
Seeking Clarity on Nature-Based Climate Solutions for Adaptation
-
The Nature for Climate Adaptation Initiative will strengthen the knowledge and capacity of civil society organizations through an e-learning course, a virtual library of resources, and targeted online and in-person learning exchanges.
-
Nature-based climate solutions have the potential to deliver measurable benefits to communities and ecosystems in cost-effective, equitable ways.
-
Implementing nature-based climate solutions with strong social inclusion principles and robust social environmental safeguards with adequate enforcement can enhance their efficacy and legitimacy while enhancing biodiversity and ecosystems.
As the world witnesses and experiences the impacts of climate change, turning to nature could be a pragmatic way to adapt. Governments are being urged to implement ecosystem-based approaches, which include conservation, restoration, and improved land management, in both adaptation and mitigation. Such approaches, framed under the umbrella concept of nature-based solutions (NbS), are expected to be a key component of the post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework and are already integrated into many countries’ National Adaptation Plans (NAPs).
However, controversy remains about what constitutes as NbS and how to achieve equitable outcomes while enhancing biodiversity and ecosystem resilience. Compounding this challenge is the unprecedented scale of biodiversity loss as a result of climate change and other interrelated drivers of change.
This guidance note aims to clarify the concepts of NbS and nature-based climate solutions (NBCS) with an emphasis on climate adaptation. These adaptation-focused NbS are captured using the widely known term ecosystem-based adaptation (EbA). Beyond awareness and knowledge of these terms, it is vital to unpack the social and biodiversity safeguards necessary for NbS to ensure that solutions are gender responsive, socially inclusive, and deliver biodiversity benefits. This guidance note is a knowledge product of the Nature for Climate Adaptation Initiative (NCAI).
Participating experts
You might also be interested in
IISD Welcomes New Deal on Global Biodiversity Framework
IISD congratulates the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) for adopting the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, which will guide work within and outside the UN system on tackling biodiversity loss and help lay the groundwork towards the CBD’s vision of living in harmony with nature by 2050.
Can a $20 billion bet wean Indonesia off coal?
Less than a year after it was announced, a $20-billion bet to wean Indonesia off coal is mired in controversies over financing and the construction of new plants to power industry. The Just Energy Transition Partnership for Indonesia was unveiled last November and follows a model first trialed in South Africa, with rich countries pledging funds for the developing world's energy transition.
Analyzing the Systemic Impacts of Forest Landscape Restoration: The case of Viridis Terra in Peru
This Sustainable Asset Valuation (SAVi) focuses on land restoration interventions in the Peruvian Andes and the socio-economic benefits for the community.
Can the cotton industry protect its workforce in a changing climate?
Cotton is ubiquitous in human lives, with approximately half of all textiles made of the material, according to the International Institute for Sustainable Development. But the sector's sustainability issues stand to be exacerbated by increased risk to extreme heat, drought, floods and wildfires already being caused by climate change, Forum for the Future warned in a 2021 report. Besides cutting yields, it will also affect the well-being of those involved in the supply chain.