Bringing wetlands back to our urban areas

Wetland Cities

In partnership with Aviva

Wetlands have the power to transform cities for the better.

Their natural superpowers can help towns and cities adapt to a changing climate, from managing water and improving water quality, to creating space for wildlife, supporting local ecosystems and bringing people closer to nature.

WWT is the wetland charity. Wetland Cities is our five-year urban wetland programme - supporting Bristol on its journey to become the UK's first wetland city.

Collaboration and shared ownership are at the heart of this programme, reflecting a growing global commitment to wetland conservation. Working together towards a shared vision where wetlands are created, restored and protected, helping Bristol to become climate resilient and creating a model that other UK towns and cities can learn from.

What is a wetland city?

A city that works with nature, rather than against it.
Home to important wetlands that are respected and protected.
Teeming with wildlife, and blue spaces to get away from the hustle and bustle.
More resilient to extreme weather events like flooding and heatwaves.
Shaped with communities and centered around local needs.

Questions about wetland cities

: A Wetland City protects and restores the wetlands and waterways it already has, creates new ones where they can make a difference, and involves communities in shaping and caring for them - from rivers and rain gardens to the smallest garden pond.

Our towns and cities face challenges from a changing climate and nature loss, including heavier rainfall in the winter, hotter and drier summers and declining wildlife.

Wetlands can be a part of the response to these challenges. Depending on their type and location, they can help to manage water, improve water quality, create habitats for wildlife (supporting local biodiversity), help urban areas become more resilient to drought, and give more people opportunities to experience nature close to home.

Wetland City accreditation is an international accreditation scheme under the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands. It recognises cities that demonstrate a strong commitment to wetland conservation - protecting, restoring and wisely managing wetlands, blue spaces and biodiversity, while also involving communities and celebrating the importance of the role wetlands play in urban life.

In 2026 there were 74 accredited wetland cities - such as Geneva, Victoria Falls, Hangzhou and Indore. They form a growing global network across 27 countries that shares knowledge and best practice through the Wetland City Network and its Roundtable of Wetland City Mayors. Despite being home to 176 Ramsar sites across the UK (the most designated Ramsar sites of any country in the world), we do not have a single Wetland City.

Bristol is working towards becoming the UK's first Ramsar-accredited Wetland City. Accreditation under the scheme is an ambition for the programme rather than a guaranteed outcome.

Aviva is the founding partner for the Wetland Cities programme, supporting an ambition to create climate-resilient, nature-rich communities.

Bristol's journey to become the UK's first Wetland City

Bristol is leading the way as the first UK city working towards internationally recognised Wetland City status, showing how working with nature can create healthier, more resilient spaces for people and wildlife.

Working together with our principal funding partner, Aviva, alongside Bristol City Council, the West of England Combined Authority and passionate community groups from across the city, we're creating a model in Bristol that other towns and cities can learn from in the future.

From ponds and rain gardens, to restored rivers and brooks, and drainpipe wetlands; we will deliver over 200 projects in the next five years, making wetlands a core part of everyday life across the city.

Why Bristol?

With more than 100 miles of waterways, an iconic harbour and links to the internationally important Severn Estuary Ramsar site, Bristol has rich relationships with water. It also has a strong network of communities and organisations already working on conservation efforts improve its rivers, wetlands and blue spaces, giving the city strong foundations to build on.

Wetland Cities is by no means starting from scratch. The programme will build on and support the brilliant work already happening across the city, while creating more opportunities for new projects and partnerships.

Questions about Bristol's journey to become a Wetland City

Over the next five years, the programme aims to support more than 200 wetland and wetland-related projects across Bristol, while directly engaging with more than 100,000 people.

Projects will range in purpose and size. Some will be relatively small projects within neighbourhoods, such as ponds, rain gardens and drainpipe wetlands. Others will be larger and take longer to develop. Together, these projects will create a network of healthier blue spaces across the city.

Projects will take place across Bristol, with locations and opportunities shaped by factors including local need, existing habitats, climate resilience, wildlife, community priorities and the city's wider development plans.

We're working with both communities and organisations across the city to identify opportunities, and to build on and support projects and ideas already underway.

WWT is leading the programme, providing wetland conservation expertise, programme leadership and technical support.

Aviva is the programme's principal funding partner, providing strategic support, expertise in building resilience and supporting communities to get ready for a changing climate.

We're working alongside Bristol City Council, the West of England Combined Authority, community groups, local organisations and others across Bristol. Collaboration is central to the programme, and the partnerships being built are working towards creating long-term solutions across the city.

Bristol is working towards Wetland City accreditation, with the potential to achieve accreditation in the coming years, although not guaranteed.

There is plenty of work to do. The programme is about creating lasting benefits for Bristol's wetlands and blue spaces, wildlife and the communities who live there. Accreditation would provide an internationally recognised framework for that ambition.

: There will be lots of opportunities for communities, organisations and individuals across Bristol to get involved as the programme develops. These could include community projects, events, volunteering and opportunities to help shape projects locally. Keep an eye on this page for the latest opportunities and project updates.

A national ambition for Wetland Cities

Our ambition is bigger than one city. We want to see a growing network of Wetland Cities across the UK, bringing people and organisations to create more space for wetlands. This could bring the superpowers of wetlands into more people's everyday lives, helping create more resilient, nature-rich places to live and work.

What we learn through the Bristol programme will help shape an approach that other towns and cities can adapt to their own spaces and communities.

If you're interested in bringing the Wetland Cities approach to your town or city, we'd love to hear from you.

Get in touch