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The costs, benefits & economic implications of protecting 30% of the planet for nature
Protecting 30% of the world’s land and oceans is proposed as a target for the draft post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework. This report finds that the benefits of such protection would outweigh the costs at least 5-to-1, providing new evidence that wildlife conservation drives economic growth in addition to non-financial benefits, and is critical for creating […] -
Updates to Nationally Determined Contributions to the Paris Agreement
Updated Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) to the Paris Agreement are due this year. So far eight countries have submitted new NDC targets, eight have proposed new targets, and seven have re-submitted old targets. This leaves 172 countries yet to submit their 2020-updates. The countries that have submitted old targets and so will not strengthen their […] -
NbS Digital Dialogues – 7th-9th July
It’s just a few days until NbS Digital Dialogues 2020, where we will bring together leaders from science, policy and practice, to discuss what successful, sustainable Nature-based Solutions look like, and how they can be financed and governed. Sign up now for: Three inspiring keynotes by Sandra Diaz, Christiana Figueres, Musonda Mumba Six panel-sessions taking […] -
EU launches Biodiversity Strategy for 2030
In May 2020, the European Union released its new Biodiversity Strategy, to address the biodiversity crisis both within and beyond the territories of member states. The new strategy involves: – Protecting and effectively managing at least 30% of Europe’s land and sea – Improving the conservation status or trend of at least 30% of EU […] -
Bangladesh’s mangroves threatened by development
A 6 km-long bridge is being built in Bangladesh. This will increase connectivity across the country, and has already prompted development in the south-western Khulna Division. This region is home to the largest mangrove forest in the world: the Sundarbans. These mangroves are already under pressure from human activities, but the growth of real estate, […] -
Saving the Sundarbans from development
Mukul et al. 2020 A 6 km-long bridge is being built in Bangladesh. This will increase connectivity across the country, and has already prompted development in the south-western Khulna Division. This region is home to the largest mangrove forest in the world: the Sundarbans. These mangroves are already under pressure from human activities, but the […] -
Net Zero webinar series
In collaboration with The Guardian, the University of Oxford is hosting a series of five webinars on how the UK can achieve its net zero emissions target. The webinars are free to watch and tailored to a public audience, specifically the “well-informed school-striker”. Reaching net zero will require drastic reductions in emission of greenhouse gases, […] -
Call to CEOs to push for nature-positive recovery
31 NGOs and business groups have published a letter calling on CEOs to use their influence to encourage governments to make ambitious policies for nature as part of green COVID recovery plans. Read the letter here. -
Mapping the effectiveness of nature‐based solutions for climate change adaptation
To enable NbS policy and practice to be better informed by science, we produced the first global systematic map of evidence on the effectiveness of nature-based interventions for addressing the impacts of climate change and hydrometeorological hazards on people. -
Club of Rome call for nature protection on World Environment Day
On World Environment Day, 5th June 2020, the Club of Rome called on governments to recognise the dependency of humans on nature. They said that we must, as societies, reassess our relationship with nature in order to avoid future devastating events – pandemics or other natural disasters. This requires ‘rethinking our consumption and production patterns, […] -
NbS Bangladesh Community of Practice
On World Environment Day, we are delighted to announce the launch of NbS Bangladesh. This is a community of researchers, practitioners and policymakers working to enhance understanding of the importance of nature-based solutions and to scale-up their implementation in Bangladesh. The website acts as a hub of knowledge on nature-based solutions in Bangladesh. We are […] -
NbSI director appointed as a Friend of COP26
The 26th UNFCCC Conference of the Parties (COP26) will be held in Glasgow on 1-12th November 2021. Over 30,000 delegates will convene to agree on actions to address the climate crisis. We need internationally-coordinated action in order to effectively mitigate and adapt to climate change, and the discussions at and during the run-up to COP26 […] -
Tree planting is not a panacea for climate change
One Earth presents a collection of seven expert perspectives on the role of tree planting for mitigating and adapting to climate change. Among them is NbSI director, Professor Nathalie Seddon. Some key points include: The Trillion Trees initiative requires large investments from governments, ‘shovel-ready’ projects for investment, and robust social safeguards. Long-term tree stewardship with […] -
Marine Protected Areas in Vanuatu
Flexible management of marine protected areas around the Pacific Island of Vanuatu, has increased food security and income for local people during times of shortage. Vanuatu is highly vulnerable to natural hazards such as cyclones, tsunamis, drought and sea level rise. The country suffered its worst cyclone since records began in 2015, and in response […] -
Assisted Natural Regeneration in Burkina Faso
Assisted Natural Regeneration (ANR) in Burkina Faso has improved provision of forest products for local people. ANR, in this case, involves construction of fences around areas of savanna, excluding grazing animals and allowing natural forest to regenerate. ‘Cultivation bands’ for agroforestry are also formed around the periphery of the exclosures, providing an additional source of […] -
Market-oriented agroforestry in Nepal
Introduction of market-oriented agroforestry increased income and reduced poverty in Nepalese communities. Food insecurity is a pervasive problem in Nepal; in 2010, 42 of the 75 districts were food deficit. One response to food insecurity has been the introduction of agroforestry, with the aim of increasing income by selling tree products. However, the financial benefits […] -
Financial valuation of wetland ecosystem services in Nepal
Thapa et al. 2020 This study estimated the financial value of ecosystem services from the Begnas Watershed System, which covers 49 sq km in the mid-hills of Nepal. The authors found that the wetland generated US$3.91 million annually, equating to US$651 per household, and US$800 per hectare. 85% of the total value was attributed to […] -
Analysis of oil company net-zero plans reveals insufficiencies
The Transition Pathway Initiative (TPI) has examined the emission reduction plans of six major European oil and gas companies. Primary findings include: None of the companies’ plans are consistent with limiting warming to 1.5°C BP and OMV failed to align with Paris Agreement pledges; Shell, Eni, Total and Repsol do align the Paris Agreement, but […] -
Climate-friendly COVID-19 recovery also better for the economy
Nations are in the process of designing and implementing packages to aid economic recovery from the pandemic. A new paper from the Smith School collected opinions from 231 economic experts to compare the performance of 25 major fiscal recovery types across four criteria: speed of implementation, economic multiplier, climate impact potential and overall desirability. By […] -
Global call for nature-based solutions scale-up
Together with leading figures from business, climate change policy, academia and environmental NGOs, we have signed an open letter calling for governments and organisations globally to ‘take Nature-based Solutions to scale’ in the wake of the pandemic. The letter highlights the four key guidelines for successful and just nature-based solutions, which the NbS Initiative released […] -
How can green recovery programmes benefit both nature and people? An example from the US
Ecosystem restoration has the potential to create jobs on a grand scale, which will be needed in many countries in the wake of the pandemic. The World Resource Institute (WRI) makes the case for investing in tree planting in the US; according to their calculations, an annual federal investment of $4-4.5 billion for 20 years […] -
Knowledge Tree: decision making for effective, efficient & equitable social forestry
The Regional Community Forestry Training Center for Asia and the Pacific (RECOFTC) has compiled knowledge on how to conduct effective, efficient, and equitable social forestry in Southeast Asia in their recently-launched Knowledge Tree. The online platform is designed to support decision-making during the design and implementation of social forestry projects. The information has been sourced […] -
Climate Action Enhancement Package supporting enhancement of NbS in NDCs
The Climate Action Enhancement Package (CAEP) is providing targeted support to 65 countries on improving their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) to the Paris Agreement. This article shows in what ways the CAEP has been helping with nature-based solutions in NDCs. The most common type of help was with defining or updating targets (28%), followed by […] -
Price premium for sustainable rubber to conserve forests and help smallholders
About 85% of natural rubber is grown by small holder farmers in Asia. The Global Platform for Sustainable Natural Rubber (GPSNR) is working with individual farmers to transition to more sustainable practices, such as by providing financial and technical assistance to pay workers fair wages, clear land without fire, and use less chemical fertilisers and […] -
Sustainable recovery from COVID-19 in Peru
This document: Resilient Amazon: From Emergency to Sustainable Development, proposes steps to minimise the environmental cost in Peru of the response to the covid-19 pandemic and corresponding economic crisis. Suggestions include: – Create temporary employment to prevent people turning to illegal mining, drug trafficking and deforestation – Support the recovery of local businesses, productive activity […]