The River Ndarugu, which runs through the semi-informal settlement of Kaptembwa, in Nakuru, Kenya, offers potential to serve as the basis of a nature-based solution to multiple social-economic and environmental issues faced by the community. Photo: SEI.
Nature-based solutions (NbS) are a hot topic in climate, environment and development circles. As they rise in popularity, it is increasingly important to scrutinize the narratives around the concept, its framing in policy and agenda setting, operationalization and implementation.
The authors of this brief put forward five principles that NbS should adopt to ensure just and equitable approaches:
1. Ensure that design, governance and implementation processes are inclusive and transparent.
2. Tackle root causes of marginalization, inequality and injustice at all stages.
3. Limit the creation of economic and non-economic losses, and avoid the unjust
redistribution of risks and costs.
4. Prioritize interventions for the most at-risk places and communities.
5. Devise and use valuation and measurement tools that assess social and political change and consequences.
The brief also presents a case study from a semi-informal settlement in Nakuru, Kenya, to illustrate how such principles can be integrated into nascent processes that set the stage for NbS-oriented measures to address socio-economic and environmental issues at the community level.
A workshop in Kaptembwa. Photo: SEI.
This brief introduces a four-part series on the social and economic sustainability aspects of nature-based solutions.
Nature-based solutions must be designed to deliver measurable benefits for nature and society. The different dimensions of scale could be better incorporated.
Read this new assessment on how much development finance is directed toward nature-based solutions and how effectively it is used.
