Launched in March 2025 at City Square Mall’s City Green Park, CDL MicroForest (Singapore’s first research-driven regenerative tropical microforest in a retail mall) was designed to study nature-based solutions for urban heat mitigation and biodiversity enhancement.

Within a year, the CDL MicroForest has already demonstrated measurable cooling effects, enriched urban wildlife habitats, and engaged the community in citizen science. The first-anniversary celebration features the release of CDL MicroForest data that supports “cooling through greening” and serves as a platform for conversation about how design, research and nature can work together to strengthen climate resilience in cities.

City Developments Limited (CDL) celebrates one year of the CDL MicroForest, the first research-driven regenerative tropical microforest in a retail mall located in Singapore's high-density city centre. Launched in March 2025, the 2,800 square feet (sq ft) CDL MicroForest was collaboratively developed with experts from the National University of Singapore (NUS) and supported by the National Parks Board (NParks) as a living laboratory to study nature-based solutions for urban heat mitigation and biodiversity enhancement.

Singapore is warming at approximately twice the global average, and urban heat has become one of the most pressing challenges of our time, with significant implications for human health. Rising temperatures underscore the urgency of effective urban cooling strategies. Nature-based solutions like the CDL MicroForest complement traditional infrastructure by lowering ambient temperatures while enhancing biodiversity connectivity and ecosystem services in dense city centres.

Ms Esther An, CDL’s Chief Sustainability Officer, said, “In Singapore, the urban heat island effect can make urban spaces up to 7°C hotter than suburban forested areas. The CDL MicroForest was set up to prove that nature-based solutions can provide a living shield against the rising heat, cooling urban spaces through greening. First-year data captures how dense, regenerative vegetation can help moderate temperatures and support biodiversity. These outcomes are increasingly critical as cities like Singapore warm at approximately twice the global average.”

Measurable impact and benefits

Early findings from data collected over the past year indicate that the CDL MicroForest has recorded cooler temperatures by up to 5°C compared to surrounding and roadside areas.

Data reported that areas within 1 to 2 metres of the microforest edge have recorded temperatures of up to 1°C to 4°C lower than urban surfaces further away, indicating potential localised cooling beyond the forest boundary.

Acoustic monitoring also revealed higher bird call activity within the microforest compared to surrounding areas, suggesting it is already providing ecological value for urban wildlife

To encourage community involvement, the microforest project has also progressed to incorporate citizen science via the iNaturalist app since 10 March 2026. The free platform encourages visitors to capture their biodiversity observations and environmental monitoring by uploading photos and information of the plants, animals and other organisms that they encounter. The initiative has recorded 65 observations across 46 species within the CDL MicroForest, demonstrating biodiversity presence via the promising and keen participation.

In addition, Environmental DNA (eDNA) sampling suggests approximately 70% more species richness within the microforest as compared to another grass patch outside the microforest. Biodiversity species detected in the microforest also include ecologically important bioindicator organisms such as millipedes and springtails, each with distinct habitat requirements that reflect environmental conditions.

“The CDL MicroForest isn't just a garden; it is critical climate infrastructure that proves we can green our way toward a more liveable and healthier built environment. The expansion of the CDL MicroForest at City Green reflects CDL’s firm commitment to nature-based solutions, and we hope this will inspire more innovative application of nature-based solutions to cool urban spaces,” Ms An added.

As cities warm and nature loss accelerates globally, the CDL MicroForest stands as a pioneering example of mission-driven climate innovation in action. Building on its initial success, the inaugural CDL MicroForest has now been expanded by an additional 2,800 sq ft under the City Square Mall asset enhancement initiative (AEI), doubling its footprint to 5,600 sq ft, which will amplify cooling effects, ecological benefits and research opportunities.