In this report, we present the findings obtained from the project Summarizing and sharing the experiences, knowledge, barriers and advices from nature-based solutions pilot projects in the Nordics (S-UMMATION). The project is funded by the Nordic Council of Ministers’ four-year programme on nature-based solutions (2021-2024). The objective of the programme is to encourage the Nordic countries to work together and enhance their knowledge of nature-based solutions (NBS) and to enable the effective and efficient implementation of NBS in the Nordics.
There is a growing international and national emphasis on NBS as an alternative, or complement, to more technical or “grey” solutions. There is also a recognition that we still need more knowledge about what and how NBS works in practice and “on the ground” and under which circumstances. In this study we present insights from eight ongoing NBS pilot projects funded by the NCM programme on NBS. These projects offer a diverse range of NBS types, societal problems addressed, and climatic and landscape variations across the Nordics. We have followed these projects over one and a half years (February 2022–November 2023). Our ambition was not to evaluate the pilot projects, but rather to harvest insights to support effective and efficient implementation of NBS in the Nordics and to enable transferability and upscaling. The information we gathered comes from interviews and workshops with the project leaders and team members, in addition to information from project descriptions and other written materials. S-UMMATION has not evaluated the performance or results of the eight pilot projects per se.
Our findings focus on shared key insights from the pilot projects, that are important for the development of NBS development in the Nordic region. We recognize that not all insights from these projects are universally applicable or equally relevant. Accordingly, the current report also highlights certain specific framing circumstances related to the individual projects. The NBS pilot projects serve as tangible demonstrations of the potential that NBS applications have in the Nordic region. The S-UMMATION project followed the NBS pilot projects about half-way or a little longer in their project period. From our findings, it is evident that they align with, and underscore previous research findings related to the implementation of NBS (Cohen-Shacham et al. 2019; Ershad Sarabi et al. 2019). Yet, the projects also offer some new insights and nuances relevant for NBS in the Nordics, showing that the framing conditions under which the projects develop also affects the NBS project process and potentially also the outcomes. The findings highlight the importance of involving landowners and land ownership aspects in NBS planning and implementation. An important observation is that the NBS projects and implementation to a large degree concerns people and interactions between people, both within the projects and stakeholders and actors in the area, as well as related to administrative processes. The pilot projects have had success in achieving their goals due to careful planning and by using processes which allow for broad involvement and collaboration.
The outcomes and learnings of the pilot projects provide knowledge to enable the advancement and implementation of similar projects. Therefore, studying the NBS projects after they are officially finished is something we highly recommend. As this is work in progress, these projects warrant follow-up, to gain insight from the complete project period and beyond. Furthermore, we recommend the ongoing sharing of experiences between the pilot projects and with other relevant stakeholders for the duration of the NCM’s program on NBS. This will foster a collaborative environment to promote shared learning and educated risk-taking for the collective advancement of NBS in the Nordics and beyond.