Biodiversity net gain (BNG) is a "net outcome" planning policy which aims for development projects to leave biodiversity in a better state than before they started. Understanding the origins and history of existing mandatory BNG is necessary to understand the drivers and barriers that have influenced the policy to date and could inform the development and implementation of future BNG policies. Biodiversity net gain legislation was first discussed in Parliament in England through the passage of the Environment Act (2021) and became a mandatory requirement for most terrestrial and intertidal developments in February 2024. The policy uses habitat attributes as a proxy for biodiversity and represented the widest reaching net outcome policy in the world at the point of its introduction. As such, it is expected to have a significant impact on future land use decisions in England. This paper uses a mixture of literature review and the knowledge of those involved in the early stages of this BNG policy development in England to present a timeline of the stages that have led to mandatory biodiversity net gain. In doing so, we highlight formative events and documents, as an important first step in understanding its history and understanding how this can be used to inform future biodiversity policy.

European forests have been extensively altered by human activity. Consequently, comprehensive socio-ecological information on forests is crucial for developing policies from multiple perspectives, such as biodiversity conservation, climate mitigation, and renewable energy. This study presents a map of forest archetypes in Europe by integrating data on both natural and socio-economic characteristics. The map identifies seven archetypes, ranging from natural to intensivelymanaged forests. Our findings indicate that over 50% of European forests are subject to medium to very high use intensity, while the most natural forests comprise only 13% of the total forest area. This forest archetypes map is a valuable tool for informing EU policies, including the EU Biodiversity Strategy to 2030, the Nature Restoration Regulation, and the Bioeconomy Strategy. Understanding the distribution and prevalence of archetypes within regions andcountries is essential for assessing the current state of forests and exploring potential management pathways, conservation, and management targets.

Calls for acceptable climate policies render public participation central to climate policy planning. However, implementing participation remains challenging and often limited. To foster more effective and meaningful participation, it is essential to understand how participatory practices and efforts to develop them function in real-world policy processes. We develop this understanding by applying a systemic and relational approach that focuses on public participation as a collective and contextual phenomenon and integrate this with a normative 4D approach for evaluating participation through its capacity to advance dialogue, diversity, deliberation, and to allocate decision-making power. We empirically examine public participation in the preparation of Finland's national climate policies from the perspective of government officials. Our findings show the usefulness of examining participation systemically and including its evaluation. In the Finnish context, the role of decision-making power in the participatory collectives remains weak and requires further attention.

Understanding where blue carbon habitats occur and how they are affected by human activity contributes to effective management of natural carbon sinks. Here, we compiled geographical data for Sweden to map the distribution of coastal vegetated blue carbon (BC) habitats. The mapping effort focused on well-recognised (salt marshes and seagrass meadows) and emergent BC habitats (other rooted submerged macrophytes and forested wetlands). We also estimated the exposure to anthropogenic pressures on coastal BC habitats based on their proximity to land-based human activities, and subsequently, the portion of these BC habitats that were located within protected areas. The total area of BC habitats was estimated to around 1850 km2, corresponding to ca. 35% of the Swedish coast. Seagrass meadows and other rooted submerged macrophytes were dominating, covering about 1500 km2. Around 22% of the mapped BC habitats were expected to be exposed to high pressures from land-based human activities due to their location, while BC habitats within protected areas were often less exposed. This nationwide assessment of coastal vegetated BC habitats accentuates the need for strengthening conservation prioritisation to maximise the carbon storage potential of BC habitats.

Scientific models are increasingly expected to support decision making in complex governance environments. However, the institutional embedding of model outputs often encounters structural mismatches between the modeling and governance domains. This study explored how model-derived knowledge can be translated into actionable governance practices by integrating two theoretical perspectives: the Socialization-Externalization-Combination-Internalization (SECI) model of knowledge conversion and science-policy interface theory. Drawing on empirical evidence from the Eastern Route of the South-to-North Water Diversion Project, we constructed a comparative framework to analyze alignment and misalignment across four key dimensions: semantic representation, logical structure, procedural compatibility, and institutional integration. Our findings revealed that successful model uptake depended not only on the technical quality of models but also on the compatibility of their outputs with policy language, decision routines, and organizational mechanisms. This work provided theoretical and practical insights into improving the usability and impact of scientific models within policy processes.

Complex interactions within social-ecological systems underpin multiple social-ecological risks, which can cross administrative boundaries and have large-scale impacts, especially under hierarchical governance. However, a systematic approach for examining collaborative risk governance is still lacking. Here, we developed a multiscale social-ecological network approach, applied it to the case study of soil erosion risk in Shanxi Province, China, and further explored the alignment between networks of ecological linkages related to soil erosion and intergovernmental collaboration. The results showed that, in 91% of cities, the intensity of cross-county collaborative governance failed to effectively address soil erosion risk, particularly in Lvliang and Changzhi. Insufficient collaboration was also evident between adjacent cities. Xinzhou, Lvliang, and Linfen were identified as key nodes for strengthening collaborative governance networks in Shanxi Province. This study highlights the importance of breaking administrative boundaries and provides policy insights for fostering multiscale collaborative governance systems.

The transition towards a sustainable future is increasingly understood to rely on further development of the bioeconomy. In this, both public and private sectors play pivotal roles. Government agencies and public institutions are instrumental in shaping the trajectory of the bioeconomy through strategic frameworks, regulatory measures, and policies. These instruments may create a conducive environment by clearing away bureaucratic impediments and establishing favourable conditions. Concurrently, private sector entities, including industry interest groups and companies, have the important task of advocating for these favourable conditions and driving the bioeconomy's growth through active involvement, strategic business decisions, capital investments, and bringing bio-based innovations to market. Throughout these processes, perceptions of the bioeconomy held by actors in both sectors shape the outcomes of their actions. Hence, this study delves into the perceptions of the bioeconomy among stakeholders from both the public and private sectors across nine European regions regarding barriers and supporting conditions impacting its development, particularly important bioeconomy value chains, and the willingness and perceived responsibility to advance the bioeconomy. Findings from 534 online survey responses (288 public sector and 246 private sector) reveal that key factors identified as propelling the development of the bioeconomy forward include access to investment and scientific knowledge, while obstacles such as limited cooperation among stakeholders and inadequate supportive policies and legislative environments were noted as primary hindrances. Among the value chains highlighted, bioenergy was frequently recognised as having high growth potential, while not necessarily being the one with the most significant environmental benefits. Both the public and the private sector demonstrated a high willingness to develop the bioeconomy, yet both also assigned more responsibility to the public sector in three main areas: enhancing societal awareness and communication about the bioeconomy, ensuring beneficial environmental and social impacts, and investing in the bioeconomy's growth.

While mobility justice has been the subject of much research, it is unclear to what degree the insights of the field are applied in national and EU-level transport policy. This work examines this question empirically by analysing transport strategies for the EU and Finland. The avoid-shift-improve framework is used to assess the effectiveness of the policy measures proposed for moving towards a more sustainable transport system. The results indicate that the justice dimension of sustainable mobility is not fully considered in transport policy and that car dependence and the inequalities caused by it are mostly referenced in an indirect way. While a shift to sustainable modes is advocated, there is a heavy focus on technological solutions. Electric vehicles and sustainable alternative fuels, the key technologies for transport decarbonisation, will, however, do little to reduce transport-related inequalities.