How to Prepare Cities for Climate Change with Nature-based Solutions?
Urban areas are environments where both the population and crises tend to concentrate. Extreme heats, sudden floods, air pollution, infrastructure collapses... All these tell us one thing: Concrete city models are not sustainable anymore.
So, what is the alternative? The answer lies in nature. More accurately: In nature-based solutions.
Nature-based solutions (NbS) aim to provide sustainable solutions for both environmental and social problems by using nature’s own processes. This approach is used in many areas, from city planning to disaster management. But the issue does not only consist in making cities greener. The main question is this: How and for whom are these solutions applied? Do they take into account social justice? Does every city benefit from these at the same level?
In this article, we will explore together how nature-based solutions are applied in cities, their benefits, and limitations and why this is not only a technical issue but also a preference related to social transformation. Enjoy reading!
To read our blog post titled What is A Green City? click here.
Nature-based Solutions are approaches to finding solutions to environmental, social, and economic problems, inspired by the nature’s own processes. The fundamental logic is this: Nature is already the solution itself. When planned in the correct manner, it provides for human needs and strengthens ecosystems.
According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), nature-based solutions are defined as “sustainable actions that contribute simultaneously to human welfare and biological diversity.” And global organizations such as the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) and IPCC puts this approach in the heart of their climate adaptation policies.
So, how are these solutions integrated into the urban life?
● Green roofs and walls protect building’s heat balance while sequestrating carbon.
● Rain gardens reduce sudden floods and feed underground water sources.
● Urban forests increase the quality of air and provide psychological support to people.
● Wetland restorations conserve biological diversity and serve as climate regulators.
The common point of all these applications is that they see nature as a partner rather than an infrastructure tool. This allows for options that are more flexible, more inclusive, and generally less expensive when compared to traditional engineering solutions.
Nature-based solutions have the potential of transforming not only the physical structure of the cities, but also their social textures. They create extensive, multidimensional impacts.
● Ecological Benefits: Nature-based solutions directly support ecosystem services. This means increasing green spaces in cities and proliferation of carbon sinks. Trees and plants improve air quality by filtering harmful particles in the air. They also create micro habitats for biological diversity.
● Climate Benefits: Urban heat island effect causes the temperature in the cities to be 4-5°C higher than rural areas. Green infrastructure can reduce this difference. Rain gardens, permeable surfaces and green roof systems significantly reduce flooding risk in sudden rainfalls.
● Social Benefits: A life in touch with nature improves psychological wellness. Community gardens, public green spaces and parks increase social interaction and play a part in overcoming loneliness. Moreover, they create safe spaces especially for children and the elderly.
● Economic Benefits: Although they require an initial investment, nature-based solutions have lower maintenance cost in the long run compared to traditional infrastructures. They protect city economies by reducing the damage caused by floods, heat, and other climate-related disasters. They also create new employment areas called “green jobs”: Landscape architects, ecological consultants and maintenance teams can be listed among the examples.
To read our blog post titled Sustainable Life with Smart City Technologies click here.
All these benefits make nature-based solutions an attractive tool in urban planning. The success, however, lies not only in their application, but also how and where they are applied.
Nature-based solutions are being adopted by increasingly more cities across the world. However, each application is shaped by its own social, geographical, and economic context.
In Istanbul, rainwater harvesting project realized by Kadıköy Municipality was a noteworthy step to revitalize the natural cycle of water inside the city. It enabled rainwater to be absorbed by the soil through plants instead of sending it directly to the sewage system. This reduces flooding risk and feeds underground water sources.
Copenhagen redesigned the streets with permeable materials in order to solve the problem of flooding due to increased precipitation. The “Cloudburst City” project created a system which both manages water and enriches the public space.
Singapore Plan 2030 is among the leading examples of urban planning in harmony with nature. Biofiltration systems, green corridors, and vertical gardens at different points in the city altogether manage air-water cycle.
These examples show that nature-based solutions can create not only environmental benefits, but also social ones. However, the key to their success is in developing inclusive approaches, shaped according to local needs and facts.
Nature-based solutions, while they hold great promise, are not invariably executed under optimal conditions. Certain shortcomings and structural challenges in the implementation process may restrict the effectiveness of these solutions or yield outcomes that contradict the anticipated benefits.
● Greenwashing Risk: Some companies or local governments try to create an image of environmental sensitivity through superficial projects instead of real transformation. Planting a few saplings, opening a new park can be presented as nature-based solutions. However, these kinds of projects do not address the root causes of the issue, and they bring together the risk of deceiving people.
● Implementation of Global Models without Localization: This can lead to an inability to create the anticipated impacts. For example, directly copying a model from another country with different climate, social and administrative structures can lead to ineffective or unsustainable projects.
● Lack of Data and Challenges in Impact Measurement: The effectiveness of nature-based solutions are generally measured in the long-term. Therefore, they can conflict with the short-term political investments. Furthermore, many local governments can lack the infrastructure, budget, or capacity to analyze the success of this kind of project.
Nature-based solutions are not sufficient on their own. These projects would only alleviate the symptoms if they were implemented without transforming fossil fuel-dependent systems or making the necessary structural changes to reduce carbon emissions. Solutions that focus not on the causes, but the consequences of crises can be effective in the short term, although they remain inadequate in the long run.
Nature-based solutions have the potential to make cities more resistant to climate crisis, more habitable and more inclusive. These solutions necessitate not only a technical transformation but also a comprehensive transformation that encompasses social transformation preferences.
It is necessary to think about not only creating more green spaces, but also about who can use these spaces and how they can be used, and to prioritize social justice while adapting infrastructure to nature. A successful nature-based solution can only be possible through an approach that looks out for the needs of local people, takes into account long-term impacts, and includes communities in decision-making processes.
Climate change is no longer a future concern; it has become a pressing issue of the present. Consequently, urban areas should be constructed not solely with concrete, but in harmony with nature. The real solution lies not in imitating nature but learning to act with it.