Nature-based Solutions (NBS) for EU cities and regions represent an integral part of the EU's transition to achieving climate neutrality. In this panel, moderated by Ecologic Institute's McKenna Davis, experts discussed effective, just and inclusive strategies to design, implement and manage NBS, while engaging under-represented or marginalised stakeholders. The event was part of the European Week of Regions and Cities.

On the 12 and 13 May 2022, the INTERLACE project held the first Latin American Cities Talk Nature Engagement Event in San José, Costa Rica. The project is led by Ecologic Institute.

The Ecologic Institute developed the INTERLACE project website. It provides information and materials to strengthen urban ecosystem restoration in the European Union and Latin America. INTERLACE aims to strengthen cooperation, learning and peer-to-peer interactions on the local, regional and global scales through the Cities Talk Nature mechanism. The six partner cities are central to this process, providing and sharing experiences with other cities globally and building technical and procedural capacities. A web-based Innovation Hub will support these efforts by disseminating INTERLACE's results and the hands-on tools for urban decision-makers and planners created by the project.

Exciting news: We are developing an Urban Governance Atlas for nature-based solutions as part of the INTERLACE project … and we want you to be a part of it! The Urban Governance Atlas (UGA) will be an interactive online database of around 250 good practice policy instruments that support the use of nature-based solutions (NBS) for urban ecosystem restoration and more inclusive green space planning.

How can European citizens become architects of the cities of tomorrow? The New European Bauhaus is an initiative to make our living spaces and experiences more beautiful, sustainable and inclusive. Nature-based solutions are seen as a key element to achieve this vision. To this end, the hybrid conference 'LIFE in the New European Bauhaus' was held from 15 until 17 November 2021. Sandra Naumann from the Ecologic Institute was invited as an expert to share insights from the H2020 INTERLACE project.

Nature-based solutions (NbS) are crucial for cities to jointly address the climate and biodiversity crises, while creating quality green jobs and wellbeing for local communities. This COP26 EU Side Event featured different sector practitioners (policy makers, entrepreneurs, international organizations) delivering inspiring presentations and engaging in a panel discussion highlighting a variety of perspectives on key challenges, opportunities, and pathways to mainstream urban NbS and boost local economies.

The six city partners of the INTERLACE project, Chemnitz in Germany, Corredor Biológico Interurbano Río María Aguilar-San José in Costa Rica, Envigado in Colombia, Granollers in Spain, Metropolia Krakowska in Poland and Portoviejo in Ecuador officially kicked-off the project's activities in their cities in a series of events conducted across March 2021.

The Urban Agenda for the EU recognizes the importance of nature-based solutions as tools for sustainable recovery and development. Yet implementation and mainstreaming at city level remain limited. Can the European Green Deal support these efforts? What role can European research projects play? To answer these questions, McKenna Davis was invited as an expert to contribute to the European Urban Knowledge Network’s (EUKN) Policy Lab on 'The Urban Agenda for the EU, its 'green' actions and the European Green Deal'. The 18 March 2021 event aimed to unravel the 'green' actions of the Urban Agenda for the EU and develop concrete messages for the ministers under Slovenia's Presidency on how to support cities dealing with regulatory obstacles when trying to reach environmental goals.

Cities and their peripheries are constantly confronted with challenges such as urban sprawl, climate change and pollution. These processes can exacerbate the degradation of natural ecosystems, and jeopardize ecosystem service provisioning with negative consequences for human health and well-being, biodiversity, social cohesion and equity, and, finally, city resilience. The INTERLACE project brings together a unique consortium of European and Latin American partners to contribute to effectively restoring and rehabilitating urban ecosystems to make cities more livable, resilient and inclusive. The project aims to advance knowledge and awareness of restorative nature-based solutions (NBS), such as the restoration of wetlands and rivers, as well as to foster more ecologically coherent and integrated city planning processes. In addition, it lays the foundation for sustained multi-directional cooperation and exchange between European and Latin American cities for wider transformative impact.

On 16 and 17 August 2022, the 3rd International Forum on Urbanism – Portoviejo Vision 2035, for urban development and design of cities on a human scale with a focus on climate change, was held in the Las Vegas Park in the city of Portoviejo. Natalia Burgos Cuevas, Researcher at Ecologic Institute, was invited as keynote speaker to talk about on the promotion of nature-based solutions in Latin America drawing on the insights gathered from the Urban Governance Atlas, developed in INTERLACE.