Bibliography
Welcome to our interactive bibliography. Here you can explore publications relating to Nature-based Solutions and their potential to address societal challenges, including climate change adaptation & mitigation, disaster risk reduction, ecosystem health, food & water security, and human wellbeing & development. For papers and other outputs directly produced by the Nature-based Solutions Initiative please visit our outputs page.
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Editorial: Special issue: Nature-based solutions for reducing disaster risk. What is the evidence?
Nature-Based Solutions (2025). Review.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nbsj.2024.100207.Abstract
Nearly two decades ago, the Indian Ocean tsunami created a devastating human tragedy, leaving many questions in its wake as to the role that mangroves may have played in saving lives and livelihoods. Over the following decade, these questions led to the creation of a new field of study: the role of ecosystems in disaster risk reduction, or Eco-DRR. After 2020, Eco-DRR became quasi-synonymous with ‘Nature-based Solutions for disaster risk reduction’, with a few notable differences. What changed as a result of the Indian Ocean tsunami was an increased awareness that ecosystems could – and should – be part of discourse and portfolios of investments in disaster risk reduction (DRR). Over the next two decades, this awareness grew in three phases: 1) 2005–2014: the ‘convincing stage’; 2) 2015–2020: the ‘mainstreaming stage’ 3) 2020: ‘the blue-printing stage’. This collection of articles highlights research on the evidence of the effectiveness of ecosystem approaches for DRR, while addressing the above question: “how to implement”?
Climate change adaptationDisaster risk reductionThe role of healthy wetlands in mitigating volcanic tephra impacts in Northern Patagonia
Nature-Based Solutions (2025). Original Research.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nbsj.2024.100205Abstract
In natural grasslands under extensive grazing, volcanic events pose risks to livestock health and production. Volcanic tephra tends to persist and remain remobilized for years in arid and semi-arid environments, which can be problematic. Healthy wet meadow-wetlands developed in the bottom valleys of Northern Patagonia, Argentina, offer a natural solution for mitigating volcanic tephra impacts. By combining existing geographic information (North Patagonia wetland distribution map and tephra fallout deposit map), the extent of wet meadows affected by the 2011 Puyehue-Cordón Caulle Volcanic Complex (PCCVC) volcano was calculated. The regional amount of available forage in the aftermath of the eruption was estimated through field assessments of aerial net primary production (ANPP); this was conducted during the first peak of plant growth after the PCCVC volcanic event in 5 m x 5 m paired plots, both with and without manually removed tephra a month after the event. To compare the tephra effect on vegetation type throughout time, normalized vegetation index (NDVI) was used to monitor plant activity two years before, the following year, and five years after the PCCVC event in wet meadows and surrounding steppes. In addition, the regional amount of tephra removed from the environment and stabilized in the soil was assessed using prior research findings of ash immobilization and stabilization within meadow soil profiles five years after the PCCVC event. Around 106,000 ha (52%) of North Patagonian meadows were identified to be exposed to volcanic hazard. The plant growing season following the eruption generated, on average, 3929±2146 kg DM ha−1, indicating an active functional wet meadow recovery despite a 25-20% reduction in ANPP due to the tephra effect. NDVI data supported these findings, with the historical maximum level (0.46±0.02) being restored the year following the event, while surrounding steppes recovered at least three years after. Healthy wet meadows mitigated the adverse effects of around 2279 tons of regional tephra, while simultaneously providing nearly half a billion tons of fodder production the year following the eruption- a critical period of cattle food scarcity. These findings highlight the reduction of negative impacts following recurrent volcanic eruptions and underscore the positive effects of conserving, restoring, and sustainably managing wetlands as a Nature-Based Solution for Disaster Risk Reduction.
Disaster risk reductionEcosystem healthGrasslandWetlandA menu of standards for green infrastructure in England: effective and equitable or a race to the bottom?
Frontiers in Environmental Science (2025). Original Research.
https://doi.org/10.3389/fenvs.2024.1456519Abstract
Multi-functional urban green infrastructure (GI) can deliver nature-based solutions that help address climate change, while providing wider benefits for human health and biodiversity. However, this will only be achieved effectively, sustainably and equitably if GI is carefully planned, implemented and maintained to a high standard, in partnership with stakeholders. This paper draws on original research into the design of a menu of GI standards for England, commissioned by Natural England—a United Kingdom Government agency. It describes the evolution of the standards within the context of United Kingdom government policy initiatives for nature and climate. We show how existing standards and guidelines were curated into a comprehensive framework consisting of a Core Menu and five Headline Standards. This moved beyond simplistic metrics such as total green space, to deliver GI that meets five key ‘descriptive principles’: accessible, connected, locally distinctive, multi-functional and varied, and thus delivers 5 ‘benefits principles’: places that are nature rich and beautiful, active and healthy, thriving and prosperous, resilient and climate positive, and with improved water management. It also builds in process guidance, bringing together stakeholders to co-ordinate GI development strategically across different sectors. Drawing on stakeholder feedback, we evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of the standards and discuss how they provide clarity and consistency while balancing tensions between top-down targets and the need for flexibility to meet local needs. A crucial factor is the delivery of the standards within a framework of supporting tools, advice and guidance, to help planners with limited resources deliver more effective and robust green infrastructure with multiple benefits.
Climate change adaptationClimate change mitigationHuman well-being & developmentArtificial Landscapes - TerrestrialTime to fix the biodiversity leak
Science (2025). Perspective.
https://www.science.org/doi/epdf/10.1126/science.adv8264Abstract
As momentum builds behind hugely ambitious initiatives like the Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) 30 x 30 target and the European Union’s (EU’s) Biodiversity and Forestry Strategies, there is a danger that hard-won local conservation gains will be dissipated through leakage, the displacement of human activities that harm biodiversity away from the site of an intervention to other places (1). These off-site damages may be less than on-site gains—in which case the action is still beneficial but less so than it superficially seems. However, if activities are displaced to more biodiverse (or less productive) places, leakage impacts may exceed local benefits, so that well-intentioned efforts cause net harm. There is a pressing need for leakage effects like this to be acknowledged and as far as possible avoided or mitigated—through demand reduction, careful selection of conservation or restoration sites, or compensatory increases in production in lower-impact areas.
Ecosystem healthFood and water securityTree Diversity Increases Carbon Stocks and Fluxes Above—But Not Belowground in a Tropical Forest Experiment
Glob Change Biol. (2025). Original Research.
https://doi.org/10.1111/gcb.70089Abstract
International commitments advocate large-scale forest restoration as a nature-based solution to climate change mitigation through carbon (C) sequestration. Mounting evidence suggests that mixed compared to monospecific planted forests may sequester more C, exhibit lower susceptibility to climate extremes and offer a broader range of ecosystem services. However, experimental studies comprehensively examining the control of tree diversity on multiple C stocks and fluxes above- and belowground are lacking. To address this gap, we leverage data from the Sardinilla experiment in Panama, the oldest tropical tree diversity experiment, which features a gradient of one-, two-, three- and five-species mixtures of native tree species. Over 16 years, we measured multiple above- and belowground C stocks and fluxes, ranging from tree aboveground C, over leaf litter C production, to soil organic carbon (SOC). We show that tree diversity significantly increased aboveground C stocks and fluxes, with a 57% higher gain in aboveground tree C in five-species mixtures compared to monocultures (35.7 ± 1.8 vs. 22.8 ± 3.4 Mg C ha−1) 16 years after planting. In contrast, we observed a net reduction in SOC (on average −11.2 ± 1.1 Mg C ha−1 across diversity levels) and no significant difference in SOC3 stocks (the predominantly tree-derived, i.e., C3 plant-derived SOC fraction) between five-species mixtures and monocultures (13.0 ± 0.9 vs. 15.1 ± 1.3 Mg C ha−1). Positive tree diversity effects persisted despite repeated climate extremes and strengthened over time for aboveground tree growth. Structural equation models showed that higher tree growth in mixtures enhanced leaf litter and coarse woody debris C fluxes to the soil, resulting in a tightly linked C cycle aboveground. However, we did not observe significant links between above- and belowground C stocks and fluxes. Our study elucidates the mechanisms through which higher tree diversity bolsters the climate mitigation potential of tropical forest restoration. Restoration schemes should prioritize mixed over monospecific planted forests.
Climate change mitigationEcosystem healthForestIs the Implementation of Cocoa Companies’ Forest Policies on Track to Effectively and Equitably Address Deforestation in West Africa?
Sustainable Development. (2025). Original Research.
https://doi.org/10.1002/sd.3380Abstract
Tropical forests play a crucial role in achieving the sustainable development goals by contributing to climate stability, conserving biodiversity and sustaining livelihoods. However, forests are disappearing due to agricultural expansion. In West Africa, cocoa production is a major driver of deforestation. This study examines the design and implementation of forest-focused supply chain policies (FSPs) in cocoa supply chains in Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana, the world’s two leading cocoa producers. FSPs are voluntary policies of companies to combat deforestation, restore forests, and improve farmers’ livelihoods. Drawing on 91 stakeholder interviews, we developed a conceptual framework to examine FSPs’ theory of change, implementation and potential effectiveness and equity. Our findings reveal shortcomings in FSPs’ design and implementation. FSPs are mostly narrowly focused on preventing illegal deforestation and only target farmers in companies’ ‘direct’ supply chains, neglecting important landscape-scale approaches and processes. Companies also fail to include smallholder farmers sufficiently in policy design and implementation. Lastly, FSPs prioritise productivity enhancement but overlook the importance of addressing farmers’ social norms and values. We provide recommendations on how to address the shortcomings to achieve sustainable cocoa production.
Ecosystem healthFood and water securityHuman well-being & developmentForestGrowing Resilience: Unlocking the Potential of Nature-Based Solutions for Climate Resilience in Sub-Saharan Africa
WRI (2025). Grey Literature. Review.
https://doi.org/10.46830/wrirpt.22.00159Abstract
This report analyzed nearly 300 nature-based solutions (NBS) projects across sub-Saharan Africa from 2012 to 2023. It offers a comprehensive overview of NBS in the region: what climate resilience objectives projects are addressing, where projects are occurring and at what scale, how they are funded, and intended co-benefits. It also provides recommendations to scale NBS projects for climate resilience. This report was co-developed by the WRI and the World Bank, with key contributions from the African Development Bank.
Climate change adaptationHuman well-being & developmentNature-based solutions as urban adaptation to climate risk: Framework for economic evaluation as decision support tool
Sustainable Cities and Society (2025). Methodological Article. Systematic Review.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scs.2024.106037Abstract
Integration of Nature-based solution (NBS) as adaptation in planning and policy remains a challenge due to lack of adequate information on economic feasibility. This is mainly due to non-availability of economic evaluation framework for informed decision. Present study tries to address this by examining the status of evaluation frameworks through a systematic review of peer-reviewed articles published between 2015 and 2023. Based on the synthesis of the evidence a five-step framework, exclusively for economic evaluation of NBS as urban adaptation has been developed. Using this a novel, holistic, just, equitable and inclusive cyclical decision tool has been proposed. The review confirmed the lack of economic assessment and a holistic evaluation framework. The evaluation framework has been backed by operational guidance by providing comprehensive recommendations on the methodologies, tools and techniques and indicators and metrics that can be used for execution of each step. The proposed cyclical decision tool facilitates equity and justice by having provisions for ensuring equal participation of each stakeholder in decision making. It specifically ensures incorporation of plurality of knowledge and in particular value of the ecosystem services (ESs) from NBS. The tool has applicability across the urban spatial scale in cities of developed and developing economies.
Climate change adaptationDisaster risk reductionFood and water securityHuman well-being & developmentArtificial Landscapes - TerrestrialVariable impacts of land-based climate mitigation on habitat area for vertebrate diversity
Science (2025). Original Research.
https://doi.org/10.1126/science.adm9485Abstract
Pathways to achieving net zero carbon emissions commonly involve deploying reforestation, afforestation, and bioenergy crops across millions of hectares of land. It is often assumed that by helping to mitigate climate change, these strategies indirectly benefit biodiversity. Here, we modeled the climate and habitat requirements of 14,234 vertebrate species and show that the impact of these strategies on species’ habitat area tends not to arise through climate mitigation, but rather through habitat conversion. Across locations, reforestation tends to provide species more habitat through both land-cover change and climate mitigation, whereas habitat loss from afforestation and bioenergy cropping typically outweighs the climate mitigation benefits. This work shows how and where land-based mitigation strategies can be deployed without inadvertently reducing the area of habitat for global biodiversity.
Climate change mitigationEcosystem healthGlobal biodiversity loss from outsourced deforestation
Nature (2025). Original Research.
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-024-08569-5Abstract
Globalization increasingly allows countries to externalize the environmental costs of land use, including biodiversity loss1. So far, we have a very incomplete understanding of how countries cause biodiversity loss outside their own borders through their demand for agricultural and forestry products grown in other countries2. Here we quantify the global range losses to forest vertebrates from 2001 to 2015 caused by deforestation attributable to 24 developed countries by means of their consumption of products obtained through global supply chains. We show that these driver countries are responsible for much greater cumulative range loss to species outside their own borders than within them. These international impacts were concentrated geographically, allowing us to map global hotspots of outsourced losses of biodiversity. Countries had the greatest external impacts on species occurring in nearby regions. However, in a few cases, developed countries also inflicted disproportionate harm on vertebrates in distant countries.
Ecosystem healthBiodiversity loss reduces global terrestrial carbon storage
Nat Commun (2025). Original Research.
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-47872-7Abstract
Natural ecosystems store large amounts of carbon globally, as organisms absorb carbon from the atmosphere to build large, long-lasting, or slow-decaying structures such as tree bark or root systems. An ecosystem’s carbon sequestration potential is tightly linked to its biological diversity. Yet when considering future projections, many carbon sequestration models fail to account for the role biodiversity plays in carbon storage. Here, we assess the consequences of plant biodiversity loss for carbon storage under multiple climate and land-use change scenarios. We link a macroecological model projecting changes in vascular plant richness under different scenarios with empirical data on relationships between biodiversity and biomass. We find that biodiversity declines from climate and land use change could lead to a global loss of between 7.44-103.14 PgC (global sustainability scenario) and 10.87-145.95 PgC (fossil-fueled development scenario). This indicates a self-reinforcing feedback loop, where higher levels of climate change lead to greater biodiversity loss, which in turn leads to greater carbon emissions and ultimately more climate change. Conversely, biodiversity conservation and restoration can help achieve climate change mitigation goals.
Climate change mitigationEcosystem healthCost-benefit and equity analysis of nature-based solutions in Haiti, India, Indonesia and Uganda
Nature-Based Solutions (2024). Original Research.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nbsj.2024.100196Abstract
This study performs an economic efficiency and equity analysis of four recent Ecosystem-based Disaster Risk Reduction (Eco-DRR) interventions in Haiti, India, Indonesia, and Uganda. Our analysis aims at contributing to the development of methodological best practices for assessing both the economic-effectiveness and the distributional impacts of nature-based solutions, with a particular focus on marginalized or underserved communities. Nature-based solutions (NbS) are emerging as possible strategies to mitigate disaster risk while providing additional benefits to biodiversity and sustainable economic growth. However, there is limited scientific evidence about the cost-effectiveness and equity outcomes of NbS. For each ecosystem-based intervention examined we performed an economic efficiency assessment through a quantitative cost-benefit analysis (CBA). Our estimates show that at the 5th year since the project implementation, the interventions in Haiti and India generated positive net benefits, assuming hazard-related yearly losses in properties and GDP per capita in the project areas as low as 0.5 %. We observe the same outcomes in Indonesia and Uganda at the 10th year since the project implementation, assuming yearly losses equivalent to 1 % or higher and adopting a 3 % discount rate. When we include additional benefits from carbon capture and sequestration and pollution reduction the CBA net benefits estimates are positive at the 10th year mark for every discount rate adopted. Extensive qualitative interviews of local stakeholders corroborate the CBA results and provide insights on the numerous additional benefits experienced, which in the future could be measured and monetized if monitored over time. A qualitative analysis of the distributional effects of the interventions was performed to complement the economic efficiency assessment. This equity analysis indicates an enhancement in inclusivity, economic equality, participation, and capacity building among local stakeholders. In particular, the Eco-DRR interventions implemented resulted in significant education, health, safety and economic improvements for women, children, and economically vulnerable members of the local communities.
Disaster risk reductionHuman well-being & developmentForestWetlandTowards a typology of nature-based solutions for disaster risk reduction
Nature-Based Solutions (2024). Systematic Review.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nbsj.2023.100057Abstract
Disaster risk reduction (DRR) is one of the most important societal challenges addressed under the umbrella term nature-based solutions (NbS). One NbS approach that specifically addresses risk reduction is ecosystem-based disaster risk reduction (Eco-DRR). However, there are other approaches, such as integrated fire management or protective forests, which directly aim at reducing the risk of specific natural hazards. Other approaches, such as ecosystem-based adaptation (EbA), do not have DRR as a primary goal, but contribute to it in the form of synergies and co-benefits. Based on a comprehensive literature search of the Scopus database covering all articles published in English during the period 2000–2021, we analyze existing NbS approaches and those which address DRR. In a further step, we select all original research articles (n = 114) that refer to NbS for DRR projects or interventions conducted in a specific geographic area and analyze them in terms of (1) approach applied; (2) natural hazards mitigated; (3) ecosystem services for DRR provided; (4) geographic and biophysical site conditions, and (5) measures and techniques used. The analysis forms the basis for developing a typology of NbS for DRR, which we present for discussion. This typology helps scientists, policymakers, planners, and other stakeholders to gain a systematic overview of the NbS for DRR approaches currently addressed in the literature and to advance systematization of these approaches.
Disaster risk reductionMoving towards a comprehensive evaluation of ecosystem-based disaster risk reduction: The example of agroforestry for flood risk reduction
Nature-Based Solutions (2024). Original Research.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nbsj.2023.100104Abstract
Nature-based solutions (NbS) have received increased interest as cost-effective contributors to addressing societal challenges, with ecosystem-based disaster risk reduction (Eco-DRR) being the specific approach for reducing disaster risk under the NbS umbrella. Ecosystem services (ES) provided by Eco-DRR measures are known to contribute to reducing all three components of disaster risk. Yet, Eco-DRR evaluation falls short of recognising this, and this hampers its strategic placement and effective use. This paper addresses the challenge of evaluating the impact of Eco-DRR measures on reducing hazard, exposure and vulnerability. The methodological approach for Eco-DRR evaluation is developed for agroforestry as an example of ecosystem-based measure for flood risk reduction. The literature review on ES provided by cropland versus agroforestry provided the basis to elaborate on how the quantitative evaluation of such a measure for flood risk reduction could be realised in a next step. An additional literature review served to create a look-up table on the effects of agroforestry on hydrological processes in comparison to cropland. This can serve as input for re-running the hydrological model and comparing the hazard before and after the agroforestry implementation. The paper also captures the effects of agroforestry implementation on social and ecological vulnerability through changes in ES provision. Changes in ES provision resulting from the implementation of an agroforestry measure on cropland were related to social and ecological vulnerability using a deductive approach. The concept for comprehensive evaluation developed in this paper provides the groundwork for evaluating the risk reduction potential of Eco-DRR with reference to a tailored risk assessment.
Climate change adaptationDisaster risk reductionForestSavannaWetlandMoving towards a comprehensive evaluation of ecosystem-based disaster risk reduction: The example of agroforestry for flood risk reduction
Nature-Based Solutions (2024). Original Research.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nbsj.2023.100104Abstract
Nature-based solutions (NbS) have received increased interest as cost-effective contributors to addressing societal challenges, with ecosystem-based disaster risk reduction (Eco-DRR) being the specific approach for reducing disaster risk under the NbS umbrella. Ecosystem services (ES) provided by Eco-DRR measures are known to contribute to reducing all three components of disaster risk. Yet, Eco-DRR evaluation falls short of recognising this, and this hampers its strategic placement and effective use. This paper addresses the challenge of evaluating the impact of Eco-DRR measures on reducing hazard, exposure and vulnerability. The methodological approach for Eco-DRR evaluation is developed for agroforestry as an example of ecosystem-based measure for flood risk reduction. The literature review on ES provided by cropland versus agroforestry provided the basis to elaborate on how the quantitative evaluation of such a measure for flood risk reduction could be realised in a next step. An additional literature review served to create a look-up table on the effects of agroforestry on hydrological processes in comparison to cropland. This can serve as input for re-running the hydrological model and comparing the hazard before and after the agroforestry implementation. The paper also captures the effects of agroforestry implementation on social and ecological vulnerability through changes in ES provision. Changes in ES provision resulting from the implementation of an agroforestry measure on cropland were related to social and ecological vulnerability using a deductive approach. The concept for comprehensive evaluation developed in this paper provides the groundwork for evaluating the risk reduction potential of Eco-DRR with reference to a tailored risk assessment.
Disaster risk reductionFood and water securityForestSavannaWetlandCoastal ecosystems contribution to climate adaptation and disasters risk management in the tropical Americas
Nature-Based Solutions (2024). Review.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nbsj.2024.100112Abstract
Tropical America is a biogeographically megadiverse region, hosting 4 of the 36 global biodiversity hotspots: Tropical Andes, Tumbes-Choco Magdalena, Mesoamerica and the Caribbean islands ; 6 of its 17 countries are considered megadiverse. Such megadiversity is a result of a complex geography which also contributes to the region’s exposure to extreme events and high vulnerability to climate change. In these settings, natural capital1 could be the engine for innovative development and, if better understood, used to increase resilience and adaptation to global environmental change, including potential changes in the magnitude and frequency of extreme events
Climate change adaptationDisaster risk reductionCoastline