Illustrated Natural Asset Maps are uniquely powerful visual tools that simplify, represent, and communicate information about complex ecosystem structures, functions, and services in a geographic area. ICLEI South Asia has developed such maps for the Indian cities of Kochi, Gangtok, Panaji, and Mangaluru under the INTERACT-Bio project, which is supported by the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety, Germany.
These maps are helping to communicate the significance of and the need to conserve urban biodiversity to the citizens. In order to disseminate information about their use and the methodology for developing them, a case study titled “Illustrated Natural Asset Maps – A Novel Tool to Communicate the Importance of Nature in Cities” has been developed under the project.