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Diverse tropical forests sequester more carbon than monocultures
New research has found that diverse tropical planted forests store 57% more carbon than monoculture forests. -
Introducing the Agricultural Resilience Impact and Innovation Hub (AGRIIH)
A new agricultural research hub seeks to co-develop cutting-edge, industry-relevant research and innovation that supports the transformation of agriculture towards a more sustainable and resilient future. -
Scaling investment in NbS for Climate Resilient Infrastructure
A newly launched Global Tool and Finance Report, developed by the University of Oxford’s Environmental Change Institute (ECI) and the Global Center on Adaptation (GCA), aim to help scale investment in nature-based solutions for climate infrastructure resilience. -
Agricultural Resilience Impact and Innovation Hub
The Agricultural Resilience Impact and Innovation Hub (AGRIIH) aims to generate a transformational shift in the scope of Oxford‘s agricultural research impact, by engaging industry and stakeholders to co- develop novel and industry-relevant research and innovation that transforms our agricultural systems for a sustainable future. -
Making green infrastructure work for nature, climate and people
NbSI's researcher Alison Smith has been working with Natural England to help curate existing standards and guidelines into a comprehensive framework consisting of a ‘Core Menu’ and five ‘Headline Standards’. -
Pathways to a genuinely sustainable future: Insights from the Transformative Change Assessment Report
We welcome the Transformative Change Assessment Report, developed by the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES). -
NbSI Research in the Spotlight
Getting the message right on nature‐based solutions to climate change was Global Change Biology's most-viewed article of 2024 with an impressive 23,232 views. -
A menu of standards for green infrastructure in England: effective and equitable or a race to the bottom?
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. -
Tree Diversity Increases Carbon Stocks and Fluxes Above—But Not Belowground in a Tropical Forest Experiment
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 16 years after planting. -
Is the Implementation of Cocoa Companies’ Forest Policies on Track to Effectively and Equitably Address Deforestation in West Africa?
This study examines the design and implementation of forest-focused supply chainpolicies (FSPs) in cocoa supply chains in Côte d'Ivoire and Ghana, the world's two leading cocoa producers. -
Unpacking the politics of Nature-based Solutions governance: Making space for transformative change
Participatory governance is touted as a driver of transformative change, but often falls short of its promises. Dominant framings can reinforce vested interests and marginalise alternative perspectives. Technoscientific and market-oriented approaches, risk and uncertainty, and “democracy washing” shape transformative NbS. -
Nature-Based Solutions Initiative at the British Ecological Society Annual Meeting 2024
At the British Ecological Society’s Annual Meeting, the Nature-Based Solutions Initiative (NbSI) took centre stage. Professor Nathalie Seddon, Director of NbSI, delivered the prestigious Georgina Mace Lecture, highlighting the need for an eco-centric approach that integrates ecological science with Indigenous and Local Knowledge (ILK) -
Humanity at a crossroads: can stories inspire where data has not?
Humanity is on a perilous path, driving the biosphere—and our shared future—toward collapse. Can stories inspire transformative change where data alone has failed? This pressing question was explored at the latest Oxford Ministry for the Future event, where NbSI’s director Prof Nathalie Seddon joined award-winning author Richard Powers and fellow academics to discuss how storytelling can catalyse meaningful action for a sustainable future. -
The Academia and Research Organisations group: engagement at CBD COP16
The Academia and Research Organisations group (A&R group) provides a collective platform to support meaningful participation and engagement of academics and researchers in CBD processes. -
Fragmented Governance Endangers Biodiversity, Climate, and Human Systems, Warns IPBES Report
A new report from the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) highlights the dangers of fragmented governance across biodiversity, climate change, food, water, and health systems. The "Nexus Assessment" emphasizes the interconnectedness of these crises and warns that addressing one issue in isolation risks compounding others. -
How can we monitor soil health for NbS?
New research by NbSI and the University of Aberdeen proposes an integrated approach for monitoring soil heath in NbS, introducing a tool for selecting suitable biodiversity and soil metrics based on context and scale. -
The promise and the challenges of Brazil’s new NDC
At COP29, Brazil was one of the first countries to submit its updated Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC), pledging to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by up to two-thirds by 2035, compared to 2005 levels. -
Advancing nature-based solutions through enhanced soil health monitoring in the United Kingdom
This paper examines challenges and opportunities in selecting suitable soil health metrics. We find that standardization can facilitate widespread monitoring of soil health with benefits for stakeholders and user groups -
Balancing land use for biodiversity and climate
Interdisciplinary researchers and practitioners from across the globe recently convened in Oaxaca, Mexico, to explore pathways to sustainable and just land systems at the 2024 Global Land Programme Open Science Meeting. NbSI researchers Aline Soterroni and John Lynch presented new research offering solutions for uniting biodiversity and climate objectives, from broadening the definition of 'forest' in the new European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), to recognising the value of peatland restoration for climate change mitigation. -
Harnessing Nature-based Solutions For Economic Recovery
This policy briefing outlines the key role of nature-based solutions (NbS) in supporting sustainable economic recovery and societal resilience. -
A Review of Life Cycle Assessment Methods to Inform the Scale-Up of Carbon Dioxide Removal Interventions
A new paper, led by Dr Isabela Butnar of UCL and NbSI’s Dr John Lynch, argues that we currently have only limited evidence to address these important questions. -
The imperative of aligning policy on climate and biodiversity
In a new article published yesterday in The Conversation, NbSI's Nathalie Seddon and Audrey Wagner explain why aligning climate and biodiversity policy is essential. The message is clear: healthy ecosystems are crucial for climate resilience and a stable climate is essential to protecting biodiversity. Climate action must not come at the expense of biodiversity or human rights. -
Do we have enough information to scale up carbon removals sustainably?
As COP29 of the UNFCCC commences in Azerbaijan, the need for effective and sustainable strategies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions is more critical than ever. However, most global scenarios also rely heavily on carbon dioxide removals (CDRs) to keep within the Paris Agreement temperature targets, and many ‘net-zero’ pathways indicated by governments contain a significant amount of CDR. But do we know what the wider effects of these CDR practices will be, or which approaches might be more or less sustainable? A new study assesses the current state of the evidence by reviewing the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) literature on CDR. -
What just happened at COP16? NbSI reports from Colombia
What just happened in Cali? Quite a lot. The COP16 agenda was enormous—restoring the health of the biosphere in the face of an economy hell bent on destroying it is a deeply complex challenge. It was a monumental task for a small team to cover it all! Here, we reflect on some of the key takeaways on the big ticket agenda items as well as on the key the issues we tracked over the past two weeks. -
Nature-based solutions for transformative change at COP16
At the halfway point of COP16 in Cali, our Director, Nathalie Seddon, joined fellow academics and researchers to discuss how nature-based solutions (NbS) can drive the transformative change urgently needed to restore balance between people, nature and climate.