NbS Private sector upscaling and capacity building - PBF Workshop Summary 18 November 2022

The Policy Business Forum (PBF) consists of Nature-based Solutions (NbS) experts and knowledgeable stakeholders at the international, European, and national scale. The main aim of the PBF is to explore innovative ways to strengthen the science-policy-business nexus in order to exploit opportunities and overcome barriers in NbS implementation in the disaster risk reduction (DRR) sector. The third and last PBF workshop of PHUSICOS had the ambition to better understand how to develop the capacities of private entrepreneurs closely involved in the implementation of NbS. It addressed topics such as the latent opportunities of firms offering NbS services across Europe to upscale their involvement in these strategies, which would entail, among other elements, greater collaboration between private, public and non-governmental entities, clear regulations and increased financial incentives (Conti et al., 2019). The forum also intended to further and deepen knowledge on the barriers and opportunities contractors experience for expanding their knowledge, the potential synergies between different types of expertise, and more. It welcomed 5 keynote speakers who provided an overview on: i) the success factors, enablers and barriers of nature-based enterprises (NBE) (Esmee Kooijman, Trinity College Dublin, Ireland); ii) means to ensure high quality NbS ( Dorsa Sheikholeslami, International Union for the Conservation of Nature); iii) the experience of Geneva river renaturation projects (Nathalie Nyssen, Firmenich Geneva ); iv) NbS as a landscape and public space strategy (Annelies De Nijs, Agenceter; and v) the role of insurance to protect natural assets and enable more nature-based solutions (Elaine O'Brien, Swiss Re).