Nature-based solutions

Nature-based solutions (NBS or NbS) is the sustainable management and use of natural features and processes to tackle socio-environmental issues.<ref>Girardin, Cécile A. J.; Jenkins, Stuart; Seddon, Nathalie; Allen, Myles; Lewis, Simon L.; Wheeler, Charlotte E.; Griscom, Bronson W.; Malhi, Yadvinder (2021). "Nature-based solutions can help cool the planet — if we act now". Nature. 593 (7858): 191–194. Bibcode:2021Natur.593..191G. doi:10.1038/d41586-021-01241-2. PMID 33981055.</ref> These issues include for example climate change (mitigation and adaptation), water security, food security, preservation of biodiversity, and disaster risk reduction. Through the use of NBS healthy, resilient, and diverse ecosystems (whether natural, managed, or newly created) can provide solutions for the benefit of both societies and overall biodiversity.<ref>Eggermont, Hilde; Balian, Estelle; Azevedo, José Manuel N.; Beumer, Victor; Brodin, Tomas; Claudet, Joachim; Fady, Bruno; Grube, Martin; Keune, Hans (2015). "Nature-based Solutions: New Influence for Environmental Management and Research in Europe" (PDF). Gaia - Ecological Perspectives for Science and Society. 24 (4): 243–248. doi:10.14512/gaia.24.4.9. S2CID 53518417. Archived (PDF) from the original on 7 May 2020. Retrieved 24 May 2020.</ref> The 2019 UN Climate Action Summit highlighted nature-based solutions as an effective method to combat climate change.<ref name=":14">Environment, U. N. (2019). "Nature-Based Solutions for Climate". UNEP - UN Environment Programme. Retrieved 2024-01-11.</ref> For example, NBS in the context of climate action can include natural flood management, restoring natural coastal defences, providing local cooling, restoring natural fire regimes.<ref name=":13" />^: 310

For instance, the restoration and/or protection of mangroves along coastlines utilises a nature-based solution to accomplish several goals. Mangroves moderate the impact of waves and wind on coastal settlements or cities<ref>Marois, Darryl E.; Mitsch, William J. (2 January 2015). "Coastal protection from tsunamis and cyclones provided by mangrove wetlands – a review". International Journal of Biodiversity Science, Ecosystem Services & Management. 11 (1): 71–83. Bibcode:2015IJBSE..11...71M. doi:10.1080/21513732.2014.997292. ISSN 2151-3732. S2CID 86554474. Archived from the original on 23 November 2021. Retrieved 5 September 2021.</ref> and sequester CO₂.<ref>Inoue, Tomomi (2019), "Carbon Sequestration in Mangroves", Blue Carbon in Shallow Coastal Ecosystems, Singapore: Springer Singapore, pp. 73–99, doi:10.1007/978-981-13-1295-3_3, ISBN 978-981-13-1294-6, S2CID 133839393, archived from the original on 23 November 2021, retrieved 5 September 2021</ref> They also provide nursery zones for marine life that can be the basis for sustaining fisheries on which local populations may depend. Additionally, mangrove forests can help to control coastal erosion resulting from sea level rise. Similarly, green roofs or walls are Nature-based solutions that can be implemented in cities to moderate the impact of high temperatures, capture storm water, abate pollution, and act as carbon sinks, while simultaneously enhancing biodiversity.

NBS are increasingly being incorporated into mainstream national and international policies and programmes (e.g. climate change policy, law, infrastructure investment, and financing mechanisms), with increasing attention being given to NBS by the European Commission since 2013.<ref name=":5">Faivre, Nicolas; Fritz, Marco; Freitas, Tiago; de Boissezon, Birgit; Vandewoestijne, Sofie (2017). "Nature-Based Solutions in the EU: Innovating with nature to address social, economic and environmental challenges". Environmental Research. 159: 509–518. Bibcode:2017ER....159..509F. doi:10.1016/j.envres.2017.08.032. ISSN 0013-9351. PMID 28886502. S2CID 42573101. Archived from the original on 23 November 2021. Retrieved 5 September 2021.</ref> However, NBS still face many implementation barriers and challenges.<ref name=":15">Wamsler, C.; Wickenberg, B.; Hanson, H.; Alkan Olsson, J.; Stålhammar, S.; Björn, H.; Falck, H.; Gerell, D.; Oskarsson, T.; Simonsson, E.; Torffvit, F. (2020). "Environmental and climate policy integration: Targeted strategies for overcoming barriers to nature-based solutions and climate change adaptation". Journal of Cleaner Production. 247: 119154. doi:10.1016/j.jclepro.2019.119154. ISSN 0959-6526.</ref><ref name=":9">Chausson, Alexandre; Turner, Beth; Seddon, Dan; Chabaneix, Nicole; Girardin, Cécile A. J.; Kapos, Valerie; Key, Isabel; Roe, Dilys; Smith, Alison; Woroniecki, Stephen; Seddon, Nathalie (2020-09-09). "Mapping the effectiveness of nature-based solutions for climate change adaptation". Global Change Biology. 26 (11): 6134–6155. Bibcode:2020GCBio..26.6134C. doi:10.1111/gcb.15310. ISSN 1354-1013. PMID 32906226. S2CID 221621517.</ref>

Definition

The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) defines NBS as "actions to protect, sustainably manage, and restore natural or modified ecosystems, that address societal challenges effectively and adaptively, simultaneously providing human well-being and biodiversity benefits".<ref name="Cohen-Shacham10">Cohen-Shacham, E., G. Walters, C. Janzen, S. Maginnis (eds). 2016. Nature-based solutions to address global societal challenges. Gland, Switzerland: IUCN. Xiii + 97 pp. Downloadable from https://portals.iucn.org/library/node/46191 Archived 1 April 2021 at the Wayback Machine</ref> Societal challenges of relevance here include climate change, food security, disaster risk reduction, water security.

In other words: "Nature-based solutions are interventions that use the natural functions of healthy ecosystems to protect the environment but also provide numerous economic and social benefits."<ref>Dubash, N.K., C. Mitchell, E.L. Boasson, M.J. Borbor-Cordova, S. Fifita, E. Haites, M. Jaccard, F. Jotzo, S. Naidoo, P. Romero-Lankao, M. Shlapak, W. Shen, L. Wu, 2022: Chapter 13: National and sub-national policies and institutions. In IPCC, 2022: Climate Change 2022: Mitigation of Climate Change. Contribution of Working Group III to the Sixth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change [P.R. Shukla, J. Skea, R. Slade, A. Al Khourdajie, R. van Diemen, D. McCollum, M. Pathak, S. Some, P. Vyas, R. Fradera, M. Belkacemi, A. Hasija, G. Lisboa, S. Luz, J. Malley, (eds.)]. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK and New York, NY, USA. doi: 10.1017/9781009157926.015</ref>^: 1403 They are used both in the context of climate change mitigation as well as adaptation.<ref>Lecocq, F., H. Winkler, J.P. Daka, S. Fu, J.S. Gerber, S. Kartha, V. Krey, H. Lofgren, T. Masui, R. Mathur, J. Portugal-Pereira, B. K. Sovacool, M. V. Vilariño, N. Zhou, 2022: Chapter 4: Mitigation and development pathways in the near- to mid-term. In IPCC, 2022: Climate Change 2022: Mitigation of Climate Change. Contribution of Working Group III to the Sixth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change [P.R. Shukla, J. Skea, R. Slade, A. Al Khourdajie, R. van Diemen, D. McCollum, M. Pathak, S. Some, P. Vyas, R. Fradera, M. Belkacemi, A. Hasija, G. Lisboa, S. Luz, J. Malley, (eds.)]. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK and New York, NY, USA. doi: 10.1017/9781009157926.006</ref>^: 469

The European Commission's definition of NBS states that these solutions are "inspired and supported by nature, which are cost-effective, simultaneously provide environmental, social and economic benefits and help build resilience. Such solutions bring more, and more diverse, nature and natural features and processes into cities, landscapes, and seascapes, through locally adapted, resource-efficient and systemic interventions".<ref name=":0">"Nature-Based Solutions - European Commission". Archived from the original on 23 September 2019. Retrieved 10 December 2019.</ref> In 2020, the EC definition was updated to further emphasise that "Nature-based solutions must benefit biodiversity and support the delivery of a range of ecosystem services."<ref name=":2">Wild, Tom; Freitas, Tiago; Vandewoestijne, Sofie (2020). Nature-based Solutions - State of the Art in EU-funded Projects (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 11 January 2021. Retrieved 11 January 2021.</ref>

The IPCC Sixth Assessment Report pointed out that the term nature-based solutions is "widely but not universally used in the scientific literature".<ref name=":12">IPCC, 2022: Summary for Policymakers [H.-O. Pörtner, D.C. Roberts, E.S. Poloczanska, K. Mintenbeck, M. Tignor, A. Alegría, M. Craig, S. Langsdorf, S. Löschke, V. Möller, A. Okem (eds.)]. In: Climate Change 2022: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability. Contribution of Working Group II to the Sixth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change [H.-O. Pörtner, D.C. Roberts, M. Tignor, E.S. Poloczanska, K. Mintenbeck, A. Alegría, M. Craig, S. Langsdorf, S. Löschke, V. Möller, A. Okem, B. Rama (eds.)]. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK and New York, NY, USA, pp. 3–33, doi:10.1017/9781009325844.001.</ref>^: 24 As of 2017, the term NBS was still regarded as "poorly defined and vague".<ref>"'Nature-based solutions' is the latest green jargon that means more than you might think". Nature. 541 (7636): 133–134. 2017. Bibcode:2017Natur.541R.133.. doi:10.1038/541133b. ISSN 0028-0836. PMID 28079099. S2CID 4455842.</ref>

The term ecosystem-based adaptation (EbA) is a subset of nature-based solutions and "aims to maintain and increase the resilience and reduce the vulnerability of ecosystems and people in the face of the adverse effects of climate change".<ref name=":13" />^: 284

History of the term

The term nature-based solutions was put forward by practitioners in the late 2000s. At that time it was used by international organisations such as the International Union for Conservation of Nature and the World Bank in the context of finding new solutions to mitigate and adapt to climate change effects by working with natural ecosystems rather than relying purely on engineering interventions.<ref name=":5" /><ref name="MacKinnon11">MacKinnon, K., C. Sobrevila, V. Hickey. 2008. Biodiversity, climate change and adaptation: nature-based solutions from the Word Bank portfolio. Washington D.C.: World Bank.</ref><ref name="Cohen-Shacham10" />^: 3

Many indigenous peoples have recognised the natural environment as playing an important role in human well-being as part of their traditional knowledge systems, but this idea did not enter into modern scientific literature until the 1970's with the concept of ecosystem services.<ref name="Cohen-Shacham10" />^: 2

The IUCN referred to NBS in a position paper for the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.<ref>IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature). 2009. No time to lose – make full use of nature-based solutions in the post-2012 climate change regime. Position paper on the Fifteenth session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP 15). Gland: IUCN.</ref> The term was also adopted by European policymakers, in particular by the European Commission, in a report<ref name="European Commission 2015">European Commission. 2015. Towards an EU Research and Innovation policy agenda for nature-based solutions & re-naturing cities. Final Report of the Horizon2020 Expert Group on Nature-Based Solutions and Re-Naturing Cities. Brussels: European Commission.</ref> stressing that NBS can offer innovative means to create jobs and growth as part of a green economy. The term started to make appearances in the mainstream media around the time of the Global Climate Action Summit in California in September 2018.<ref>"Global Climate Action Summit kicks off today in San Francisco with nature-based solutions high on the agenda". Global Climate Action Summit kicks off today in San Francisco with nature-based solutions high on the agenda. 12 September 2018. Archived from the original on 13 September 2018. Retrieved 13 September 2018.</ref>

Objectives and framing

Nature-bases solutions stress the sustainable use of nature in solving coupled environmental-social-economic challenges.<ref name=":5" /> NBS go beyond traditional biodiversity conservation and management principles by "re-focusing" the debate on humans and specifically integrating societal factors such as human well-being and poverty reduction, socio-economic development, and governance principles.

The general objective of NBS is clear, namely the sustainable management and use of Nature for tackling societal challenges.<ref>IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature). 2016. Resolution 077 World Conservation Congress 2016, Hawai’i (https://portals.iucn.org/congress/motion/077 Archived 2019-08-08 at the Wayback Machine) 17. European Commission. 2016. Horizon2020 Work Programme 2016–2017 – 12. Climate action, environment, resource efficiency & raw materials, 99 pp. (http://ec.europa.eu/research/participants/data/ref/h2020/wp/2016_2017/main/h2020-wp1617-climate_en.pdf Archived 13 December 2016 at the Wayback Machine)</ref> However, different stakeholders view NBS from a variety of perspectives.<ref name=":1" /> For instance, the IUCN puts the need for well-managed and restored ecosystems at the heart of NBS, with the overarching goal of "Supporting the achievement of society's development goals and safeguard human well-being in ways that reflect cultural and societal values and enhance the resilience of ecosystems, their capacity for renewal and the provision of services".<ref name="IUCN16">IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature). 2016. Resolution 077 World Conservation Congress 2016, Hawai’i (https://portals.iucn.org/congress/motion/077 Archived 8 August 2019 at the Wayback Machine)</ref>

The European Commission underlines that NBS can transform environmental and societal challenges into innovation opportunities, by turning natural capital into a source for green growth and sustainable development.<ref name="European Commission 2015" /> Within this viewpoint, nature-based solutions to societal challenges "bring more, and more diverse, nature and natural features and processes into cities, landscapes and seascapes, through locally adapted, resource-efficient and systemic interventions".<ref name="ec.europa.eu">European Commission. 2016. Horizon2020 Work Programme 2016–2017 – 12. Climate action, environment, resource efficiency & raw materials, 99 pp. (http://ec.europa.eu/research/participants/data/ref/h2020/wp/2016_2017/main/h2020-wp1617-climate_en.pdf Archived 13 December 2016 at the Wayback Machine)</ref>

Types

Scientists have proposed a typology to characterise NBS along two gradients:<ref name=":1" />

"How much engineering of biodiversity and ecosystems is involved in NBS", and
"How many ecosystem services and stakeholder groups are targeted by a given NBS".

The typology highlights that NBS can involve very different actions on ecosystems (from protection, to management, or even the creation of new ecosystems) and is based on the assumption that the higher the number of services and stakeholder groups targeted, the lower the capacity to maximise the delivery of each service and simultaneously fulfil the specific needs of all stakeholder groups.

As such, three types of NBS are distinguished (hybrid solutions exist along this gradient both in space and time. For instance, at a landscape scale, mixing protected and managed areas could be required to fulfill multi-functionality and sustainability goals):

Type 1 – Minimal intervention in ecosystems

Type 1 consists of no or minimal intervention in ecosystems, with the objectives of maintaining or improving the delivery of a range of ecosystem services both inside and outside of these conserved ecosystems. Examples include the protection of mangroves in coastal areas to limit risks associated with extreme weather conditions; and the establishment of marine protected areas to conserve biodiversity within these areas while exporting fish and other biomass into fishing grounds. This type of NBS is connected to, for example, the concept of biosphere reserves.

Type 2 – Some interventions in ecosystems and landscapes

Type 2 corresponds to management approaches that develop sustainable and multifunctional ecosystems and landscapes (extensively or intensively managed). These types improve the delivery of selected ecosystem services compared to what would be obtained through a more conventional intervention. Examples include innovative planning of agricultural landscapes to increase their multi-functionality; using existing agrobiodiversity to increase biodiversity, connectivity, and resilience in landscapes; and approaches for enhancing tree species and genetic diversity to increase forest resilience to extreme events. This type of NBS is strongly connected to concepts like agroforestry.

Type 3 – Managing ecosystems in extensive ways

Type 3 consists of managing ecosystems in very extensive ways or even creating new ecosystems (e.g., artificial ecosystems with new assemblages of organisms for green roofs and walls to mitigate city warming and clean polluted air). Type 3 is linked to concepts like green and blue infrastructures and objectives like restoration of heavily degraded or polluted areas and greening cities. Constructed wetlands are one example for a Type 3 NBS.

Applications

Climate change mitigation and adaptation

The 2019 UN Climate Action Summit highlighted nature-based solutions as an effective method to combat climate change.<ref name=":14" /> For example, NBS in the context of climate action can include natural flood management, restoring natural coastal defences, providing local cooling, restoring natural fire regimes.<ref name=":13" />^: 310

The Paris Agreement calls on all Parties to recognise the role of natural ecosystems in providing services such as that of carbon sinks.<ref>Harris, Duchess (15 December 2018). The Paris climate agreement. ISBN 978-1-5321-5964-0. OCLC 1101137974.</ref> Article 5.2 encourages Parties to adopt conservation and management as a tool for increasing carbon stocks and Article 7.1 encourages Parties to build the resilience of socioeconomic and ecological systems through economic diversification and sustainable management of natural resources.<ref name="Article3">Paris Agreement (2015), Paris, France</ref> The Agreement refers to nature (ecosystems, natural resources, forests) in 13 distinct places. An in-depth analysis <ref>"Nature-Based Solutions Policy Platform". www.nbspolicyplatform.org. Archived from the original on 2020-05-24. Retrieved 13 September 2018.</ref> of all Nationally Determined Contributions<ref>"Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) | UNFCCC". unfccc.int. Archived from the original on 13 September 2018. Retrieved 13 September 2018.</ref> submitted to UNFCCC, revealed that around 130 NDCs or 65% of signatories commit to nature-based solutions in their climate pledges. This suggests a broad consensus for the role of nature in helping to meet climate change goals. However, high-level commitments rarely translate into robust, measurable actions on-the-ground.<ref>"Ecosystem-based adaptation: a win–win formula for sustainability in a warming world?". July 2016. Archived from the original on 13 September 2018. Retrieved 13 September 2018.</ref>

A global systemic map of evidence was produced to determine and illustrate the effectiveness of NBS for climate change adaptation.<ref name=":9" /> After sorting through 386 case studies with computer programs, the study found that NBS were just as, if not more, effective than traditional or alternative flood management strategies.<ref name=":9" /> 66% of cases evaluated reported positive ecological outcomes, 24% did not identify a change in ecological conditions and less than 1% reported negative impacts. Furthermore, NBS always had better social and climate change mitigation impacts.<ref name=":9" />

In the 2019 UN Climate Action Summit, nature-based solutions were one of the main topics covered, and were discussed as an effective method to combat climate change. A "Nature-Based Solution Coalition" was created, including dozens of countries, led by China and New Zealand.<ref name=":14" />

Urban areas

Since around 2017, many studies have proposed ways of planning and implementing nature-based solutions in urban areas.<ref name=":3">Raymond, Christopher M.; Frantzeskaki, Niki; Kabisch, Nadja; Berry, Pam; Breil, Margaretha; Nita, Mihai Razvan; Geneletti, Davide; Calfapietra, Carlo (2017). "A framework for assessing and implementing the co-benefits of nature-based solutions in urban areas". Environmental Science & Policy. 77: 15–24. doi:10.1016/j.envsci.2017.07.008. hdl:11572/200028. ISSN 1462-9011. S2CID 55764441. Archived from the original on 23 November 2021. Retrieved 5 September 2021.</ref><ref>Bush, Judy; Doyon, Andréanne (2019). "Building urban resilience with nature-based solutions: How can urban planning contribute?". Cities. 95: 102483. doi:10.1016/j.cities.2019.102483. hdl:11343/233228. ISSN 0264-2751. S2CID 211385632. Archived from the original on 23 November 2021. Retrieved 5 September 2021.</ref><ref name=":4">Frantzeskaki, Niki (2019). "Seven lessons for planning nature-based solutions in cities". Environmental Science & Policy. 93: 101–111. doi:10.1016/j.envsci.2018.12.033. ISSN 1462-9011.</ref>

It is crucial that grey infrastructures continue to be used with green infrastructure.<ref name=":10">Chen, Wenjie; Wang, Weiqi; Huang, Guoru; Wang, Zhaoli; Lai, Chengguang; Yang, Zhiyong (2021-02-15). "The capacity of grey infrastructure in urban flood management: A comprehensive analysis of grey infrastructure and the green-grey approach". International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction. 54: 102045. Bibcode:2021IJDRR..5402045C. doi:10.1016/j.ijdrr.2021.102045. ISSN 2212-4209. S2CID 234190451.</ref> Multiple studies recognise that while NBS is very effective and improves flood resilience, it is unable to act alone and must be in coordination with grey infrastructure.<ref name=":10" /><ref>Kourtis, Ioannis M.; Bellos, Vasilis; Kopsiaftis, George; Psiloglou, Basil; Tsihrintzis, Vassilios A. (2021-12-01). "Methodology for holistic assessment of grey-green flood mitigation measures for climate change adaptation in urban basins". Journal of Hydrology. 603: 126885. Bibcode:2021JHyd..60326885K. doi:10.1016/j.jhydrol.2021.126885. ISSN 0022-1694. S2CID 239659097.</ref> Using green infrastructure alone or grey infrastructure alone are less effective than when the two are used together.<ref name=":10" /> When NBS is used alongside grey infrastructure the benefits transcend flood management and improve social conditions, increase carbon sequestration and prepare cities for planning for resilience.<ref name=":8" />

In the 1970s a popular approach in the U.S. was that of Best Management Practices (BMP) for using nature as a model for infrastructure and development while the UK had a model for flood management called "sustainable drainage systems".<ref name=":7">Qi, Yunfei; Chan, Faith Ka Shun; Thorne, Colin; O’Donnell, Emily; Quagliolo, Carlotta; Comino, Elena; Pezzoli, Alessandro; Li, Lei; Griffiths, James; Sang, Yanfang; Feng, Meili (October 2020). "Addressing Challenges of Urban Water Management in Chinese Sponge Cities via Nature-Based Solutions". Water. 12 (10): 2788. doi:10.3390/w12102788.</ref> Another framework called "Water Sensitive Urban Design" (WSUD) came out of Australia in the 1990s while Low Impact Development (LID) came out of the U.S.<ref name=":7" /> Eventually New Zealand reframed LID to create "Low Impact Urban Design and Development" (LIUDD) with a focus on using diverse stakeholders as a foundation. Then in the 2000s the western hemisphere largely adopted "Green Infrastructure" for stormwater management as well as enhancing social, economic and environmental conditions for sustainability.<ref name=":7" />

In a Chinese National Government program, the Sponge Cities Program, planners are using green grey infrastructure in 30 Chinese cities as a way to manage pluvial flooding and climate change risk after rapid urbanization.<ref name=":7" />

Water management aspects

With respect to water issues, NBS can achieve the following:<ref>UN-Water (2018) World Water Development Report 2018 Archived 8 September 2019 at the Wayback Machine, Geneva, Switzerland</ref>

Use natural processes to enhance water availability (e.g., soil moisture retention, groundwater recharge),
Improve water quality (e.g., natural wetlands and constructed wetlands to treat wastewater; riparian buffer strips), and
Reduce risks associated with water‐related disasters and climate change (e.g., floodplain restoration, green roofs).

The UN has also tried to promote a shift in perspective towards NBS: the theme for World Water Day 2018 was "Nature for Water", while UN-Water's accompanying UN World Water Development Report was titled "Nature-based Solutions for Water".<ref>UN-Water (2018) World Water Development Report 2018: Nature-based Solutions for Water Archived 8 September 2019 at the Wayback Machine, Geneva, Switzerland</ref>

For example, the Lancaster Environment Centre has implemented catchments at different scales on flood basins in conjunction with modelling software that allows observers to calculate the factor by which the floodplain expanded during two storm events. The idea is to divert higher floods flows into expandable areas of storage in the landscape.<ref name=":8">Hankin, Barry; Page, Trevor; McShane, Gareth; Chappell, Nick; Spray, Chris; Black, Andrew; Comins, Luke (2021-08-01). "How can we plan resilient systems of nature-based mitigation measures in larger catchments for flood risk reduction now and in the future?". Water Security. 13: 100091. Bibcode:2021WatSe..1300091H. doi:10.1016/j.wasec.2021.100091. ISSN 2468-3124. S2CID 238840688.</ref>

Forest restoration for multiple benefits

Forest restoration can benefit both biodiversity and human livelihoods (eg. providing food, timber and medicinal products). Diverse, native tree species are also more likely to be resilient to climate change than plantation forests. Agricultural expansion has been the main driver of deforestation globally.<ref name="FAO & UNEP-2020">The State of the World's Forests 2020. Forests, biodiversity and people – In brief. Rome: FAO & UNEP. 2020. doi:10.4060/ca8985en. ISBN 978-92-5-132707-4. S2CID 241416114.</ref> Forest loss has been estimated at around 4.7 million ha per year in 2010–2020. Over the same period, Asia had the highest net gain of forest area followed by Oceania and Europe.<ref name="GFRA2020">"Global Forest Resource Assessment 2020". www.fao.org. Retrieved 20 September 2020.</ref> Forest restoration, as part of national development strategies, can help countries achieve sustainable development goals.<ref>IUCN (2019), Forest landscape restoration pathways to achieving the SDGs, INTERNATIONAL UNION FOR CONSERVATION OF NATURE</ref> For example, in Rwanda, the Rwanda Natural Resources Authority, World Resources Institute and IUCN have began a program in 2015 for forest landscape restoration as a national priority. NBS approaches used were ecological restoration and ecosystem-based mitigation and the program was meant to address the following societal issues: food security, water security, disaster risk reduction.<ref name="Cohen-Shacham10" />^: 50 The Great Green Wall, a joint campaign among African countries to combat desertification launched in 2007.

Implementation

A number of studies and reports have proposed principles and frameworks to guide effective and appropriate implementation.<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":4" /><ref name="Cohen-Shacham10" />^: 5 One primary principle, for example, is that NBS seek to embrace, rather than replace, nature conservation norms.<ref>Anderson, Carl C.; Renaud, Fabrice G. (19 February 2021). "A review of public acceptance of nature-based solutions: The 'why', 'when', and 'how' of success for disaster risk reduction measures". Ambio. 50 (8): 1552–1573. Bibcode:2021Ambio..50.1552A. doi:10.1007/s13280-021-01502-4. ISSN 0044-7447. PMC 8249538. PMID 33606249. Archived from the original on 23 November 2021. Retrieved 5 September 2021.</ref><ref name=":6">Cohen-Shacham, Emmanuelle; Andrade, Angela; Dalton, James; Dudley, Nigel; Jones, Mike; Kumar, Chetan; Maginnis, Stewart; Maynard, Simone; Nelson, Cara R.; Renaud, Fabrice G.; Welling, Rebecca (2019). "Core principles for successfully implementing and upscaling Nature-based Solutions". Environmental Science & Policy. 98: 20–29. doi:10.1016/j.envsci.2019.04.014. ISSN 1462-9011. S2CID 182716739.</ref> NBS can be implemented alone or in an integrated manner along with other solutions to societal challenges (e.g. technological and engineering solutions) and are applied at the landscape scale.

Researchers have pointed out that "instead of framing NBS as an alternative to engineered approaches, we should focus on finding synergies among different solutions".<ref>Seddon, Nathalie; Chausson, Alexandre; Berry, Pam; Girardin, Cécile A. J.; Smith, Alison; Turner, Beth (2020). "Understanding the value and limits of nature-based solutions to climate change and other global challenges". Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences. 375 (1794): 20190120. doi:10.1098/rstb.2019.0120. ISSN 0962-8436. PMC 7017763. PMID 31983344.</ref>

The concept of NBS is gaining acceptance outside the conservation community (e.g. urban planning) and is now on its way to be mainstreamed into policies and programmes (climate change policy, law, infrastructure investment, and financing mechanisms),<ref name=":2" /><ref name=":5" /><ref>Dhyani, Shalini; Karki, Madhav; Gupta, Anil Kumar (2020), "Opportunities and Advances to Mainstream Nature-Based Solutions in Disaster Risk Management and Climate Strategy", Nature-based Solutions for Resilient Ecosystems and Societies, Disaster Resilience and Green Growth, Singapore: Springer Singapore, pp. 1–26, doi:10.1007/978-981-15-4712-6_1, ISBN 978-981-15-4711-9, S2CID 226611591, archived from the original on 23 November 2021, retrieved 5 September 2021</ref> although NBS still face many implementation barriers and challenges.<ref name=":15" /><ref name=":9" />

Multiple case studies have demonstrated that NBS can be more economically viable than traditional technological infrastructures.<ref name=":8" /><ref>Costa, Sandra; Peters, Rik; Martins, Ricardo; Postmes, Luuk; Keizer, Jan Jacob; Roebeling, Peter (March 2021). "Effectiveness of Nature-Based Solutions on Pluvial Flood Hazard Mitigation: The Case Study of the City of Eindhoven (The Netherlands)". Resources. 10 (3): 24. doi:10.3390/resources10030024.</ref>

Implementation of NBS requires measures like adaptation of economic subsidy schemes, and the creation of opportunities for conservation finance, to name a few.<ref name=":6" />

Using geographic information systems (GIS)

NBS are also determined by site-specific natural and cultural contexts that include traditional, local and scientific knowledge. Geographic information systems (GIS) can be used as an analysis tool to determine sites that may succeed as NBS.<ref name=":11">Mubeen, Adam; Ruangpan, Laddaporn; Vojinovic, Zoran; Sanchez Torrez, Arlex; Plavšić, Jasna (2021-08-01). "Planning and Suitability Assessment of Large-scale Nature-based Solutions for Flood-risk Reduction". Water Resources Management. 35 (10): 3063–3081. Bibcode:2021WatRM..35.3063M. doi:10.1007/s11269-021-02848-w. ISSN 1573-1650. S2CID 235781989.</ref> GIS can function in such a way that site conditions including slope gradients, water bodies, land use and soils are taken into account in analyzing for suitability.<ref name=":11" /> The resulting maps are often used in conjunction with historic flood maps to determine the potential of floodwater storage capacity on specific sites using 3D modeling tools.<ref name=":11" />

Projects supported by the European Union

Since 2016, the EU has supported a multi-stakeholder dialogue platform (ThinkNature<ref>"ThinkNature | Platform for Nature-Based Solutions". ThinkNature. Archived from the original on 5 September 2021. Retrieved 5 September 2021.</ref>) to promote the co-design, testing, and deployment of improved and innovative NBS in an integrated way.<ref name=":0" /> The creation of such science-policy-business-society interfaces could promote market uptake of NBS.<ref>Nikolaidis, Nikolaos P.; Kolokotsa, Dionyssia; Banwart, Steven A. (16 March 2017). "Nature-based solutions: business". Nature. 543 (7645): 315. Bibcode:2017Natur.543..315N. doi:10.1038/543315d. ISSN 0028-0836. PMID 28300105.</ref> The project was part of the EU’s Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation programme, and ran for 3 years.

In 2017, as part of the Presidency of the Estonian Republic of the Council of the European Union, a conference called "Nature-based Solutions: From Innovation to Common-use" was organised by the Ministry of the Environment of Estonia and the University of Tallinn.<ref>"Nature-Based Solutions, Tallinn, 24–26 October 2017". Archived from the original on 21 June 2018. Retrieved 21 March 2018.</ref> This conference aimed to strengthen synergies among various recent initiatives and programs related to NBS, focusing on policy and governance of NBS, research, and innovation.

Concerns

The Indigenous Environmental Network has stated that "Nature-based solutions (NBS) is a greenwashing tool that does not address the root causes of climate change." and "The legacy of colonial power continues through nature-based solutions."<ref>Nam Pham, Tamra Gilbertson, Joshua Witchger, Elisa Soto-Danseco, and Tom BK Goldtooth (2022) Nature-based solutions. Indigenous Environmental Network Climate Justice Program Briefing Series</ref> For example, NBS activities can involve converting non-forest land into forest plantations (for climate change mitigation) but this carries risks of climate injustice through taking land away from smallholders and pastoralists.<ref>Ara Begum, R., R. Lempert, E. Ali, T.A. Benjaminsen, T. Bernauer, W. Cramer, X. Cui, K. Mach, G. Nagy, N.C. Stenseth, R. Sukumar, and P.Wester, 2022: Chapter 1: Point of Departure and Key Concepts. In: Climate Change 2022: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability. Contribution of Working Group II to the Sixth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change [H.-O. Pörtner, D.C. Roberts, M. Tignor, E.S. Poloczanska, K. Mintenbeck, A. Alegría, M. Craig, S. Langsdorf, S. Löschke, V. Möller, A. Okem, B. Rama (eds.)]. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK and New York, NY, USA, pp. 121–196, doi:10.1017/9781009325844.003.</ref>^: 163

However, the IPCC pointed out that the term is "the subject of ongoing debate, with concerns that it may lead to the misunderstanding that NbS on its own can provide a global solution to climate change".<ref name=":12" />^: 24 To clarify this point further, the IPCC also stated that "nature-based systems cannot be regarded as an alternative to, or a reason to delay, deep cuts in GHG emissions".<ref name=":13">Parmesan, C., M.D. Morecroft, Y. Trisurat, R. Adrian, G.Z. Anshari, A. Arneth, Q. Gao, P. Gonzalez, R. Harris, J. Price, N. Stevens, and G.H. Talukdarr, 2022: Chapter 2: Terrestrial and Freshwater Ecosystems and Their Services. In: Climate Change 2022: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability. Contribution of Working Group II to the Sixth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change [H.-O. Pörtner, D.C. Roberts, M. Tignor, E.S. Poloczanska, K. Mintenbeck, A. Alegría, M. Craig, S. Langsdorf, S. Löschke, V. Möller, A. Okem, B. Rama (eds.)]. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK and New York, NY, USA, pp. 197–377, doi:10.1017/9781009325844.004.</ref>^: 203

The majority of case studies and examples of NBS are from the Global North, resulting in a lack of data for many medium- and low-income nations.<ref name=":9" /> Consequently, many ecosystems and climates are excluded from existing studies as well as cost analyses in these locations. Further research needs to be conducted in the Global South to determine the efficacy of NBS on climate, social and ecological standards.

Related concepts

NBS is closely related to concepts like ecosystem approaches and ecological engineering.<ref name=":1" /> This includes concepts such as ecosystem-based adaptation<ref name=":13" />^: 284 and green infrastructure.<ref name="Benedict7">Benedict, M.A., E.T. McMahon. 2006. Green Infrastructure: linking landscapes and communities. Washington D.C.: Island.</ref>

For instance, ecosystem-based approaches are increasingly promoted for climate change adaptation and mitigation by organisations like the United Nations Environment Programme and non-governmental organisations such as The Nature Conservancy. These organisations refer to "policies and measures that take into account the role of ecosystem services in reducing the vulnerability of society to climate change, in a multi-sectoral and multi-scale approach".<ref name="Cowan3">Cowan C., C. Epple, H. Korn, R. Schliep, J. Stadler (Eds.). 2010. Working with nature to tackle climate change. Report of the ENCA/BfN Workshop on "Developing ecosystem-based approaches to climate change – Why, what and how, https://www.bfn.de/fileadmin/MDB/documents/service/Skript264.pdf Archived 26 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine". Bonn: Bundesamt für Naturschutz.</ref>

References

External links

Nature-based solutions in the context of climate change:

Nature-based Solutions Initiative - interdisciplinary programme of research, education and policy advice based in the Departments of Biology and Geography at the University of Oxford
An Introduction to Nature-based Solutions (by weADAPT)
Shortfilm by Greta Thunberg and George Monbiot: Nature Now 2020
Q&A: Can ‘nature-based solutions’ help address climate change? by CarbonBrief. 2021.

Nature-based solutions in other contexts:

Sustainable cities: Nature-based solutions in urban design (The Nature Conservancy): https://vimeo.com/155849692
Video: Think Nature: A guide to using nature-based solutions (IUCN)

Category of NBS approaches	Examples
Ecosystem restoration approaches	Ecological restoration, ecological engineering, forest landscape restoration
Issue-specific ecosystem-related approaches	Ecosystem-based adaptation, ecosystem-based mitigation, climate adaptation services, ecosystem-based disaster risk reduction
Infrastructure-related approaches	Natural infrastructure, green infrastructure
Ecosystem-based management approaches	Integrated coastal zone management, integrated water resources management
Ecosystem protection approaches	Area-based conservation approaches including protected area management

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