The city is an organized urban area where things should work well and people live a good life. People’s choices in life seem to be at variance to the environment in many cases. Rapid urbanization has intensified land degradation, ecosystem loss and environmental stress. This study examines the concept of the city as an ecosystem where the city is likened to the natural environment and its potential to enhance land restoration within. To do this, various areas in the city become minute (sub) system within themselves whereby the city can feed itself, generate its energy use and deal with their waste production thus becoming more sustainable in every aspect. The paper argues that cities can function as regenerative systems when ecological principles are integrated into planning and design. Strategies such as green infrastructure, nature-based solutions, and participatory governance are highlighted as pathways for restoring degraded urban land. An in-depth literature review of key concepts will help in shaping this discussion, showing how a city can actually be called an ecosystem.
Nneoma Chinonyelum Ezea (Mon,) studied this question.