Science-Policy Forum 2025 Recap

On 8 April 2025, the Biodiversa+ Science Policy Forum took place in Montpellier and online, bringing together researchers, policymakers, and practitioners from across Europe and beyond. The event focused on building capacity to mobilise Nature-based Solutions (NbS) in support of the Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF), and explored how to better connect science, policy, and practice to scale up NbS implementation effectively.

Challenges & priority actions

Discussions highlighted that while policy momentum around NbS continues to grow, significant barriers continue to hinder their widespread adoption:

• One major challenge is the limited general awareness among both stakeholders and the public. This challenge is closely tied to the ongoing difficulty of assessing how effective NbS truly are in the long run. Because NbS tend to be tailored to specific sites, it’s hard to capture their broader impact or compare them consistently to more conventional approaches. The absence of strong, long-term socio-ecological monitoring systems adds to the problem, making it difficult to build a reliable evidence base.
• Practical limitations were another key issue. Many organisations and authorities still lack the capacity—whether in terms of time, expertise, or resources—to fully engage with or implement NbS. Financial hurdles remain a major sticking point, especially as there’s still no widely accepted way to measure the economic value of these solutions. This makes it harder to bring in private investors, even though businesses are becoming more aware of the risks tied to biodiversity loss and ecosystem degradation.
• Regulatory and policy fragmentation adds yet another layer of difficulty. Efforts made at the international or EU level don’t always filter down effectively to local contexts, where action actually needs to take place. Participants noted that translating these high-level strategies into grounded, practical measures remains a significant challenge.
• Participants also raised concerns about the potential for unintended social consequences. For instance, well-meaning interventions can sometimes lead to gentrification or disrupting existing community dynamics. These examples highlight the importance of considering environmental and social justice from the start, not as afterthoughts. The lack of collaboration across disciplines—especially the limited involvement of engineers and other technical experts—was also flagged as a barrier to more holistic and effective strategies.

To address these challenges, the forum outlined a set of priority actions:

• Establishing integration: One key step is embedding NbS into national policy frameworks, as exemplified by France’s incorporation of NbS into its national adaptation and biodiversity plans. This not only provides clear strategic direction and legitimacy but also highlights the need to break down the traditional barriers between sectors. When government departments working on water, food, energy, climate, and health start collaborating closely, and when researchers, local communities, businesses, and technical professionals like engineers come together, the potential for effective NbS increases substantially.
• Building knowledge and capacity: The development of accessible tools and platforms—exemplified by NetworkNature’s role as a comprehensive resource hub—is essential to bridging critical gaps in our current understanding. More targeted research is needed, especially when it comes to long-term socio-ecological monitoring, which would help reveal not only the benefits but also the adaptive potential of NbS over time. This requires drawing on interdisciplinary expertise and ensuring that voices from the Global South are part of the conversation, fostering a two-way exchange of knowledge.
• Ensuring viability: This requires strengthening monitoring and evaluation frameworks to assess ecosystem services and socio-ecological outcomes comprehensively. Developing harmonised valuation metrics to quantify economic benefits remains a high priority, as these measurements are crucial for attracting private investment and building broader confidence in NbS. Rigorous, evidence-based approaches will ultimately boost trust among decision makers and the public alike.
• Fostering engagement: Communicating the benefits of NbS in ways that resonate with broader policy goals—such as boosting economic competitiveness—can help attract wider support. Locally, involving communities and stakeholders in the design of solutions ensures that interventions are tailored to specific contexts and genuinely meet local needs. Along with these efforts, embedding principles of equity and justice into every stage of implementation will help avoid unintended outcomes like gentrification and ensure that NbS truly provide inclusive benefits.

The forum concluded with a clear call to action: the time has come to bridge the gap between frameworks, knowledge, and practice. Advancing NbS at scale will require more than technical solutions; it demands coordinated action, sustained collaboration, and a shared commitment to transformative change.