the rain didn’t stop South Australians from getting involved!

Ipswich, Queensland: Our newest Urban Shade Forest launched in Queensland in August 2025, with an ambitious goal to plant 4,000 native seedlings across Ipswich’s Small Creek Corridor and Jack Barkley Park. In our first event, 39 volunteers planted 750 seedlings along Small Creek, and we’re on track to complete our plantings by the end of October this year!

Our team is already busy planning for another exciting planting season in 2026, so watch this space as we continue to grow the project across our three focus regions!

The Partnership Powering Change

Our Urban Shade Forests initiative is supported by founding partner Chevron Australia and Chevron’s premium fuel brand Caltex Australia.

For more than 18 years, CVA and Chevron have worked together on environmental initiatives, including our Revive our Wetlands initiative, mobilising almost 20,000 volunteers who have helped plant more than 455,000 plants and trees.

How You Can Get Involved

Creating cooler, greener cities is a collective effort, and there are plenty of ways to contribute:

💚 Join a planting day: Check our events page to find upcoming Urban Shade Forest events near you in South East Queensland, South Australia or Western Australia. While we’re wrapping up the planting season very soon, there’ll be fresh opportunities available from April 2026!

🌳 Plant at home: Even if you don’t live near one of our Urban Shade Forest sites, you can create your own mini urban forest at home through our Nature Blocks initiative. Whether it’s a balcony garden, a backyard habitat, or street verge plantings, every bit of urban greenery counts.

👏 Advocate locally: Talk to your local council or school about urban greening initiatives. Ask how they’re planning to increase tree canopy cover in your area.

🎟️ Support the work: Donations to CVA go directly toward planting and caring for trees across Australia.

🌺 Free native plants: If you live or work in the Local Government Areas of Rockingham WA, Campbelltown SA, or Ipswich QLD and have a space suitable for planting an Urban Forest, we may be able to provide free native plants. Get in touch with our team to learn more!

A Greener, Cooler Future

As climate change intensifies and cities continue to grow, urban green spaces will become increasingly critical for our survival and quality of life. The science is clear: strategic urban greening is one of the most effective ways to build climate resilience while supporting biodiversity, improving health outcomes, and creating more equitable communities.

Through initiatives like Urban Shade Forests, we’re investing in a future where Australian cities can withstand extreme heat, support thriving ecosystems, and provide healthy, liveable spaces for everyone.

Every tree planted today is a legacy for tomorrow. Together, we can create the cool, green, resilient cities that future generations deserve.

Ready to take action for nature? Visit conservationvolunteers.com.au to find volunteer opportunities near you, or download the CVA App to start your own Nature Blocks project today.

The Urban Shade Forest initiative is supported by founding partner Chevron Australia, Chevron’s premium fuel brand Caltex and supported locally by the City of Rockingham, Campbelltown City Council (SA) and Ipswich City Council.