BRIDGES Cologne Policy Insights #3: Science-policy platforms for more inclusive Nature-based Solutions

This third contribution to the BRIDGES Cologne Policy Insights series examines the role of science–policy platforms in fostering more inclusive Nature-based Solutions (NbS) to address multiple, interconnected planetary crises.

Drawing on observations from the UNFCCC SB62 meeting held in Bonn in June 2025, the paper highlights a growing recognition among policy-makers, scientists, and representatives of Local and Indigenous Communities that climate change, biodiversity loss, and socio-economic challenges must be addressed in an integrated manner. NbS have emerged as a central concept in these high-level discussions, offering approaches that work with nature to deliver simultaneous climate, biodiversity, and human well-being benefits.

Building on findings from a recent systematic review on NbS in Africa’s savanna belt conducted within the DAAD-funded Future African Savannas (AFAS) initiative, the contribution identifies significant geographic, thematic, and institutional gaps in current research and practice. In particular, NbS case studies remain concentrated in a limited number of countries, focus narrowly on specific solution types, and are often shaped by research agendas set in the Global North. 

The paper concludes with policy-relevant recommendations aligned with IPBES scaling frameworks, emphasizing the need to scale out across knowledge silos, scale down to local ecological and social contexts, and scale deep through locally driven, South–South and equitable North–South collaborations.

Authors: Gerda Kuiper (University of Cologne), Daniel Olago (University of Nairobi), and Juliet Wanjiku Kamau (Bonn University)

Access the Policy Insights #3 Science-policy platforms for more inclusive Nature-based Solutions, along with previous Policy insight papers, by visiting the UNESCO-MOST BRIDGES Hub for Planetary Wellbeing website.