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Urban Ark

In partnership with KCETLink, the Laboratory for Environmental Narrative Strategies (LENS) at the University of California, Los Angeles has launched a year-long collaboration to develop models and media for reporting environmental stories. 

The second storyline, Urban Ark, considers how Los Angeles has inadvertently become a sanctuary city for non-native animal species that are sometimes endangered in their native habitats. The articles, interactive web features, and a documentary short written and produced by UCLA faculty and graduate students raise intriguing questions about human-created urban ecosystems, biodiversity and opportunities for creating sanctuaries for endangered species, including the beloved red-crowned parrot.

Red-crowned Amazon Parrot | iStock/Parrotstarr
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 Parrot facing right. (featured) | Still from "Urban Ark Los Angeles."
Los Angeles has the potential to become a sanctuary for other endangered species – even those who are not native to Southern California.
 Los Angeles backyards are a patchwork of natural habitats. (featured) | Still from "Earth Focus" episode on urban habitats.
A community science program is helping both researchers and citizens understand how vibrant of a nature sanctuary Los Angeles really is.
 Gardens by the Bay, Singapore. (featured) | iStock/CharlieTong
Designing cities that consider both animal and human habitats requires time and money but most of all, it requires a desire to imagine a city where we can enjoy reconnecting with the natural world.
 Urban orange tree against white wall. (featured) | iStock/JJFarquitectos
What would the city look like if we considered the food potential of the trees we plant in our city, in addition to their functionality as ornament, erosion control and shade? 
 Hollywood skyline (featured) | iStock
It is true that Los Angeles has rich biological diversity, but what exactly that means depends on whom you ask.
Coyote wakes from nap | Chase Alexander
Meet the coyotes who call Los Angeles' oldest cemetery home.
Red-crowned parrots in Pasadena. | Still from "Urban Ark Los Angeles"
There’s a big difference between a species being present and a species being abundant. “Bioabundance” refers not to the number of species in an area but, to the number of individual creatures present.
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