What are nature-based solutions and what benefits do they provide in urban contexts?
With increasing urbanization trends, access to nature in cities is becoming more and more important. Urban green spaces can improve the health and wellbeing of urban dwellers by addressing issues often related to the urban lifestyle, such as stress, isolation, and physical inactivity. At the same time, green infrastructures and nature-based solutions provide efficient tools to address environmental issues in cities, such as flooding, temperature control, and air pollution.
Connecting Nature Entreprise Platform is a platform aiming to connect market demand with supply of nature-based solutions, finally supporting a nature-based economy. Developed in the Horizon 2020 Connecting Nature project funded by the European Union, this platform brings together 29 stakeholders, from local authorities to NGOs and academics. In this context, Etifor is a community ambassador for Sustainable Forestry on the Connecting Nature Enterprise Platform. Thanks to its expertise in forestry and sustainable business development, Etifor supports the Connecting Nature team to reach businesses and organisation interested in nature-based solutions.
The Connecting Nature Impact Summit is a free and open event wrapping up five years of innovation and research from the Connecting Nature projects. This event will bring together local and international experts to discuss how nature impacts our lives, socially, environmentally, and economically. In addition, the summit will demonstrate how nature-based solutions can bring positive impact for urban environments and biodiversity.
The Summit includes presentations, workshops, round table discussions, site visits, exhibitions and performances. The event programme is based on three main building blocks. The first one, “Thinking with nature” will explore the policy, strategy, and theoretical implications related to nature-based solutions. This bloc will see the participation of Nicola Andrighetto from Etifor, who will discuss the role of technology in the improvement of nature-based solutions. The second, “Building with nature” will focus on turning ideas into action. This block will analyse design and development processes, with particular attention to the layered character of nature-based solutions and what it implies for organisations and cities administrations. The third block, “Living with nature” will be about governance, communities, and stewardship of nature. In particular, this block will discuss the impacts of nature-based solutions on the neighbourhoods and citizens involved. Colm O’Driscoll from Etifor will also participate to the conference, hosting a panel on Green care and the benefits of nature on health, wellbeing, and social inclusion. Finally, the aim of the summit is to present innovative results and experiences that are transferable to policy makers, planners, designers, entrepreneurs and businesses, and communities across the world.
The event will take place form the 28th to the 29th of April in Genk (Belgium). The summit is hybrid, meaning that participants will be able to attend both in person and online. International visitors are encouraged to register for the online Summit.
Details
28th-29th April 2022 | Registration is now open
Thor Central | Genk, Belgium
Learn more about the event and register here.