{
  "id": 147132,
  "title": "‘My Wild City’ reminds us why cities need nature",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/04/my-wild-city-reminds-us-why-cities-need-nature",
  "topic": "science",
  "section": "Science",
  "published": "2026-08-04T20:12:10.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Mongabay",
    "slug": "mongabay",
    "url": "https://news.mongabay.com/podcast/2026/08/my-wild-city-reminds-us-why-cities-need-nature/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "In her forthcoming book, My Wild City: Finding Nature, Meaning, and Hope in India’s Capital, conservation scientist Neha Sinha invites readers to explore the often-overlooked ecosystems within India’s most populous city. While the book effectively highlights the city’s biodiversity, Sinha’s most compelling aspect is her ability to connect with readers emotionally through personal anecdotes.\n\nDuring a recent interview on the Mongabay Newscast, Sinha shared the importance of urban nature beyond its ecological significance. She recounted a pivotal moment in her life when caring for her ailing father led her to discover a semal tree (Bombax ceiba) in the midst of a challenging hospital visit. Sinha explains that during such physically and mentally taxing times, nature offers a sense of strength and resilience. \"In these kind of difficult situations which are physically and mentally challenging … you look at a tree, and it restores you. It kind of makes you feel that you might have strength that you didn’t know about. And it’s also unique to see a tree in a very urban environment because the tree itself is a survivor,\" she notes.\n\nThroughout the book, Sinha primarily focuses on the profound impact nature had during the early 2020s COVID-19 lockdowns. She describes how people found solace and connection with others, themselves, and the natural world through urban green spaces. \"It gave rise to a movement called balcony birding [during] a horrible time in terms of uncertainty, in terms of we didn’t know what’s gonna happen,\" Sinha reflects.",
  "summary": "In her upcoming book, My Wild City: Finding Nature, Meaning, and Hope in India’s Capital, conservation biologist Neha Sinha takes readers to the hidden and not-so-hidden ecosystems of India’s largest city. And while the book expertly details the biodiversity, I believe its greatest strength lies in connecting with the reader emotionally through powerful stories from […]",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}