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Urban green infrastructure is often promoted as a form of nature-based solutions (NbS) designed to simultaneously address environmental, social, and economic challenges. These interventions are expected to deliver benefits across all three dimensions. While existing evidence suggests that urban NbS can indeed tackle multiple issues concurrently, it remains unclear to what extent different components of green infrastructure contribute to these outcomes, and how this translates into practical decisions related to pl...

The transition to renewable energy is a high-priority agenda across Europe, particularly in Northern Europe. This shift is critical for achieving both environmental and economic sustainability. Northern Europe, with its high energy consumption and strong support for green policies, has the potential to lead in this transition. However, the region faces a unique set of social and ecological challenges that, if not carefully addressed, could undermine the sustainability of proposed solutions, harm natural ecosystems...

Global biodiversity decline is dramatic. Urbanization is a global trend that is often driving biodiversity loss. At the same time urban green spaces can maintain high levels of biodiversity. However, for urban Nature-based Solutions to maintain biodiversity they have to be designed and managed with this goal in mind. Furthermore, there are certain risks to biodiversity associated with the urban green infrastructure. These risks merit consideration when urban planning is undertaken. Approaches to green infrastructu...

Urbanization is an ongoing trend. It causes various negative issues, including strain on human health and biodiversity. Cities are often subject to negative effects of climate change. Currently green and blue infrastructure are often seen as potential solutions for these problems. However, integration of topographically diverse sites and geological elements into urban landscapes is rarely considered as an important measure for addressing societal and environmental issues in cities. This can lead to lost opportunit...

The current dramatic pace of biodiversity loss requires immediate and decisive action. The Nature Positive Agenda implies recovery of lost natural ecosystems and gain of new ones that would overcompensate for biodiversity loss. Achievement of such an ambitious agenda is not trivial. It requires mobilization of resources and stakeholders across public and private sectors. Obviously, efforts of protected area establishment are not sufficient as it only implies protection of existing habitats, not gain of new ones. G...

Geopark networks are expanding globally, with the main purpose to protect geoheritage. In many places of the world geopark sites are associated with local cultural heritage and indigenous people. These links sometimes are synergistic, whereby geoparks serve as important protected areas that allow for preservation of important cultural objects and even support livelihoods of indigenous people. However, in some cases geopark development is perceived negatively by local communities and might have potentially damaging...

Global heating is happening at an unprecedented speed. As a result, both human society and natural ecosystems are facing significant challenges. Numerous tools and policies are being implemented both for climate change mitigation and adaptation. Substantial amount of funding has been pledged by international governments and private corporations to support these efforts. One of particularly promising tools that tends to gain popularity for addressing climate change are Nature-based Solutions. These tools can be use...

Geographical areas with high biodiversity, high geodiversity and high cultural diversity tend to coincide. However, conservation strategies tend to consider these aspect of diversity separately, instead of considering them all together. Application of an integrated approach could potentially improve effectiveness of conservation actions and deliver significant benefits both to human and to the natural environment. Practical implementation of the integrated approach might, however, be problematic due to the fact th...

Nature-based Solutions is an umbrella concept, gaining traction in recent years. It implies working with nature in order to simultaneously address multiple challenges humanity faces today, including biodiversity loss, climate change, food and energy insecurity. Nature-based Solutions are being applied across landscape types, including urban, rural, forest and protected areas. Combining nature-based solutions with landscape design, however, has predominantly been considered in cities. However, there is a great pote...

Forest restoration programmes take place globally and lay a pivotal role in addressing climate change and biodiversity loss. Often restoration programmes are based on simple plantation schemes, evenly planting trees that later on might contribute to economic activity. This, however, does not seem to be sufficient for supporting biodiversity. Recent research suggests that successful restorations should match original ecological patterns in any particular landscape, assuming that severe erosion and changing soil con...

Food security is one of the most important issues that needs to be addressed in order to achieve UN Sustainable Development Goals. Currently multiple technologies are used in conventional agricultural practices, including application of artificial intelligence and GIS. However, the technologies are rarely considered in sustainable farming practices. Organic agriculture, although gaining traction in recent times, mostly relies on traditional, rather than technologically advanced approaches. There are, however, mult...

UNESCO’s Global Geopark Network reflects the importance of geo-heritage for society. The wide range of characteristics and the varied connections to the local ecology and culture are significant for their individual management. The aim of this article is to use comparisons between Geoparks as a step toward a generic, conceptual model that can be adapted and used to understand the crucial, functional relationships between system variables and how these variables can be optimized for stainable management. A general ...

The UNESCO Global Geopark network is expanding. Geoparks are intended to play important roles in sustainable development. For this to happen, new sites geopark establishment need to be carefully evaluated. In addition, protection and maintenance of heritage and sustainability within established geoparks requires effective monitoring. Modern geographic information system (GIS) technologies have a lot to offer for effective landscape-scale assessments and monitoring of geo park territories. However, little attention...

Large scale infrastructure construction projects and industrial activity including mining, energy and manufacturing usually involve complex trade-offs on competing land-uses. As a result, often industrial and construction initiatives lead to biodiversity loss. Regional and landscape scale planning may be used to minimise negative impacts on natural ecosystems, thereby contributing to achievement of the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals. Modern geographic information systems (GIS) and information te...

Europe currently faces a range of serious ecological problems, such as collapse of avifauna, decline of pollinator biodiversity and widespread soil erosion. Multiple factors affect ecological processes at landscape and regional scales. Most recent European Union (EU) agenda intends to address biodiversity decline and climate change by implementation of green infrastructure, sustainable agriculture and forestry, as well a range of other interventions. However, European Commission generally moves towards decentraliz...

Landscape design and land art are usually associated with professional activity of designers and artists. However, implementation of landscape design projects and creation of land art objects may be achieved by efforts of regular citizens. Involvement in landscape decoration activities may create high level of participant engagement. This both landscape design and land art may be used for achievement of community engagement in achievement of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Involvement of individu...