Biodiversity in the City

The talk has explored how urban systems can sustain functional and resilient biodiversity, focusing on three key factors identified in current ecological research: the presence of large green spaces, the quality of urban green areas, and their ecological connectivity. Using Zurich as a model system, it also examined the opportunities and challenges of maintaining these conditions in the context of increasing urban densification, a strategy widely used to limit urban sprawl into surrounding rural landscapes.

The event is part of the Talks Series of the AUA Acopian Center for the Environment and the WSL FORRACA Collaboration, with the support of the Government of Switzerland. The talk is also presented within the framework of the Road to COP17 Initiative, a year-long series of activities in Armenia to boost national awareness and capacities ahead of the 17th Conference of the Parties (COP17) of the Convention on Biological Diversity, to be held in Yerevan in October 2026.

More about the AUA Acopian Center and WSL FORACCA Collaboration visit here.

About the Speaker:

Marco Moretti is a biologist and head of the Conservation Biology group at the Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research (WSL) in Birmensdorf. His research focuses on urban biodiversity and uses an interdisciplinary approach that brings together ecology, sociology, environmental psychology, and urban planning. He currently leads the PAPPUS project, funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation, which studies how managers of public and private green spaces choose plants and how these choices influence microclimate and insect biodiversity. The project aims to support better decisions in the context of urban densification, climate change, and biodiversity loss.

Date and Time: April 2, 2026, 15:00 (Armenia time) | 13:00 (Switzerland time)