Nature-based Solutions in plans and projects: methodological guidelines for integrating biodiversity and climate change in Impact Assessment

Abstract

Plans and projects, respectively, drive and materialize diversified development actions that affect sustainability, especially biodiversity and climate change. Brazil has a leading role in the international context to achieve the global goals of the Convention on Biological Diversity and in the recent Climate Agreements. In the planning cycle, from the policies, plans and programs (PPPs) to engineering projects, sustainability issues must integrate decision-making, supported by the Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA), for PPPs, and the Assessment of Environmental Impact (AIA) for individual projects. Nature-based Solutions (NbS) comprise a range of solutions, from plans to projects, to address societal challenges and contribute to reaching sustainability. This research has the general objective of proposing methodological guidelines for integrating NbS within the scope of SEA and EIA instruments to strengthen the consideration of biodiversity and climate change in the planning cycle. It is expected that the results of this unprecedented and innovative research can directly and immediately impact the application or review of current public policies. Furthermore, they aim to provide a technical and scientific basis for decision-making processes, harmonizing development with the reversal of biodiversity decline and mitigation and adaptation to climate change (AU)