Nature-based solutions for climate-resilient landscapes: governance and policy pathways for Nature Infrastructure implementation

Nature-based solutions (NbS) are central to achieving climate-resilient landscapes under the European Green Deal, the Sustainable Use Regulation (SUR), and the Nature Restoration Law (NRL). While scientific evidence demonstrates their ecological and hydrological benefits, large-scale uptake of NbS remains constrained by governance fragmentation, limited institutional capacity, and weak integration across land, water, and agricultural policies—particularly in southeastern Europe.

This contribution examines how Nature Infrastructure (NI) can function as a policy-operational framework for NbS implementation in agricultural landscapes, drawing on insights from the EU-funded Twinning Green Deal SONATA project in Serbia. NI encompasses natural and semi-natural landscape features that deliver multiple ecosystem services, including water regulation, biodiversity support, and climate adaptation. SONATA applies a Modelling, Mapping, and Monitoring (3M NI) approach to generate spatially explicit evidence that supports policy design, prioritization, and performance assessment of NbS. SONATA’s spatial tool enables single- and multi-objective spatial optimization in raster-based GIS environments, supporting evidence-based prioritization and scenario testing of NbS at the landscape and local scale.

A central focus is the role of the participatory framework (e.g., Living Labs) from the outset as governance instruments that bridge science, practice, and policy. By engaging farmers, water managers, conservation authorities, and policymakers in co-creation processes, Living Labs help align NbS interventions with local needs while strengthening institutional learning and policy coherence. The project highlights how participatory governance can reduce implementation barriers, enhance legitimacy, and support the mainstreaming of NbS within existing regulatory and funding frameworks.

The results underline the importance of integrated governance arrangements, spatial decision-support tools, and long-term monitoring systems for translating NbS from policy ambition into effective landscape-scale action. The NI framework offers a transferable pathway for embedding NbS into climate adaptation strategies, agri-environmental schemes, and land-use planning, contributing to more resilient and multifunctional landscapes across Europe.