Search

The flooding event in Germany in 2021 caused fatal and devastating consequences for the citizens, economy, infrastructure, and more. Research has been focusing on analyzing the meteorological and hydrological aspects of the flooding, the early warning system and warning dissemination, and the flood impact. However, research is lacking a deeper understanding of the perspective of the affected citizens. To give a voice to the affected people, a survey with open and closed questions was disseminated receiving around 430 responses. The survey captured the citizens' perceptions of the high impact flood event and their actions before, during, and after the event. The gained knowledge on lessons learnt and best practices shall support the enhancement of future strategies for citizens' self-preparedness and response, overall situational awareness, and emergency communication.

Social media is increasingly scraped to extract information on various topics. Within EU-funded projects, text mining is being applied to gain insights into public perceptions on climate change, citizen science activities, and on the relationship between climate, health, and ecosystems. For this purpose, natural language processing tools were used to automatically pre-process, clean, and extract meaningful segments from the text posted on social networks. The proposed text mining tools are building on the open-source pre-training method for natural language understanding (BERT) and use language models pre-trained on large amount of generic and domain specific texts. With this method, domain-specific meaningful phrases, named entities (places, organizations, etc.), and overall post sentiment are extracted to gain an understanding of the public perceptions: in the H2020 I-CHANGE project, we analyzed posts from Twitter to gain an understanding of current trends around climate change and citizen science but also to summarize people’s perceptions of risks derived from climate change and hydrometeorological hazards. While in the HEA TRIGGER project, text mining is used to detect and assess the human perception of health impacts from climate stressors.

Nature-based solutions (NbS) can be beneficial to help human communities build resilience to climate change bymanaging and mitigating related hydro-meteorological hazards (HMHs). Substantial research has been carriedout in the past on the detection and assessment of HMHs and their derived risks. Yet, knowledge on the performanceand functioning of NbS to address these hazards is severely lacking. The latter is exacerbated by thelack of practical and viable approaches that would help identify and select NbS for specific problems. The EUfundedOPERANDUM project established seven Open-Air Laboratories (OALs) across Europe to co-develop,test, and generate an evidence base from innovative NbS deployed to address HMHs such as flooding,droughts, landslides, erosion, and eutrophication. Herein, we detail the original approaches that each OAL followedin the process of identifying and selecting NbS for specific hazards with the aim of proposing a novel,generic framework for selecting NbS. We found that the process of selecting NBS was overall complex andcontext-specific in all the OALs, and it comprised 26 steps distributed across three stages: (i) Problem recognition,(ii) NbS identification, and (iii) NbS selection. We also identified over 20 selection criteria which, in mostcases, were shared across OALs and were chiefly related to sustainability aspects. All the identified NbS wererelated to the regulation of the water cycle, and they were mostly chosen according to three main factors: (i)hazard type, (ii) hazard scale, and (iii) OAL size. We noticed that OALs exposed to landslides and erosion selectedNbS capable to manage water budgets within the soil compartment at the local or landscape scale, while OALsexposed to floods, droughts, and eutrophication selected approaches to managing water transport and storage atthe catchment scale. We successfully portrayed a synthesis of the stages and steps followed in the OALs’ NbSselection process in a framework. The framework, which reflects the experiences of the stakeholders involved, isinclusive and integrated, and it can serve as a basis to inform NbS selection processes whilst facilitating theorganisation of diverse stakeholders working towards finding solutions to natural hazards. We animate the futuredevelopment of the proposed framework by integrating financial viability steps. We also encourage studieslooking into the implementation of the proposed framework through quantitative approaches integrating multicriteriaanalyses.

In the context of disaster risk management and climate change adaptation, Nature-based Solutions (NBS) are being increasingly recognized and promoted as viable measures against hydro-meteorological hazards, while also being able to provide a range of environmental, social, and economic benefits. Yet, the employment of NBS to mitigate the impact of hydro-meteorological phenomena remains still sporadic and uncoordinated at the global and European level.In order to assist competent authorities, practitioners and other stakeholders in developing successful NBS interventions for hydro-meteorological risk mitigation and climate change adaptation, while also raising general public awareness and community stewardship of NBS, the EU-H2020 project OPERANDUM has recently launched a multi-dimensional, open and user-friendly web-platform called GeoIKP (Geospatial Information Knowledge Platform).GeoIKP follows a multi-stakeholder approach demonstrated through the integration of multiple modules related to science, policy and practice. This contribution offers an overview of GeoIKP and discusses in detail some of the innovative aspects and tools of the platform. It represents the first example of NBS web-platform with advanced interface customization. Functionalities and graphical interfaces are tailored to match specific user needs and interests for six different user profiles: 1) policy bodies (from international to local level), 2) knowledge-based organizations (research institutions, labs and data providers), 3) companies or private businesses, 4) associations, interest groups and grass-roots movements, 5) citizens and 6) other affected or interested parties (e.g. media outlets).The platform combines the latest scientific and technological knowledge on the topic gathered within OPERANDUM with advanced webGIS functionalities, analytical algorithms, and a comprehensive repository for NBS data (and metadata) management and cataloging. The highly structured and comprehensive data model adopted here enables to query the database and/or filter the results based on a multitude of individual parameters which encompass all different dimensions of NBS (e.g. geophysical, societal, environmental, etc.). This not only allows for a straightforward and automatic association to one or more thematic aspects of NBS, but also enhances standardization, discoverability and interoperability of NBS data in the context of disaster risk management and climate change adaptation.Among its functionalities, GeoIKP offers an interactive map which enables users to visualize and combine in real time geo-referenced datasets on a variety of thematic areas (hydro-meteorological hazards and associated socio-ecological risks, land cover/use characteristics, climate, Earth and ground observations, etc.), thus providing evidence-base support for the planning and management of NBS in a given geographic area. Through the map, the user can also access a geo-catalogue of existing NBS, and thus discover how NBS have been employed worldwide for hydro-meteorological risk reduction and climate change adaptation. At the same time, the platform serves as a hub for the growing NBS community to share information, tools, data, and experiences to reduce hydro-meteorological hazards. For example, scientists and practitioners can freely contribute to GeoIKP data repository as well as to the NBS catalogue, while the “Citizen Stories” functionality gives a voice to vulnerable, affected or concerned citizens to share personal experiences of how and why they started applying NBS to their areas, and to inspire others to take action.

Nature-based Solutions function as an umbrella concept for ecosystem-based approaches that are an alternative to traditional engineering solutions for Disaster Risk Reduction. Their rising popularity is explained partly by their entailing additional benefits (so called co-benefits) for the environment, society, and economy. The few existing frameworks for assessing co-benefits are lacking guidance on co-benefit pre-assessment that is required for the NBS selection and permission process. Going beyond these, this paper develops a comprehensive guidance on quantitative pre-assessment of potential co-benefits and disbenefits of NBS tackling Disaster Risk Reduction. It is based on methods and frameworks from existing literature around NBS and related disciplines. Furthermore, this paper discusses the evaluation of the quantified results of the pre-assessment. In particular, the evaluation focuses on the significance of change of the estimated co-benefits and disbenefits as well as the sustainability of the NBS. This paper will support decision-making in planning processes on suitability and sustainability of Nature-based Solutions and assist in the preparation of Environmental Impact Assessments of projects.

Nature-based solutions are increasingly implemented to tackle disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation. Their rising popularity over grey solutions is partially explained by their number of additional benefits (so called co-benefits) for the socio-ecological system (SES). Frameworks are available to monitor and assess co-benefits, however, these frameworks are lacking clear guidance and ex-ante quantification of co-benefits and potential disbenefits of NBS. Another limitation is the accessibility and quality (representativeness) of data for computing indicators, especially, going towards larger scales (regional, pan-European). To develop a comprehensive framework and method for assessing and estimating possible side effects in advance, this paper aligns to existing frameworks but goes beyond those by providing practical guidance on data sourcing (including possible proxy variables) and quantification of both co-benefits and disbenefits. The resulting framework will support decision-making on area specific suitability of NBS for disaster risk reduction. Furthermore, it will enhance the planners’ knowledge and understanding of linked processes which can lead to potential positive and negative side effects; thus, this guidance will build a base for selecting suitable locations and NBS interventions.

Nature-Based Solutions (NBS) refer to the sustainable management, protection and use of nature to preserve the ecosystem and prevent the loss of biodiversity. Given the multiple environmental, social, and economic benefits they provide to society, NBS have been increasingly promoted and implemented in cities, especially for air pollution mitigation and the improving of human thermal comfort and well-being. Several databases and web platforms already exist, which document these beneficial impacts of NBS in our cities by collecting and exposing existing NBS case studies and projects from around globe. However, the effort of cataloging and storing NBS data according to common and harmonized principles and standards seems yet sporadic and uncoordinated at the global and European level, especially in the context of natural hazard-related disasters. Nature-based solutions have been indeed recently emerged as viable and effective measures to mitigate the impacts of hydro-meteorological phenomena such as floods, landslide, etc. in both urban and rural environments, an aspect not often emphasized in the existing databases.Driven by the ambition of overcoming these two main gaps, an innovative geo-catalogue of existing NBS has been developed within the framework of GeoIKP, the NBS web-platform newly created by the EU H2020 project OPERANDUM.The geo-catalogue represents a comprehensive, geo-referenced, database of NBS case studies which are specifically designed to mitigate the risk and impacts of hydro-meteorological hazards, under a variety of environmental setting and hazard categories. It therefore represents a novel and open-access data source to learn about, and explore, the usability of NBS in fulfilling climate mitigation and adaptation objectives over a wide range of hydro-meteorological hazards.Case studies collected from various resources (NBS platforms, scientific literature, technical reports, OPERANDUM living labs, etc.) are revised, classified and harmonized according to internationally recognized standard and classification schemes (e.g., INSPIRE legislation, MAES classification, etc.) which allow to characterize each NBS through a comprehensive set of parameters, including the type of hazard and ecosystem, the societal challenges and driving policies linked to it, the type of intervention and its spatial coverage, among many others.The highly structured and comprehensive data model adopted here enables to query the database and/or filter the results based on a multitude of individual parameters which encompass all different dimensions of NBS (e.g. geophysical, societal, environmental, etc.). This not only allows for a straightforward and automatic association to one or more thematic aspects of NBS, but also enhances standardization, discoverability and interoperability of NBS data.

As part of H2020 OPERANDUM project, a multi-dimensional, open and user-friendly platform is being developed, named OPERANDUM Geospatial Information Knowledge Platform (GeoIKP), which enables stakeholders and end-users to improve their knowledge of nature-based solutions (NBS) as a long-term and sustainable measure for mitigation and reduction of flooding, coastal erosion, landslide and other hydro-meteorological hazards. This contribution offers an overview of GeoIKP and discusses in detail some of the innovative aspects of the platform, such as a the integration of a NBS data management portal with a web application offering advanced webGIS tools, a comprehensive catalogue of NBS, as well as analytical algorithms to demonstrate the effectiveness of NBS in reducing hydro-meteorological risks.The platform design is being based on intuitive techniques, ease of access, dynamic navigability, interactive knowledge management, and multiple format compatibility. It empowers the multiple and diverse actors involved in the NBS co-design/co-development process (policymakers, citizens, enterprises, scientists, etc.) to visualize and query geo-referenced data for the specific area of interest.In its first - yet preliminary - release, GeoIKP already offers a variety of functionalities and geo-referenced data of relevance for NBS, while at the same time it provides more standardized ways for NBS data (and metadata) management and cataloging. We conclude by reflecting on some of the current challenges associated with NBS data, such as adequacy and discoverability.

During the past decades, risk assessment experienced increasing interest in social science but also natural science and other disciplines. At the same time, risk reduction and mitigation gained in interest from local to global level due to the shift from reactive to proactive management. Hazard and risk assessment have been approached on different levels, nonetheless, they are lacking elements such as cross-border assessment or the integration of an ecological risk assessment. One of the objectives of the H2020 Operandum project is to provide an automated science-based assessment of risk for the social-ecological system and further of the applicability and performance of Nature-based Solutions (NBS) for risk mitigation of hydro-meteorological hazards.Within this project, an interactive webGIS analytical engine and an NBS catalogue are being developed as part of the Geospatial Information Knowledge Platform (GeoIKP). The analytical engine will encompass open Europe-wide hazard maps and link them with local high-resolution information from public and innovative data sources (e.g. Facebook). These two geo-tools are combined into a recommendation engine - NBS toolkit - trained on existing NBS. Using a holistic approach, the NBS toolkit aims at providing risk assessment and advanced recommendations on NBS usage for mitigation. For this approach, the NBS toolkit incorporates hazard and risk assessment in space and time, cost-benefit analysis, and additionally main drivers and constraints for NBS implementations as well as their geographical transferability, replicability and performance/effectiveness. This contribution will offer an insight into the concept and development of the NBS toolkit. Primarily, it will focus on the added value of the NBS toolkit for future nature-based implementation, risk mitigation management and decision-making at all levels. Challenges and current limitations of real-time risk assessment will also be discussed, with a focus on their implications on NBS monitoring and effectiveness.

Nature-based solutions (NBS) are increasingly being implemented as suitable approaches for reducing vulnerabilityand risk of social-ecological systems (SES) to hydro-meteorological hazards. Understanding vulnerabilityand risk of SES is crucial in order to design and implement NBS projects appropriately. A systematic literaturereview was carried out to examine the suitability of, or gaps in, existing frameworks for vulnerability and riskassessment of SES to hydro-meteorological hazards. The review confirms that very few frameworks have beendeveloped in the context of NBS. Most of the frameworks have emphasised social systems over ecological systems.Furthermore, they have not explicitly considered the temporal dimension of risk reduction measures. Thestudy proposes an indicator-based vulnerability and risk assessment framework in the context of NBS (VR-NBS)that addresses both the above limitations and considers established NBS principles. The framework aims to allowfor a better consideration of the multiple benefits afforded by NBS and which impact all the dimensions of risk. Alist of 135 indicators is identified through literature review and surveys in NBS project sites. This list is composedof indicators representing the social sub-system (61% of total indicators) and the ecological sub-system (39% oftotal indicators). The list will act as a reference indicator library in the context of NBS projects and will beregularly updated as lessons are learnt. While the proposed VR-NBS framework is developed considering hydrometeorologicalhazards and NBS, it can be adapted for other natural hazards and different types of risk reductionmeasures.