2018-07-12
The “II International Seminar on Nature-Based Solutions: promoting urban nature for more resilient cities” staged two days of intense debates and workshops where participants exchanged experiences and discussed the potential of NBS for sustainable urban development.
“This is one of the flagship themes in the European Union's relationship with Brazil. Nature-based Solutions used to be perceived as utopian, but now a profound change in attitudes towards them is underway. It is clear that we need to shift to a new paradigm since an increased urban population has resulted in environmental and socioeconomic degradation, which is now aggravated by climate change, now felt more acutely in all countries,” said EU Ambassador João Gomes Cravinho to Brazil during the opening session of the seminar on Monday.
This vision was endorsed by Marcio Miranda, President of the Centre for Management and Strategic Studies (CGEE). “I think it's extremely important to adopt a world view that draws standards to be followed from nature. We should obviously rely on the knowledge produced by science and technology as a major partner in this process,” he said.
On Day 2, attendees got to learn about and interact with the Connecting Nature Academy, which offers Brazilian cities a platform to express their needs and share experiences with European cities related to planning and implementation of nature-based solutions to generate new jobs, foster economic growth and reinforce their resilience to adverse events such as those caused by climate change.
Brazilian expert Cristiano Cagnin unveiled the Innovation Observatory for Sustainable Cities, which is a Web-based channel to share content and solutions for the promotion of sustainable cities.
The tool helps translate the most innovative initiatives in urban sustainability around the world to the Brazilian environment; solutions that are adapted to Brazil based on challenges and changing profiles of cities and regions and that are consistent with the SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals). It allows every user (the public, government managers, researchers, and others) to tailor these technologies and knowledge to Brazil, and it supports users in understanding the potential of implementing or adapting promising solutions to their settings.
Tiago Freitas, Policy Officer from the European Commission’s DG RTD discussed the European approach to NBS and showed the types of projects that can be considered under the H2020, the world's largest research and innovation programme. According to Freitas, the definition of NBS involves: i) the use of living organisms – NBS are based on ecosystem services; (ii) systemic, multi-purpose and flexible approaches that are adapted to local settings; iii) cost-effectiveness, including direct and indirect benefits; iv) benefits that reconcile economic, social and environmental aspects; and (v) a targeted and solutions-oriented approach.
Because they offer multiple benefits to cope with different societal challenges at once, NBS are directly related to the SDGs and other international treaties, such as the Paris Agreement, Habitat III and the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction (2015-2030), Freitas explained. For instance, each SDG may be associated with an NBS approach.
The potential for nature-based solutions to contribute to global agendas was also discussed on Day 2, at a dedicated panel. Denise Hamú, UN Environment representative in Brazil, spoke about projects supported by the United Nations and explained why SDGs and NBS are a great match. “Both are long-term processes, and go beyond classical, straight-line cost-benefit analysis, reconcile various interests and viewpoints and count on the positive leadership of an institutional or private audience,” she said.
Case Study
European experts have provided a number of examples of green infrastructure in European cities, including Amsterdam (Netherlands), which has programmes to expand its green area and make the city more resilient, and Milan (Italy), with its iconic vertical woods.
Spanish architect Iñigo Bilbao reported the case of Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain, which has a list of NBS that could be coveted by any city: 1/3 of the urban area is of public green area – an average of 45 sq m per inhabitant; a green belt covering 727 hectares; 100% of the population living within 300 m of green areas; 33 kilometres of urban trekking paths; and 90 kilometres of bicycle and pedestrian paths along the green belt.
Brazil also shared success stories from Recife (Pernambuco), Belo Horizonte (Minas Gerais), São Paulo (São Paulo), and Brasília (Federal District). Experts Cecília Herzog and Carmen Antuña discussed the interim results of the project supported by the EU-Brazil Sector Dialogues Facility intended to strengthen the relationships between European and Brazilian institutions with an interest in NBS and to enhance the exchange of knowledge about successful experiences in the deployment of tailored NBS in both European and Brazilian cities.
“When I started mapping Brazilian cities that have implemented nature-based solutions, I thought it would be very difficult to identify this type of initiative. But I was in for a surprise. There are many top-down projects, which are implemented by the government, and bottom-up projects, which are led by group initiatives,” said Cecília, who identified NBS in cities such as Curitiba (Paraná), Rio de Janeiro and Niterói (Rio de Janeiro), São Paulo, and Belém (Pará).
Carmen reported on European experiences in the cities of Eindhoven (Netherlands), Lisbon (Portugal), Milan (Italy), and Tampere (Finland). “The cases are being reviewed and compared, with a particular emphasis on their potential for replicability, scalability, and adaptation to local settings. In addition, they should address the three pillars of sustainability: environmental, social and economic aspects,” he explained.
In addition to the panel discussions, the seminar included workshops on how to get the involvement of communities in NBS projects, funding opportunities for nature-based solutions under the EU H2020 programme, development of indicators to measure the impacts of these measures and the importance of private sector involvement in the implementation of NBS.
The event was sponsored by CGEE in collaboration with the European Union through the EU-Brazil Sector Dialogues Support Facility; with the Ministry of Science, Technology, Innovation and Communications (MCTIC); and with the Local Governments for Sustainability (ICLEI).
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