How Nature-based solutions can improve climate mitigation and adaptation outcomes: a case study of Alpes-Maritimes.

Abstract: Urban areas are facing complex environmental, economic and social challenges as a result of climate change. The interconnected problems, such as water pollution, coastal erosion, social segregation and loss of biodiversity are often treated with conventional solutions – grey infrastructure. Grey infrastructure is designed to solve specific problems without considering any aspect of environmental, economic or social impact nor the aspect of resilience and sustainability. The current situation in the Alpes-Maritimes paints a picture where the region is widely affected by climate change and has resulted in multiple deaths and several billion Euros in damage over the past 25 years. As a preventative measure to climate change the concept of Nature-Based Solutions (NBS) has been brought up on the agenda among French practitioners and stakeholders in the Alpes-Maritimes. The thesis aims to answer how NBS can improve climate mitigation and adaptation outcomes in the Alpes-Maritimes. The umbrella term of NBS has been widely discussed to tackle the loss of biodiversity and coastal erosion among others. Why NBS have not yet been implemented and introduced in the Alpes-Maritimes is mainly due to cultural differences and the relation the French have between nature and the human being.