City in Nature Research Programme

The City in Nature Research Programme is NParks' research vertical under the Cities of Tomorrow (CoT) R&D Programme, also described as CoT Vertical 5 (CoT V5). It supports research in urban ecology and greenery to strengthen Singapore's ecological, climate, and social resilience. The research provides a scientific foundation for the City in Nature vision under the Singapore Green Plan 2030; it is not itself a parks-construction programme or a general public grant for individual gardening projects (NParks, City in Nature Research Programme).

Policy and research scope

NParks describes the City in Nature vision through four strategies: expanding the nature-park network, intensifying nature in gardens and parks, restoring nature into the urban landscape, and strengthening ecological connectivity between green spaces. CoT V5 builds on existing research in urban ecology and greenery and coordinates expertise across local research institutes, agencies, and companies (NParks, City in Nature Research Programme).

The programme's research is intended to inform planning and management rather than produce one single intervention. It covers questions such as how urban and forest ecosystems function, how greenery can support climate adaptation and human well-being, how trees can be safely established in constrained urban spaces, and how ecological processes such as nutrient cycling can be monitored and improved.

Awarded project examples

NParks' current programme page lists four awarded projects. They include research comparing nutrient cycling between forests and urban green spaces; tree-root anchorage and non-destructive testing for constrained planting spaces; landscape and well-being; and the physical and psycho-acoustic effects of green infrastructure on traffic noise in high-rise residential estates (NParks, City in Nature Research Programme). The page's four-project count is a current listing count, not a claim about every project ever funded under CoT V5 or about completed research outcomes.

The listed projects illustrate the programme's breadth. A nutrient-cycling project seeks evidence for urban greening and forest-restoration strategies. The tree project addresses establishment and monitoring of trees in constrained spaces. The landscape project examines attributes associated with well-being using body-network sensors. The green-infrastructure project combines noise mapping with physical and psychological analysis to develop guidance for reducing traffic-noise impacts in residential estates. These are research projects and planned outputs, not guarantees that a particular intervention will be deployed city-wide.

Grant-call status and distinctions

NParks currently states that there are no ongoing grant calls on the programme page. Researchers should therefore use the current NParks page and its contact information for future calls rather than treating the listed awarded projects as an open application opportunity (NParks, City in Nature Research Programme).

CoT V5 is distinct from NParks' Biosurveillance Research Programme, which studies zoonotic-disease risks through a One Health framework; from the Marine Climate Change Science Programme, which focuses on coastal and marine climate research; and from the broader City in Nature policy vision. The research vertical supports evidence for urban ecological planning but does not replace Green Plan policy, nature-reserve management, or a public application scheme for residents.