Urban Planners and the Ecological Approach to Nature in Cities: A Possible Reconciliation?

This study explores how urban planners have engaged with nature in the city from the late 19th century to the present. It reviews the early hygienist and social objectives behind introducing vegetation to industrial cities—highlighting projects by Haussmann in Paris and Olmsted in the United States—and then investigates the difficulties planners face today when ecological arguments become central under sustainable development. Finally, the paper identifies new opportunities for reconciling planning and ecology, notably via landscape urbanism practices and the increasing forms of resident investment in public spaces.