Conceptualizing nature-based solutions as social-ecological networks: a framework to assess bundles of benefits and co-benefits while minimizing disservices

• Grant number: 23/07625-8
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Post-doctor
• Start date: August 04, 2023
• End date: May 24, 2024
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Ecology - Applied Ecology
• Principal Investigator: Jean Paul Walter Metzger
• Grantee: Camila Celestino Hohlenwerger
• Supervisor: Marie-Josée Fortin
• Host Institution: Instituto de Estudos Avançados (IEA). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil
• Institution abroad: University of Toronto (U of T), Canada
• Associated to the scholarship: 22/08728-2 - Ecosystem services modeling and human well-being in urban landscapes, BP.PD

Abstract

Nature-based solutions (NBSs) have gained recognition as interventions that address societal challenges while providing multiple benefits and co-benefits in a sustainable and adaptive manner. As cities face increasing climate change impacts and environmental challenges, urban NBSs have emerged as key allies in climate adaptation efforts. However, a comprehensive understanding of the relationships between NBSs and their benefits, co-benefits, and potential disservices, as well as the ability to compare and quantify these relationships, remains limited. This research aims to develop and apply a social-ecological network analysis framework to elucidate and balance the functional relationships of NBSs. Therefore, we expect to aid in the identification of NBS bundles that can provide sustainable and long-term benefits, avoiding potential disservices. This framework will facilitate the assessment of key components within individual benefit networks and enable the evaluation of relationships between multiple NBSs and co-benefits through meta-networks of benefits. By conceptualizing NBSs as interacting networks, this study will contribute to a better understanding of their multiple benefits, in particular in the case of climate adaptation. The proposed framework aligns with the urgent need to address the adverse impacts of climate change in cities and will be developed in collaboration with practitioners from relevant environmental divisions and government authorities in the state of São Paulo, Brazil, and international universities such as the University of Toronto and the University of Toulouse. The findings of this research will contribute to bridging the gap between scientific knowledge and practical implementation of NBSs, supporting informed decision-making for climate adaptation in urban areas. Finally, the exploration of study cases from multiple cities will enable us to understand how different urban and social-economic settings may shape benefit networks around the globe. (AU)