The India Forum for Nature-based Solutions (NbS) today held its inaugural annual summit. The Summit of the Forum saw over 100 public and private actors including participation from government representatives, civil society organizations, academicians, funders and financiers to come together to build synergies and foster dialogue, across the ecosystem, to increase awareness on NbS.

The Summit engaged participants in discussions on decision-making tools and methods for choosing and evaluating solutions, unlocking investment and financial opportunities, and developing actionable strategies for cities that support adoption of NbS at scale. During the event, the second call for proposals for the ‘Forum Research Program’ was announced along with the launch of a monthly masterclass series focusing on strengthening NbS action for city adaptation and resilience.

The Summit culminated with the NbS awards ceremony felicitating exemplary work across three categories – Champion, Enabler, and Implementation . The winners are Sudha S, IFS (Champion), GRRID Corps (Enabler), City of 1000 Tanks (Implementation) and YUVA (Implementation). The Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW), a Forum coalition partner, launched its report, ‘Accelerating Investments for the Nature-based Solutions in the Global South: A Unified Framework for Mapping and Estimating Benefits’, introducing a 3-step framework to support stakeholders towards accelerating much-needed investment in NbS.

Here are a few key takeaways from the day below:

• Addressing climate change challenges requires integrating nature-based solutions with modern technology and traditional wisdom. There is an urgent need to leverage both structural solutions, such as stormwater drains and non-structural solutions, like wetlands, for effective outcomes.
• Integration of local communities to address capacity issues within NbS is pivotal, especially the inclusion of women and our most vulnerable urban citizens, at all levels of decision-making and implementation.
• NbS help build our case to prioritise ecological concerns by emphasising how they align with “human” priorities.
• Financing NbS at scale requires a community-driven, multi-faceted approach involving government, impact investors, philanthropy, and eventually commercial capital.

Session recordings:

1. Opening Plenary : Policy and Regulatory Support for Nature in Cities.mp4 
2. Masterclass Series: Rejuvenating and reviving urban waterbodies – Learning from the experiences of Cheonggycheon and East Kolkata Wetlands.mp4 
3. Afternoon Plenary: Institutional Mechanisms Enabling NbS for Resilient Cities.mp4 
4. World Café: Mainstreaming NbS Challenges & Opportunities.mp4 
5. Investing in Nature: Unlocking Financial Opportunities for a Systems Approach to NbS.mp4 
6. NbS Awards and Pecha Kucha Presentations.mp4 

Press Coverage:
Times of India
GeoSpatial World
Asian Community News
Blogarama