Nature-based Solutions (NbS)

Why in News?
Brazil’s hosting of UNFCCC COP30 in Belém, within the Amazon rainforest, has brought renewed global attention to Nature-based Solutions (NbS) as central tools for climate mitigation, adaptation, and biodiversity conservation. The discussions also spotlighted the ENACT partnership to accelerate NbS at scale.

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What are Nature-based Solutions (NbS)?

NbS are actions that protect, sustainably manage, and restore ecosystems to address societal challenges—such as climate change, floods, water stress, food security, air pollution, and urban heat—while simultaneously delivering benefits for biodiversity and human well-being.
Example: Restoration of mangroves (e.g., Pichavaram, Tamil Nadu) providing natural storm protection.

IUCN Core Principles:

• Address a clear societal challenge
• Deliver co-benefits for people and biodiversity
• Ensure community consent and equity
• Maintain biological & cultural diversity
• Apply at landscape scale; integrate into policy
• Use adaptive management with evidence

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Key Types and Examples

Ecosystem	NbS Intervention	Climate Impact
Terrestrial	Afforestation/Reforestation (e.g., Miyawaki)	Carbon sinks, soil moisture
Coastal	Mangrove restoration (MISHTI)	Cyclone protection, blue carbon
Agricultural	Agroforestry, Natural Farming (ZBNF, PM PRANAM)	Soil carbon, food security
Urban	Blue–Green infrastructure, wetland revival	Flood control, urban cooling

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ENACT: Accelerating NbS Globally

• Launched: COP27 (Egypt) by Egypt, Germany & IUCN
• Role: Collaborative hub aligning action across UNFCCC, CBD, UNCCD
• Targets:
  • Protect 1+ billion vulnerable people
  • Secure 2.4 billion ha (protection, sustainable use, restoration)
  • Boost carbon sequestration via carbon-rich ecosystems

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Strategic Importance for India

• Mitigation: Forests, wetlands, urban greens reduce emissions; cities cool by 2–4°C
• Disaster Risk Reduction: Mangroves/floodplains cut cyclone & flood losses (>$7.5 bn/yr)
• Water Security: Watershed & riparian buffers for 600+ million water-stressed people
• Urban Health: Green corridors reduce pollution and heat stress

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Challenges

• Financing gap: ~$384 bn/yr needed globally; private NbS finance ~18%
• Economic bias: Nature treated as costless input; ecological overshoot ~70%
• Governance gap: Biodiversity often not board-level material risk (despite TNFD uptake)
• Uneven adoption: Sectoral and regional disparities

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Way Forward

• Finance: Scale private capital (TNFD, green bonds)
• Policy mainstreaming: Embed NbS in urban, agri, infra planning
• Inclusive governance: Rights-based approach; empower Gram Sabhas
• Landscape approach: Blue–Green corridors (e.g., Aravalli Green Wall)
• Tech & monitoring: ISRO Bhuvan, AI dashboards for survival & carbon tracking

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Conclusion

With COP30 spotlighting the Amazon, NbS sit at the heart of climate action. Success hinges on finance, governance integration, and inclusive partnerships. Nature is vital infrastructure—investing in NbS is investing in climate insurance.

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