This article shares the experiences, observations, and discussions that occurred during the completing of an ecosystem services (ES) indicator framework to be used at European Union (EU) and Member States' level. The experience base was drawn from 3 European research projects and 14 associated case study sites that include 13 transitional-water bodies (specifically 8 coastal lagoons, 4 riverine estuaries, and 1 fjord) and 1 coastal-water ecosystem. The ES pertinent to each case study site were identified along with indicators of these ES and data sources that could be used for mapping. During the process, several questions and uncertainties arose, followed by discussion, leading to these main lessons learned: 1) ES identification: Some ES that do not seem important at the European scale emerge as relevant at regional or local scales; 2) ES indicators: When direct indicators are not available, proxies for indicators (indirect indicators) might be used, including combined data on monitoring requirements imposed by EU legislation and international agreements; 3) ES mapping: Boundaries and appropriate data spatial resolution must be established because ES can be mapped at different temporal and spatial scales. We also acknowledge that mapping and assessment of ES supports the dialogue between human well-being and ecological status. From an evidence-based marine planning-process point of view, mapping and assessment of marine ES are of paramount importance to sustainable use of marine natural capital and to halt the loss of marine biodiversity. Integr Environ Assess Manag 2016;12:726-734. © 2016 SETAC.
This article is part of the special series "Incorporating Nature-based Solutions into the Built Environment." The series documents the way in which the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) targets can be addressed when nature-based solutions (NBSs) are incorporated into the built environment. This series presents cutting-edge environmental research and policy solutions that promote sustainability from the perspective of how the science community contributes to SDG implementation through new technologies, assessment and monitoring methods, management best practices, and scientific research.
EDITOR'S NOTE:The present study represents 1 of 5 review articles generated from 2 research projects funded by the European Union's Seventh Framework Program, ARCH and LAGOONS. The projects aim to develop and apply participative methodologies in collaboration with key stakeholders, to manage the multiple problems affecting European lagoons and estuaries. The articles in this series provide strategies for the sustainable management of these vulnerable ecosystems, which are increasingly threatened by climate change, urbanization, and industrialization. ABSTRACTAn integrative approach across disciplines is needed for sustainable lagoon and estuary management as identified by integrated coastal zone management. The ARCH research project (Architecture and roadmap to manage multiple pressures on lagoons) has taken initial steps to overcome the boundaries between disciplines and focus on cross-disciplinary integration by addressing the driving forces, challenges, and problems at various case study sites. A model was developed as a boundary-spanning activity to produce joint knowledge and understanding. The backbone of the model is formed by the interaction between the natural and human systems, including economy and governance-based subsystems. The model was used to create state-of-the-lagoon reports for 10 case study sites (lagoons and estuarine coastal areas), with a geographical distribution covering all major seas surrounding Europe. The reports functioned as boundary objects to build joint knowledge. The experiences related to the framing of the model and its subsequent implementation at the case study sites have resulted in key recommendations on how to address the challenges of cross-disciplinary work required for the proper management of complex social-ecological systems such as lagoons, estuarine areas, and other land-sea regions. Crossdisciplinary integration is initially resource intensive and time consuming; one should set aside the required resources and invest efforts at the forefront. It is crucial to create engagement among the group of researchers by focusing on a joint, appealing overall concept that will stimulate cross-sectoral thinking and focusing on the identified problems as a link between collected evidence and future management needs. Different methods for collecting evidence should be applied including both quantitative (jointly agreed indicators) and qualitative (narratives) information. Cross-disciplinary integration is facilitated by functional boundary objects. Integration offers important rewards in terms of developing a better understanding and subsequently improved management of complex social-ecological systems. Integr Environ Assess Manag 2016;12:690-700.
This guide presents a joint effort of projects funded under the European Research Area for Climate Services (ERA4CS) (http://www.jpi-climate.eu/ERA4CS), a co- funded action initiated by JPI Climate with co-funding by the European Union (Grant 690462), 15 national public Research Funding Organisations (RFOs), and 30 Research Performing Organisations (RPOs) from 18 European countries. This guide sets out to increase the understanding of different pathways, methods, and approaches to improve knowledge co-production of climate services with users as a value-added activity of the ERA4CS Programme. Reflecting on the experiences of 16 of the 26 projects funded under ERA4CS, this guide aims to define and recommend good practices for transdisciplinary knowledge co-production of climate services to researchers, users, funding agencies, and private sector service providers. Drawing on responses from ERA4CS project teams to a questionnaire and interviews, this guide maps the diversity of methods for stakeholder identification, involvement, and engagement. It also conducts an analysis of methods, tools, and mechanisms for engagement as well as evaluation of co-production processes. This guide presents and discusses good practice examples based on the review of the ERA4CS projects, identifying enablers and barriers for key elements in climate service co-production processes. These were: namely (i) Forms of Engagement; (ii) Entry Points for Engagement; and, (iii) Intensity of Involvement. It further outlines key ingredients to enhance the quality of co-producing climate services with users and stakeholders. Based on the analysis of the lessons learned from ERA4CS projects, as well as a review of key concepts in the recent literature on climate service co-production, we provide a set of recommendations for researchers, users, funders and private sector providers of climate services.
<p>The H2020 project PHUSICOS has from 2018-2022 aimed to demonstrate how nature-based solutions (NbS) reduce the risk of extreme weather events in rural areas and mountain landscapes. Mountains amplify risks and therefore the impacts of extreme hydro-meteorological events such as flooding and landslides in mountain areas often affect entire river basins. However, NBS in rural areas and mountain regions have not received the same amount of attention as urban areas. This presentation highlights the lessons learned in order to tackle the challenges of selecting, designing and implementing NbS at the landscape spatial scale in rural areas. &#160;</p> <p>The PHUSICOS case study sites in Norway, France, Spain, Italy, Germany and Austria represent a broad range of natural hazards, including snow avalanches, erosion, rockfall, flooding and debris flows. The demonstrator sites have undergone a co-creation process with stakeholders to select and plan the NbS interventions. The specific location and NbS selection were based on a rigorous process considering the following selection criteria: risk reduction, technical feasibility, co-benefits, effectiveness, efficiency, potential negative impacts, stakeholder involvement, and compliance with international and EU agreements and directives.</p> <p>Innovation actions have framed the project activities as an approach to fill NbS knowledge gaps. These innovation actions have included: service innovation to engage stakeholder participation through a Living Labs approach, technical innovation to design an NbS&#160;assessment framework in the context of natural hazard risk mitigation to document&#160;the effectiveness of NbSs, governance innovation to explore planning and policy frameworks as enablers for the design and implementation of NbS, learning arena innovation to facilitate&#160;knowledge exchange through Virtual Reality and Serious Gaming as training programs as well as product innovation establishes an evidence-base and data platform for NbS in mountains.</p> <p>For example, the assessment framework as a flexible disaster risk management support tool for NbS is viewed as especially relevant. It has been applied to three different NbS interventions to document the baseline scenario and subsequently compared to the NbS design scenario. After completion, the assessment framework will be used to develop the monitoring programs to assess the long-term effectiveness of the NbS interventions. Improved processes and services related to governance innovation outputs focus on exploring ways to improve the planning policy and implementation mechanisms for sustainable use and management of land, water, and natural resources in rural areas and their impacts at the local and wider watershed scale. The most critical governance innovation enablers for successful NbS interventions include polycentric governance arrangements in public administration, participatory co-design processes, as well as financial incentives.</p> <p>The different innovation actions will be further showcased to share project outputs and outcomes, to reflect on the lessons learned as well as to weigh in on their significance towards long-term impacts.</p>
<p>Nature-based solutions (NBS) are "inspired and supported by nature. They are cost-effective and simultaneously provide environmental, social and economic benefits and help build resilience" (EU, 2015). The main objective of the H2020 project PHUSICOS is to demonstrate the implementation of nature-based solutions to reduce the risk of extreme weather events in vulnerable areas such as rural mountain landscapes. To meet this aim, three large-scale demonstration sites have been selected in Tuscany, Italy, The Pyrenees, France/Spain and the Gudbrandsdalen Valley, Norway as representative of hydro-meteorological hazards, vegetation, topography and infrastructure throughout rural and mountainous regions in Europe. Additionally, two small-scale concept cases are established in Kaunertal Valley, Austria and the Isar River Basin, Germany to test specific challenges. This presentation focuses on the three large scale demonstrator sites.</p><p>PHUSICOS started in 2018 and over the four-year period each demonstrator site shall propose and implement at least three NBS projects each. At present 9 NBSs have been proposed.</p><p>The Italian proposals, organized by Autorit&#224; di Bacino Distrettuale, ADBS, relate to the pollution, drought, erosion, and land degradation around lake Massaciuccoli in Tuscany. The measures are related to reduce the runoff from farmland to the channels and the lake, as well as to reduce the high salinity of the lake. Proposed measures include feeding water from the Serchio River to the lake, and the establishment of vegetation buffer strips between the farmed land and the channels and retention basins.</p><p>In the Pyrenees, the proposed measures, organized by Consorcio de la Comunidad de Trabajo de los Pirineos, CTP, are to reduce risk from several hydrometeorological hazards; flooding and torrents, erosion, snow avalanches and rock fall. The measures include afforestation to reduce snow avalanche release, modification of river banks and beds to reduce torrent hazard, revegetation to reduce erosive rock fall from till deposits, and the use of local wood to prevent release of rock fall as well as forest management to reduce block velocity and runout.</p><p>The Norwegian NBS proposal, organized by Oppland County Administration, is to reduce flooding, erosion, and problematic redeposition in a confluence zone between a tributary and the main river. The measure is a green, receded barrier, to provide flooding space for the river and secure adequate conditions for the riparian vegetation and several red-list species.</p><p>PHUSICOS aims to involve stakeholders in Living Lab processes at the demonstration sites and has succeeded to different degrees depending on the starting point of the NBSs towards their implementation. Baseline surveys of key monitoring parameters are also being performed for selected measures at the three sites.</p><p>The main challenges include getting the most representative stakeholders involved in the Living Lab process, and, perhaps most important, adhering to the local laws and regulations, including environmental and tendering processes. These local regulations are already delaying the progress towards implementation of the measures within the time frame of PHUSICOS. The presentation will elaborate on the selected NBS, their co-benefits and on the challenges, which may be limiting factors for such projects.</p>
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.