[Portugal] Launch of NBS Hub in partnership with Network Nature

• 22/02/2023

The City of Portimão, URBiNAT and NetworkNature partnered to launch a nature-based solutions (NBS) hub in Portugal, January 26-28th, 2023.

IFLA Europe, as a part of NetworkNature Stakeholder Board, was represented at this event by Margarida Cancela d’Abreu, IFLA Europe Vice President for Education.

NBS HUB Portugal is a gathering space for meeting and fertilizing with specialists in Nature-Based Solutions, citizens, municipalities, associations, researchers, companies and professionals and aims to be a platform for sharing good practices and applied knowledge. Our initial focus is to promote an active Citizenship through participation for the recognition of the importance of NBS, as well as the creation of cooperative networks for the implementation of these practices throughout the national territory, namely through their access to European funding lines and Worldwide for the NBS.

The aim of the NBS Hub is to facilitate the establishment of a community of practice and interest that involves and promotes dialogue and cooperation between different actors, knowledge and experiences. The NBS HUB Portugal is also part of a wider European network of promoters and developers of nature-based solutions, aiming to create opportunities for local, regional and international cooperation and maximize its impact and dissemination.

Europe has been a pioneer in the development and application of the concept of Nature Based Solutions (NBS). The NBS seek the protection, regeneration and enhancement of ecosystems, as well as their sustainable development and management. They play a key role in mitigating the effects of climate change, helping to prevent damage caused by extreme weather events and natural disasters, for water and food security, and for maintaining a healthy and livable urban environment.

We need, however, to promote a cognitive and behavioral change for all. In the way we think, reflect and implement innovation strategies, whether in territories, in companies, or in our lives and daily actions of consumption, community living and active citizenship.

We still need new models of co-governance, more participatory, based on ethical principles and values of diversity, inclusion, equity, human rights, and oriented towards common objectives of circularity, sustainability and co-creation. That is what the NBS has been set up for.

About NetworkNature
NetworkNature is a resource for the nature-based solutions community, creating opportunities for local, regional and international cooperation to maximise the impact and spread of nature-based solutions. The project is funded by the European Commission under the Horizon 2020 programme. NetworkNature is working with local partners to establish and support the launch of six NBS hubs. The hubs bring researchers, policy-makers, businesses, and the public sector together to create long-lasting structures for NBS uptake, foster capacity building and knowledge exchange, build relationships and new partnerships, and create a nuanced understanding of NbS and address local specificities of barriers and opportunities for NBS.