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Nature-Based Solutions

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  • First Online:
Partnerships for the Goals

Part of the book series: Encyclopedia of the UN Sustainable Development Goals ((ENUNSDG))

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Definition

“Nature-based solutions” (NBS) is a concept that has been introduced in recent years to acknowledge and promote nature as a means to bring change and deliver effective solutions to current unsustainable societies. Specifically, NBS can be understood as actions and innovations inspired and supported by nature with the aim of helping societies to address pressing environmental, social, and economic challenges such as climate change, water scarcity, food security, or risk management. NBS follow biodiversity principles and emulate the time-tested patterns and processes of ecosystems for the benefit of both people and the planet. This is an interdisciplinary approach that can help to design products, materials, and strategies that can contribute to integrating the human species and the Earth’s natural processes.

Introduction

Human activity has reached a level that might imply irreversible ecological changes detrimental to human development (Eggermont et al. 2015). In recent...

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Acknowledgments

We would like to acknowledge the financial support from the Spanish Ministry of Economy, Industry, and Competition, the Agencia Nacional de Investigación (AEI), and the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF/FEDER, UE) (R&D Project ECO2015-66504).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Economics and Business Administration, University of Almeria, Almeria, Spain

    Raquel Antolin-Lopez & Nieves Garcia-de-Frutos

Authors
  1. Raquel Antolin-Lopez
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  2. Nieves Garcia-de-Frutos
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Raquel Antolin-Lopez .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. European School of Sustainability Science and Research, Hamburg University of Applied Sciences, Hamburg, Germany

    Walter Leal Filho

  2. Center for Neuroscience and Cell Biology, Institute for Interdisciplinary Research, University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal

    Anabela Marisa Azul

  3. Faculty of Engineering and Architecture, Passo Fundo University, Passo Fundo, Brazil

    Luciana Brandli

  4. University of Passo Fundo, Passo Fundo, Brazil

    Amanda Lange Salvia

  5. International Centre for Thriving, University of Chester, Chester, UK

    Tony Wall

Section Editor information

  1. School of Public Administration and School of Business Administration, University of International Business and Economics & China University of Petroleum, Beijing, China

    Monica Thiel

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Antolin-Lopez, R., Garcia-de-Frutos, N. (2021). Nature-Based Solutions. In: Leal Filho, W., Marisa Azul, A., Brandli, L., Lange Salvia, A., Wall, T. (eds) Partnerships for the Goals. Encyclopedia of the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-95963-4_12

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