SUSTAINABILITY

IMAGE: Daniel Funes Fuentes

Nature-based solutions are key to future policymaking

November 18, 2022

 

By Nea Pakarinen

Senior Communications Officer, ICLEI Europe

Nature-based solutions (NBS) are firmly on the agenda of the EU, and politicians are expected to include them in national, local- and regional policies in the future. How to get on top of the NBS game and address the barriers that one might encounter in their implementation? NetworkNature, an EU-funded project supporting the nature-based solutions community has gathered information to help policymakers integrate NBS more readily in their planning.

 

Nature-based solutions according to the European Commission are solutions inspired and supported by nature, and provide a multitude of benefits and bring nature in to cities, landscapes and seascapes.  They are also increasingly integrated in climate change adaptation strategies. What strategies should policy makers take note of in the coming years? Nature-based solutions are integral to achieving the goals of the European Green Deal, and specifically its sub-components; EU Biodiversity Strategy, EU Strategy on Adaptation to Climate Change, and the Farm-to-Fork Strategy. Nature-based solutions are either explicitly or implicitly (i.e. via use of other related terms) supported by most primarily policies in the EU environmental and climate change legislative framework.

 

In the agricultural and rural development field, the current EU Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), has elements that are integral to nature-based solutions such as more diverse use of crops and agro-forestry. The upcoming CAP (January 2023) is expected to take further steps towards achieving a green and sustainable system of agriculture in the EU, with additional provisions that can support nature-based solutions.

 

The below table (adapted from EEA Report 1/2021) describes the integration of nature-based solutions in current policies in the EU.

 

 

Last but not least - the newly proposed and greatly anticipated EU Nature Restoration Law would set legally binding targets to conserve and protect pollinators, wetlands, rivers, forests, marine ecosystems, urban areas and peatlands. The proposed Nature Restoration Law, constitutes the first ever legal requirement for large-scale nature restoration with the aim of ensuring no further deterioration of hitherto protected habitats and species. The Law aims to introduce area-based restoration measures for at least 20% of the EU’s land and sea area by 2030, and all ecosystems in need of restoration by 2050. Nature-based solutions are great tool to help achieve the targets of the proposed law, while also contributing to climate adaptation and mitigation. Learn more about the implications of the proposed EU Nature Restoration Law in the NetworkNature Policy Brief: The proposed EU Nature Restoration Law: what role for cities and regions?

 

How to take these strategies into account in policymaking on a national, regional and local level? The Urban Governance Atlas, developed within the EU-funded Interlace project, provides an interactive online database of good practice policy instruments to foster nature-based solutions in cities. An example of a relevant instrument shared through the platform are the funding guidelines of the city of Chemnitz (Germany) for the granting of a subsidy for façade greening. This financial instrument can foster the installation of green facades in the urban area, which may provide an inspiration for other cities and sub-national governments aiming to increase urban greening in the form of nature-based solutions. NetworkNature has the following key suggestions for policymakers and practitioners to spread the use of nature-based solutions:

 

  1. Leverage resources to develop tools to estimate impacts, benefits and cost-effectiveness of NBS in quantitative terms across ecosystems
  2. Dedicate research funding to increase knowledge and monitoring of climate change mitigation potential of NBS across ecosystem types
  3. Support targeted training and sharing of NBS best practices with key stakeholders
  4. Enable financing resources for NBS interventions
  5. Establish standardisation for NBS
  6. Integrate concrete NBS provisions in policies at all levels.

 

Want to be at the forefront of utilising the innovative nature-based solutions shaping a sustainable future? Check-out the NetworkNature Knowledge Brief: Taking nature-based solutions up the policy ladder: from research to policy action to learn more.

 

 

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