This course provides an introduction to the science, policy, practice, resourcing and governance of nature-based solutions, taught by leading experts from the University of Oxford and beyond.

Why Nature-based Solutions?

Nature-based solutions are now widely recognised as playing a critical role in addressing major global challenges, in particular mitigating and adapting to climate change whilst delivering multiple benefits for people and nature.

With careful implementation, they can also build resilience and reduce risk within supply chains, and can help organisations meet both their net-zero and nature-positive goals.

Consequently, nature-based solutions have rapidly gained traction in business and policy over the past 2-3 years. However, there remains confusion about what counts as a nature-based solution, how they compare to tech-based approaches, and how they should be designed, implemented, financed and governed ethically and sustainably.

To address this, we offer the Nature-based Solutions to Global Challenges Foundation Course to improve awareness and understanding of the science, policy, practice, resourcing and governance of nature-based solutions.

Who Is this for?

This course is an introduction to NbS for professionals working in a range of sectors: staff at NGOs from the development and environmental sectors wanting to better understand the evidence from research and practice on how NbS can deliver multiple benefits and for whom, to enable them to hold governments to account; business executives wanting to better understand the risks and also the opportunities of investing in NbS; civil servants, regulators, and investors working to develop policies that can enable economic recovery whilst supporting net-zero and biodiversity goals; and philanthropists wanting to support activities that have positive outcomes for both people and nature.

It will provide participants with knowledge that will enhance future work on nature-based solutions.

We offer this as an online course delivered over 8 weeks.

The next course run will be in October 2025.

What is involved?

This 8-week online course will take place over 9 weeks to include a mid-course reading week. Each week will cover a critical theme around the science, policy, practice, governing and/or financing of NbS. There will be two sessions a week, each 2 hours long. The first hour of each session with involve a presentation on the theory and evidence around a particular theme, followed by Q&A; the second hour, will involve break out sessions or panels, and be highly interactive with examples of the practice of NbS from around the world, highlighting good as well as bad practice examples related to the theme of the day.

Presentations will be delivered and workshops facilitated by world-leading experts from Oxford University and beyond on the science, policy and practice of nature-based solutions and will draw on examples from a wide range of ecological, socioeconomic and political contexts from across the world. Attendance and participation at all sessions are expected.