From Coexistence to Mutualism: Mainstreaming Biodiversity in the Sustainable Development Goals

A PES framework coupling socioeconomic and ecosystem dynamics from a sustainable development perspective

Financial incentives for large-scale wetland restoration: Beyond markets to common asset trusts

Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals Requires Transdisciplinary Innovation at the Local Scale

Evaluation of nature-based solutions’ contributions to the sustainable development goals

To Achieve a Sustainable Blue Future, Progress Assessments Must Include Interdependencies between the Sustainable Development Goals

Advancing Sustainable Development Goals with localised nature-based solutions: Opportunity spaces in the Lahn river landscape, Germany

<p>The integrated approach of sustainable development refers to addressing complex challenges by combining knowledge from various environmental and planning fields. Thus, nature-based solutions (NbS) are a category of new tools that can help cities increase their resilience and sustainability. They represent those actions inspired, supported or copied from nature, which have a high potential to be energy efficient and to use natural resources, as well as promote multi-functionality and connectivity between green infrastructure and built-up areas. To achieve their purpose NbS have to be developed and managed in collaborative ways. The strategies, plans, programs, policies and projects developed at European and international level have led to the consolidation, at least from a theoretical perspective, of the significance and role of NbS in urban areas. Thus, this study aims to identify the way these documents are directed towards sustainability and innovative solutions (such as NbS), with emphasis on the collaborative approaches for NbS. Our preliminary results indicate that most of the international and European documents specify that the economic development needs to be achieved in close connection with increasing urban sustainability, based on sustainable investments such as green infrastructures or NbS. Furthermore, under the guidance of these documents, the international institutions, research experts and decision makers seek collaboration with city representatives in order to integrate the benefits generated by such sustainable investments. Among the analyzed documents, the new 2030 Urban Agenda and its Sustainable Development Goals, reveal the need for participatory approaches to reach consensus about sustainable development. Other important international and European documents directed towards sustainability and NbS are Urban Water Agenda 2030, New Urban Agenda – Habitat III or 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. So, NbS represent a support in the efficient use of resources in order to promote urban development in concordance with the economic growth, participatory planning and guvernance, environmental policy, social cohesion and justice, public health and quality of life, environment protection.</p>

Chapter 5 - Nature-based solutions, sustainable development, and equity

The <scp>SDGs</scp>: A change agenda shaping the future of business and humanity at large

Nature-based Solutions (NbS) have emerged as a transformative approach to addressing climate change, biodiversity loss, and sustainable development. Despite growing global recognition, the implementation of NbS remains uneven, particularly in countries like Indonesia, which possess high ecological potential but face several challenges. This study critically reviewed the global recognition and implementation progress of NbS in achieving international sustainability and climate agendas, with a particular focus on identifying key enabling factors and hindering risks, and deriving globally informed lessons tailored to Indonesia’s context. This study presents a comprehensive systematic review of 219 peer-reviewed articles from the Web of Science (WoS) and Scopus, conducted following the PRISMA 2020 protocol. The review identifies three primary typologies of NbS—Intrinsic, Hybrid, and Artificial—each associated with specific ecosystem types and functions. It maps their alignment with major global agendas, including the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the Paris Agreement, Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), the Sendai Framework, the Nature-Positive 2030 initiative, the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF), and the Climate Resilient Development Pathway (CRDP). Intrinsic NbS, such as forests, wetlands, and peatlands, dominate the literature due to their critical roles in carbon sequestration, biodiversity conservation, and disaster mitigation. Findings reveal a significant research gap in Indonesia, with only four studies explicitly linking NbS to national climate commitments of the NDC. Key barriers to implementation include fragmented governance, lack of standardized frameworks, limited stakeholder engagement, and insufficient financial mechanisms. Conversely, enabling factors such as regulatory reforms, green financing instruments (e.g., green sukuk, ecological fiscal transfers), and the integration of traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) offer promising pathways for scaling up NbS. This study contributes a novel typological framework and a synthesis of enabling and hindering factors contextualized for Indonesia. It underscores the need for localized, evidence-based NbS strategies that are aligned with global frameworks yet tailored to national socio-ecological realities. By bridging global lessons with local contexts, the findings provide a strategic foundation for policymakers, researchers, and practitioners to enhance the effectiveness, scalability, and equity of NbS in achieving climate resilience and sustainable development. Graphical Abstract This graphical abstract provides a concise and visually engaging summary of the study, which systematically reviews the global and Indonesia-specific progress of Nature-based Solutions (NbS) in achieving climate and sustainability goals. The visual begins by categorizing NbS into three typologies—Intrinsic, Hybrid, and Artificial—each illustrated with a representative short description to distinguish their ecological and engineered characteristics. The central panel outlines the systematic literature review process, using the PRISMA framework, and highlights the screening and selection of 219 articles from the Web of Science (WoS) and Scopus databases. A four-key aspect is being reviewed concerning various ecosystem types. On the right panel, the abstract further maps the alignment of NbS with major global agendas, including the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the Paris Agreement, Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), the Sendai Framework, Nature-Positive 2030, the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF), and the Climate Resilient Development Pathway (CRDP). These are depicted through recognizable icons, reinforcing the relevance of NbS in international policy frameworks. At the bottom panel, a timeline and global map illustrate the temporal trends and geographical spread of NbS implementation. The findings reveal an underrepresentation of Indonesian contexts in the implementation of NbS. A chart at the corner summarizes the key enabling factors (e.g., stakeholder engagement, financial incentives) and hindering risks (e.g., regulatory barriers, fragmented governance). This visual synthesis highlights the pressing need for localized, evidence-based strategies to scale up NbS in Indonesia. By identifying typologies, ecosystem types, and global lessons learn of key enabling or hindering risks, the study offers actionable insights for researchers, practitioners, and policymakers. It aims to bridge knowledge gaps, inform national climate strategies, and enhance Indonesia’s contribution to global sustainability and climate resilience targets through NbS implementation.

Adapting ecosystem restoration for sustainable development in a changing world

The effects of various strategies aimed at simultaneously promoting environmental conservation and human development are closely related to sustainable development regionally and globally. However, although the effects of many such strategies have been evaluated by ecologists and sociologists separately, their ability to simultaneously meet these two anticipated goals (i.e., environmental conservation and human development) at the fine spatial scale remains unclear. To answer this fundamental but crucial question, incorporating household and forest change data, we concurrently estimated the ecological and socioeconomic effects of two world-renowned Payment for Ecosystem Services (PES) programs (i.e., the Nature Forest Conservation Program, the Grain to Green Program) and nature-based tourism in 30 protected areas across 8 provinces in China. Here we showed a trade-off between the ecological and economic effects of two PES programs, while synergistic effects exist in the ecological and economic benefits of tourism. Attributes of household and protected areas significantly influenced economic and environmental benefits as well. Our research provides new insights into the complex effects of PES programs and tourism, and crucial information to support their adequate and sustainable implementation in China and the rest of the world. Significance Statement This work answers a fundamental but crucial question, that is, whether the policies commonly advocated to incorporate environmental conservation and human development can yield positive effects both for conservation and economic development. Our evaluation is also timely to inform some shortness (i.e., negligible economic effects, or the lack of expected positive economic benefits) and provides new insights (e.g., the implication of households and protected-areas attributes in conservation and economic outcomes) of Payment for Ecosystem Services (PES) programs and the complex effects of instruments in the context of multiple policies, particularly given the upcoming 2030 deadline for achieving the Sustainable Development goals (SDGs). We expected that implications in this study can provide important lessons for these two instruments, other PES programs, and other conservation and development instruments to support their adequate and sustainable implementation in China and beyond and to contribute to the achievement of relevant SDGs in the remaining years.

Everything Stays the Same while Everything Changes

PurposeGlobally, information and communication technology (ICT) is regarded as a reliable tool that facilitates economic development and propels sustainable development. However, little empirical work exists on the specific effects of ICT access and usage on economic and sustainable development. This paper aims to investigate the nexus between ICTs, economic and sustainable development at the global level.Design/methodology/approachThis paper presents ICT for Development (ICT4D) value chain empirical evidence on the linkages between ICTs, economic development and sustainable development goals (SDGs). The research model based on the capability approach is validated by using archival data from 130 global countries and partial least squares–structural equation modelling.FindingsThe findings reveal that ICT access and usage significantly influence a country’s attainment of the SDGs. Whilst ICT access plays a crucial role in promoting economic development, ICT usage does not. Also, findings show that economic development significantly mediated the nexus between ICT access and SDGs but not between ICT usage and SDGs. This calls for countries to ensure that access to ICTs is accompanied by a low cost of usage to achieve the full benefits of economic and sustainable development.Originality/valueUsing the ICT4D value chain, this paper empirically shows how ICT readiness and availability in the form of ICT access and ICT uptake (individual ICT use) promote economic development and SDGs (impact). Furthermore, with many studies conducted on SDGs at the country level, this study provides a broader understanding of the roles of ICT access and use on SDGs at the global level. This allows for easy generalisability and reproducibility of results.

The centrality of water resources to the realization of Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). A review of potentials and constraints on the African continent