RECOMMENDATION
10.
Support urban ecosystem-focused, collaborative research by developing new tools and increasing funding for these efforts among all relevant federal agencies by 50% (over 2010 levels) by 2015.
RATIONALE Better-coordinated research is crucial to advance efforts to plan and implement building and rebuilding in cities that put restoring, preserving and augmenting local ecosystems at the forefront. Yet, critical research has either lagged or not been effectively integrated in the face of emerging trends that demand imminent reassessment of urban landscapes. Municipal planning principles of the past are no longer relevant to today’s cities. Thus, research efforts must evaluate a wide range of alternative approaches in order to transition our cities from traditional, predominantly gray infrastructure to a common-sense, well-conceived and justifiable combination of gray and green elements. Furthermore, local stakeholders and researchers can work together to improve their local urban ecosystems. When communities members collaborate with experts and researchers they become more aware of their local ecosystems and ways of getting involved in transforming their cities. Likewise, even the most knowledgeable experts gain meaningful insight into communities when they collaborate with local stakeholders.
EXAMPLE The National Science Foundation (NSF) and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) collaborated through the EPA/NSF Partnership for Environmental Research to support research in the areas of Water and Watersheds, Technology for a Sustainable Environment and Decision Making and Valuation for Environmental Policy. 
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New York, NY. Photo courtesy of New York Restoration Project (NYRP)