Using Geodesign as a boundary management process for planning nature-based solutions in river landscapes

authored by: Sarah Gottwald, Jana Brenner, Ron Janssen, Christian Albert
Abstract: Planning with nature-based solutions (NBS) presents a participatory approach that harnesses actions supported by nature to address societal challenges. Whilst Geodesign may facilitate participatory planning, manage boundaries between participants, and assess impacts of NBS, empirical insights remain scarce. This paper aims to develop and test a Geodesign process for planning with NBS, and to evaluate its contributions to boundary management. In a one-day Geodesign process, eleven stakeholders delineated priority areas, changed land uses, and observed resulting impacts on ecosystem services. Contributions to boundary management were evaluated regarding translation, communication and mediation functions, as well as perceived attributions of credibility, salience, and legitimacy. Results include spatial NBS scenarios and insights into contributions to boundary management: translating scenario stories into maps differed depending on the stakeholders involved; communication can be easily facilitated; yet mediation using an indicator tool led to frustration. Geodesign can indeed facilitate NBS co-design but needs to be integrated into a larger collaborative process.
Organisation(s): Institute of Environmental Planning
External Organisation(s): Ruhr-Universität Bochum
Vrije Universiteit
Type: Article
Journal: AMBIO
Volume: 50
Pages: 1477-1496
No. of pages: 20
ISSN: 0044-7447
Publication date: 08.2021
Publication status: Published
Peer reviewed: Yes
ASJC Scopus subject areas: Environmental Chemistry, Geography, Planning and Development, Ecology
Sustainable Development Goals: SDG 15 - Life on Land
Electronic version(s): https://doi.org/10.1007/s13280-020-01435-4 (Access: Open)
https://doi.org/10.1007/s13280-021-01592-0 (Access: Open)