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)