This session will address the following questions: 1. How can ecological knowledge and tools be utilized by interdisciplinary teams to design green infrastructure that promotes socio-ecological function and environmental performance within the context of diverse urban systems?; and, 2. How can green infrastructure planning and design support and improve the long-term resiliency of urban and rural systems across spatial scales? Some green infrastructure projects have generated useful research on the design process, cost effectiveness, regulation, and the distinction between ecological function and environmental performance, but often only at a site-specific scale. New technological advances have enabled large-scale data collection about green infrastructure that has yet to be applied to comprehensive planning or regulatory processes. The piece-meal approach to planning for green infrastructure at these larger spatial scales minimizes the potential for green infrastructure to be managed as inter-connected systems capable of meeting regional performance goals. This session offers a review of existing green infrastructure research, knowledge gaps, lessons learned from practice, and strategies for a more integrated approach to the design, regulation and management of green infrastructure development in urban environments where ecological changes always have social consequences. Presenters will discuss case studies that illustrate best practices for optimizing the ecological, environmental, and social benefits of green infrastructure in the context of rapid change and urbanization.