Globally, urban areas are under growing strain from climate change, environmental damage, and health emergencies. These challenges have exposed vulnerabilities in current urban systems, particularly the lack of accessible green spaces (Sommese, 2024). Nature-based Solutions (NbS) are increasingly recognized as a key strategy for tackling these problems and creating more resilient, pleasant cities. With growing interest in using nature to fight climate change and biodiversity loss (Yang et al., 2024), nature-based solutions offer a sustainable way to lessen the impact of climate change, improve biodiversity, and support human well-being.
Urban areas are increasingly impacted by climate change, with rising urbanization intensifying environmental stressors such as surface runoff, reduced soil evaporation, and the urban heat island effect. These impermeable urban systems exacerbate health risks and environmental challenges, including air pollution and water scarcity (Sommese, 2024). Additionally, cities are vulnerable to sea-level rise, flooding, and erosion due to their coastal locations, further stressing infrastructure and amplifying social inequalities (UNEP, 2024).
Accessible green spaces gained renewed prominence during the COVID-19 pandemic for their ability to enhance urban health and strengthen social resilience. Offering areas for recreation, physical activity, and stress management, these spaces also mitigate climate impacts like heat waves and flooding. They are indispensable for improving urban quality of life and addressing both health crises and climate adaptation demands (Sommese, 2024).
Nature-based Solutions are defined as “sustainable practices that utilize ecosystems and biodiversity to mitigate and adapt to climate change, increase the resilience of cities, and improve well-being, even during pandemics” (Sommese, 2024). The concept, while rooted in traditional practices, has gained prominence in recent years. “Such attempts are not a new concept and have existed, which can be found in various regions where residents have used nature to solve problems” (e.g., Berkes et al., 2000; Albuquerque et al., 2021, as cited in Yang et al., 2024). “However, since the term ‘nature-based solutions (NbS)” was first coined in a World Bank report in 2008 (MacKinnon et al., 2008), there have been more studies using this term, and recently, it has evolved into a political agenda in international communities.” (Seddon et al., 2020, 2021, as cited in Yang et al., 2024).
The Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) (2019) has introduced nature-based solutions as a cost-effective measure to achieve sustainable development goals (SDGs), which are essential for global sustainability.” (Yang et al., 2024). “The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) (2022) has also accepted with very high confidence that NbS can provide human beings with benefits for climate change mitigation and adaptation and contribute to achieving other SDGs” (Yang et al., 2024). International bodies like the IUCN and the European Commission have offered definitions, with the IUCN defining 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. (Cohen-Shacham et al., 2016, as cited in Yang et al., 2024). ” The EC defines NbS as “solutions that are inspired and supported by nature, which are cost-effective, simultaneously provide environmental, social, and economic benefits, and help build resilience” (European Commission EC, 2023, as cited in Yang et al., 2024).
Despite the ongoing debate on the definition, the research area of NbS, which attempts to solve social issues based on nature, has already been widely recognized” (Yang et al., 2024). Nature-based solutions encompass a wide range of fields, including climate change mitigation, water security, human health, disaster risk reduction, and food security” (Pettorelli et al., 2021, as cited in Yang et al., 2024). This includes addressing challenges like greenhouse gas reduction, flood and erosion control, coastal defense, and ensuring food and water security” (Seddon et al., 2021, as cited in Yang et al., 2024).
Research indicates that Nature-based Solutions are being applied in governance and infrastructure building to solve urban issues, various measures to solve water problems such as wastewater, coastal erosion, flooding, carbon sequestration to address climate change, and agriculture for sustainable coexistence with biodiversity” (Yang et al., 2024). “While Nature-based Solutions have been mainly focused on solving urban and water-related issues, they have been gradually expanding to other fields based on the connections with NbS; especially, carbon sequestration in response to climate change was confirmed to be the fastest-growing field” (Yang et al., 2024).
While research on Nature-based Solutions is growing, a holistic approach that considers both climate change and health emergencies in the context of the entire built environment is still lacking. As Sommese (2024) points out, “The analysis of the recent scientific literature shows the lack of a holistic approach and a specific taxonomic framework for NbSs adapted to the challenges of the built environment in pandemics and climate change.” To address this gap, a comprehensive and multifunctional approach is needed, one that considers both building and city-level interventions. Potential trade-offs, if any, between ecosystem services and management actions, such as biodiversity and positive GHG outcomes, should be explored to ensure the best realization of desired goals” (Buma et al., 2024).
Despite diverse publications on Nature-based Solutions (Bayulken et al. 2021), its theoretical and practical implementation in planning remains constrained and often confined to a few pioneering case study cities (Grace et al. 2021)” (Corgo et al., 2024). Barriers to Nature-based Solutions adoption include a scarcity of qualified implementation cases, measurable outcomes, institutional obstacles, and a lack of political will and community awareness” (Corgo et al., 2024). Due to a lack of familiarity and negative opinions regarding Nature-based Solutions within communities, the expansion of these solutions is often impeded by a lack of awareness (Corgo et al., 2024). The lack of a clear understanding of NbS benefits contributes to the hesitancy in their adoption (Albert et al. 2019; Escobedo et al. 2019; Sarabi et al. 2020; Grace et al. 2021)” (Corgo et al., 2024). To guarantee a comprehensive grasp, effective communication, and successful implementation of NbS, the IUCN developed its Global Standard (IUCN 2020a, 2020b).” (Corgo et al., 2024).
Corgo et al. (2024) noted that while Nature-based Solutions hold promise, a key weakness lies in the insufficient monitoring and evaluation of their actual impact on various societal problems, hindering their widespread adoption in spatial planning. However, Corgo et al. (2024) also stated that to improve the effectiveness of NbS in climate change adaptation (CCA), it is essential to acknowledge the importance of transformative capacity, as it encourages the creation of novel approaches for tackling difficult and long-standing climate-related issues.
In their review of global, European, and Portuguese policies, Corgo et al. (2024) examined the current application of Nature-based Solutions (NbS) for Climate Change Adaptation (CCA). Their research reinforced the crucial nature of closing the gap between policy objectives and practical implementation. While Nature-based Solutions offer a promising approach to tackling environmental and climate issues, including the linked problems of climate change and biodiversity loss, measuring their success is difficult (Corgo et al., 2024). Despite the European Commission’s work on defining indicators for Nature-based Solutions (NbS), the absence of clear indicators and evaluation tools to measure their effectiveness remains a key barrier to their widespread adoption and assessment (Castellari et al. 2021; Corgo et al., 2024; EC 2021; Somarakis et al. 2019).
Regardless of the proliferation of policies valuing Nature-based Solutions, the application of its principles to actual practice is often hampered by governance fragmentation and the absence of standardized evaluation methods” (Corgo et al., 2024). Inconsistent policies and fragmented governance mechanisms hinder the effective coordination and financing needed to fully leverage the potential of NbS for CCA (Trémolet 2019)” (Corgo et al., 2024). Most EU policies, while explicitly mentioning NbS or its associated concepts, are primarily non-binding instruments related to NbS (Castellari et al. 2021; Davies et al. 2021). EU policies are widely based on voluntary actions and often lack quantitative and measurable goals for Nature-based Solutions development and quality (Calliari et al. 2022).” (Corgo et al., 2024).
Ultimately, the goal of implementing Nature-based Solutions is to enhance urban resilience. Resilience, in this context, is “the capacity of individuals, communities, institutions, businesses, and systems within a city to survive, adapt, and grow no matter what kinds of chronic stresses and acute shocks they experience” (Sommese, 2024). By proactively planning and implementing adaptation strategies, such as sustainable water management systems and accessible green spaces, cities can better withstand and recover from the impacts of climate change and future health crises. Climate change mitigation efforts, like reducing greenhouse gas emissions and switching to renewable energy sources, are also important components of urban resilience as they help to prevent future climate disasters (Sommese, 2024).
Nature-Based Solutions offer a promising avenue for addressing climate change while simultaneously providing a wealth of co-benefits (Buma et al., 2024). The key to unlocking their full potential lies in bridging the implementation gap through comprehensive planning, rigorous monitoring and evaluation, and supportive policy frameworks. By grounding Nature-based Solutions initiatives in robust science and addressing the challenges of practical application, we can maximize their potential to contribute to climate change mitigation and achieve a more sustainable and resilient future.
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