Launch Event: NbS in Urban Areas - a Guide for Local Actors

On Thursday 21st September at 15:00 for 15:30, join BEI as we launch our latest member publication: ‘Financing and Implementing Nature-based Solutions in Urban Areas - a Guide for Local Actors’. BEI members will provide an overview of the publication and discuss next steps and activities with some of our key stakeholders.

Agenda:

15:00 - 15:30 Arrival & Registration

15:30 - 17:00 Guide Overview and Discussion with Key Stakeholders (speakers TBA)

17:00 - 18:30 Networking

Nature-based Solutions (NbS) can be an effective tool in mitigating the impacts of climatic hazards, supporting biodiversity and mitigating climate change through carbon sequestration and use of green infrastructure. In addition, the economic value of NbS in cities can be expressed in many forms, such as better quality of life, and increased property values which can be levied by municipalities and the private sector.

The co-benefits associated with NbS are one of the main reasons why NbS are preferable to conventional solutions; however, financing of NbS can be more complex, as while they may require less capital expenditure than a traditional ‘grey infrastructure’ solution, they may have higher operating costs.

One of the primary barriers for NbS being more widely accepted and implemented is related to a more traditional mindset by practitioners and decision makers, reinforced by the fact that NbS are generally not taught as part of university curricula. In addition, engineering standards and building codes are often not framed to accommodate NbS. There are also concerns among implementors and decision makers about a perceived inherent risks of investing in NbS compared with conventional grey infrastructure, which is assumed to function more effectively over the defined lifespan of the project.

We believe that there is a need for more practical guidance to promote understanding of key aspects that determine the successful financing and implementation of a proposed NbS project, building capacity with local actors to enable them to use Nature-based Solutions to their full potential. This is why the BEI NbS Working Group, with lead authors DT Global, are now releasing this new publication, ‘Financing and Implementing Nature-based Solutions in Urban Areas - a Guide for Local Actors’.

This guide intends to assist particularly local authorities, governmental bodies and implementing actors from the Global South. The focus of the guide is primarily Nature-based Solutions that are within urban areas, for example urban parks, green roofs, urban wetlands, and rainwater harvesting, as well as NbS in peri-urban areas that benefit city life, such as catchment protection of a water supply. The publication will help the reader to consider NbS through a three-stage process from scoping, feasibility assessment, followed by preparation of a business plan. The business plan is expected to be used to demonstrate the range of benefits, financial viability, operational sustainability, and ultimately to provide the rationale for investment.